IFundWomen • Johnnie Walker First Strides Grant Program

Johnnie Walker and IFundWomen have teamed up once again to support trailblazing women-owned businesses who are pushing boundaries to move culture forward and create more opportunities for women to achieve their goals. This application is now closed.

Calling all innovators

Since 2020, IFundWomen and Johnnie Walker have partnered to celebrate and enable cultural innovators taking strides to create positive impact. By providing capital and coaching, selected women entrepreneurs can continue to achieve firsts for their businesses, and their communities. Cheers to all those pushing boundaries towards gender equality and creating space for seconds, thirds, and fourths to follow!

Johnnie Walker Grant Programs

Johnnie Walker First Strides

The Johnnie Walker First Strides initiative, which celebrates and enables cultural innovators taking strides to create positive impact, will fund 10 groundbreaking women-owned businesses in celebration of Women’s History Month. Businesses selected by an inspiring network of individuals will receive a $10K grant plus one year of premium coaching services through IFundWomen.

Jane Walker by Johnnie Walker ‘First Women’ Campaign

As part of the First Women campaign, Jane Walker and IFundWomen have teamed up to help create more opportunities for women to achieve their goals. Jane Walker will be funding a total of 30 groundbreaking women-owned businesses through the end of the year. Businesses will be selected across the Entertainment & Film, Music, Sports, STEM, Journalism and Hospitality industries to receive a $10K grant plus one year of premium coaching service through IFundWomen.

Meet our recipients

Johnnie Walker First Strides builds on the impact of the Jane Walker by Johnnie Walker ‘First Women’ Program launched in 2020, which championed the many women who continue to break glass ceilings in order to achieve monumental firsts. First Strides continues to celebrate the achievements of women and all those pushing boundaries towards gender equality and blazing trails for more seconds, thirds and fourths to follow.

Kimberly Huggins and Brittany Brathwaite

Co-Founders of

KIMBRITIVE

KIMBRITIVE is the unapologetic sexual wellness platform reimagining the health and wellbeing of Black women and girls. For over a decade, KIMBRITIVE has provided culturally affirming sex-education to youth, young adults and professionals, holding space for Black women to be both sexually informed and liberated.

Shira Yevin

Founder of

Gritty in Pink

INPINK is a new marketplace network connecting music industry pros with a community of diverse female creators. Gritty In Pink started as a community of 200+ emerging female musicians, and is now expanding to women who work in all aspects of the music business, setting the stage to become the global destination for female freelancers in every industry.

Korena Hallam & Summer Hurd

Co-Founders of

Green Buffalow

Green Buffalow is the first female owned and operated company that has disrupted a male dominated industry by creating the best fitting, most comfortable wildland fire uniforms for women so firefighters can continue being badasses. Their products encompass sizing and shaping that is made for a woman to address the fact that women have always been expected to wear uniforms designed for men.

Nia-Tayler Clark

Founder of

Blacklit

BLACKLIT brings Black stories front and center, proudly serving as home to the first monthly subscription box to exclusively highlight both Black authors & entrepreneurs. Inside every box, subscribers receive a book a Black author, a shirt, and 3-5 products from Black-owned businesses. They are on a mission to offer convenience and inspiration to readers, and exposure to and for black small businesses.

Michelle Hanabusa

Founder of

WEAREUPRISERS

UPRISERS is a community-driven streetwear brand rooted in amplifying impactful and authentic stories of the underrepresented. Committed to inspire conversations around social + environmental justice, mental health and equality, and so much more, UPRISERS provides healing and builds power for the underrepresented.