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These women-led companies are changing the world

By
Emma Hinchliffe
Emma Hinchliffe
and
Joey Abrams
Joey Abrams
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By
Emma Hinchliffe
Emma Hinchliffe
and
Joey Abrams
Joey Abrams
Down Arrow Button Icon
September 29, 2023, 9:11 AM ET
Mette Lykke
Mette Lykke, CEO of Too Good To Go.Courtesy of Too Good To Go

Good morning, Broadsheet readers! Lululemon is hitting the brakes on Mirror, British entrepreneur Debbie Wosskow is sounding the alarm on the potentially harmful consequences of women working from home, and these companies are changing the world. Have a restful weekend!

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– Big impact. Every year, Fortune‘s Change the World list honors companies that are making a difference while also making a profit—or doing well by doing good. The new edition of the list is out this week, and women-led businesses are among the 50 companies making an impact. Still others are working to improve the lives of women worldwide.

—Santander, the Spanish bank led by executive chairman Ana Botín, runs a program called Santander Universities that offers scholarships and entrepreneurship opportunities in 25 countries. It’s reached 1 million people since its founding in 1996.

—The Swiss biopharmaceutical company Ferring, which specializes in maternal health as well as gastroenterology and urology, developed heat-stable carbetocin, a drug that works to prevent postpartum hemorrhage. The drug doesn’t need to be kept as cold as oxytocin, traditionally used to address the dangerous childbirth complication that kills 70,000 women a year globally. Since 2021, Ferring has delivered more than 800,000 doses to 15 countries where storage and transport of oxytocin is challenging.

— The technology offered by Maria Colacurcio’s Seattle-based startup Syndio is used by companies like Walmart and Salesforce to analyze race- and gender-based pay gaps. Syndio says it’s helped underpaid workers receive $167 million in compensation.

— Bobbie, the infant formula startup led by cofounder and CEO Laura Modi, saw its customers through last year’s U.S. formula shortage and is poised to expand its market share with a recent acquisition.

— Yum China, the company behind brands KFC and Pizza Hut in China and led by CEO Joey Wat, has implemented “grow local initiatives” to introduce regional produce to menus and help address rural poverty.

— CEO Mette Lykke’s Too Good to Go has kept 243 million meals out of landfills by selling restaurants’ extra food for a discount.

— An alliance of Australian VCs is committed to sharing data about their investments and vetting processes to help close the country’s funding gap for women founders.

For more, see the full 2023 Change the World list here.

Emma Hinchliffe
emma.hinchliffe@fortune.com
@_emmahinchliffe

The Broadsheet is Fortune’s newsletter for and about the world’s most powerful women. Today’s edition was curated by Joseph Abrams. Subscribe here.

ALSO IN THE HEADLINES

- Farewell to a trailblazer. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) died Thursday evening at the age of 90. The oldest member of the Senate and longest-serving woman, Feinstein's legislative achievements notably championed gun control and environmental causes. Prior to her three decades in the Senate, she paved the way for women in politics as the first woman elected mayor of San Francisco. NBC News

- Mirror breaks. Lululemon is slamming the brakes on Mirror, the brand of 43-inch workout screens that the company acquired from entrepreneur Brynn Putnam in 2020, with plans to stop selling the devices by the end of the year. The athleisure brand purchased Mirror for $500 million but has failed to make it profitable. Now, Lululemon is tapping Peloton as its connected fitness partner. The Verge

- Maintaining presence. British entrepreneur Debbie Wosskow OBE is worried that consistent remote work, despite its positive effect on women with childcare responsibilities, will set women back when it comes to gender-related issues in the office. Because men are more likely to work from the office, Wosskow warns that issues like wage equality and conversations about women's issues could fall out of relevance. Fortune

- Marketing misogyny. Marketing with influencers has proven a lasting and lucrative strategy for companies seeking publicity, but the influencer market, which consists of significantly more women than men, is surprisingly misogynistic. Many female influencers earn less than their male counterparts and struggle to be perceived as serious amid labels like “mommy blogger.” Fast Company

- She's in the bleachers. Taylor Swift's power to shape the economy continues unabated. After the singer joined player Travis Kelce at the Kansas City Chiefs game last weekend, sales of his jersey spiked 400%. Her attendance drew more female television viewers—a demographic the NFL wants to better engage. Insider

MOVERS AND SHAKERS: The Scott Trust appointed the Markup CEO Nabiha Syed as a board member. Full Course added Jennifer Ryan, Meredith Sandland, and Stephanie Stuckey to its board of directors. National Geographic named Tulani André as vice president, social media and Soo-Jeong Kang as vice president, head of visuals. First Round Capital added WayUp founder Liz Wessel as partner.

ON MY RADAR

Why don't more women propose? Time

A silvery, shimmering summer of Beyoncé New York Times Magazine

Where have all the plus-size bodies gone? Elle

PARTING WORDS

"When you talk about a problem or an issue you’re having, it loses its power on you. It becomes a shared burden that we can all carry together, or work through, or metabolize in some way, so you’re not left with all of it."

—Model and actress Julia Fox on the cathartic experience of writing her new memoir, Down the Drain

This is the web version of The Broadsheet, a daily newsletter for and about the world’s most powerful women. Sign up to get it delivered free to your inbox.

About the Authors
Emma Hinchliffe
By Emma HinchliffeMost Powerful Women Editor
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Emma Hinchliffe is Fortune’s Most Powerful Women editor, overseeing editorial for the longstanding franchise. As a senior writer at Fortune, Emma has covered women in business and gender-lens news across business, politics, and culture. She is the lead author of the Most Powerful Women Daily newsletter (formerly the Broadsheet), Fortune’s daily missive for and about the women leading the business world.

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By Joey AbramsAssociate Production Editor

Joey Abrams is the associate production editor at Fortune.

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