September 11: When Business Became About More Than Business; Women, Resilience and Rebuilding After 9/11
H.O.P. Today in Female Entrepreneur History
Not every date in entrepreneurial history celebrates a company launch, a millionaire’s success or the creation of a groundbreaking product. Some dates remind us why we build, why preparation matters, why community is essential and why the businesses we create should serve a purpose beyond profit. September 11 is one of those dates.
On September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks against the United States changed thousands of families, businesses and communities forever. The World Trade Center was not only an iconic part of the New York City skyline; it was also a workplace surrounded by a vast business ecosystem that included restaurants, retailers, vendors, service providers and small businesses.
For H.O.P., remembering September 11 through an entrepreneurial lens is not about reducing tragedy to a business lesson. It is about recognizing the women who worked, owned businesses, supported employees, cared for families and eventually had to determine how to move forward in a world that had changed overnight.
When Everything Changes Overnight
Entrepreneurship teaches us to plan. We create the business plan, build the budget, develop the marketing strategy, set goals and make projections. But September 11 reminded an entire generation that life does not always follow the plan.
Businesses throughout Lower Manhattan suddenly faced circumstances no entrepreneur could have reasonably anticipated. Some lost employees, customers, offices or important clients. Others had to determine whether their companies could financially survive the disruption. Behind those businesses were real people processing grief while making decisions about employees, bills, customers and their own futures.
That is a part of entrepreneurship we do not discuss often enough. Sometimes leadership means making decisions while you are hurting too.
Women Entrepreneurs Had to Keep Moving
The business impact extended far beyond companies located inside the World Trade Center. Entrepreneur reported on Banchet Bianca Jaigla, a New York florist whose company regularly delivered flowers to Windows on the World, the famous restaurant at the top of the North Tower. Flowers intended for the restaurant remained in her cooler after the attacks.
Yet her company still had customers, employees and commitments, so she continued working. That does not mean business erased grief. It demonstrates something entrepreneurs eventually learn: sometimes your business and the people who depend on it require you to continue functioning while you are still processing what happened.
Other entrepreneurs later described September 11 as a moment that caused them to reconsider their careers, purpose and mortality. For some, witnessing how quickly life could change became the motivation to pursue businesses or careers they had been postponing. There is a powerful message in that: Stop assuming you have unlimited time to become the woman you are planning to become.
More Examples of Female Entrepreneurial Resilience
Banchet Bianca Jaigla’s story is one example of a woman continuing to serve customers and manage responsibilities after an unimaginable loss. Other women demonstrated resilience in different ways, including rebuilding businesses, supporting employees, preserving community services and creating new opportunities after September 11.
Marsha V. Griffin, a business owner whose company was connected to the World Trade Center business community, represented the many women who had to confront the loss of workplaces, clients and professional networks while deciding whether to rebuild. Her experience reflects a difficult truth: recovery often begins before grief has ended.
Women who owned restaurants, retail shops, salons, transportation companies and professional-service firms in Lower Manhattan also faced prolonged disruption. Some businesses lost foot traffic, access to buildings, inventory, equipment or customers. Others had to relocate, renegotiate leases, reduce staff or find new ways to serve clients. Their resilience was not always visible in headlines, but it appeared in the daily work of reopening doors, paying employees and keeping their businesses alive.
Female nonprofit leaders and community entrepreneurs also played an important role in the recovery. They organized donations, connected families with resources, supported displaced workers and helped communities navigate grief and uncertainty. Their work reminds us that entrepreneurship is not limited to traditional companies. Innovation and leadership also happen through nonprofits, social enterprises and community-based organizations.
Women in the hospitality and service industries faced another layer of uncertainty. Restaurants, hotels, caterers, florists, cleaners and vendors lost customers and contracts while the city’s economy struggled. Many had to adapt their services, change their business models or find new markets. Their resilience came through flexibility: they did not abandon their skills or purpose, but they learned how to apply them in a changed environment.
Women who became entrepreneurs after September 11 also demonstrate resilience. Some left corporate careers, reconsidered their priorities or began businesses that reflected a deeper commitment to family, community, wellness, education or social impact. Their stories show that resilience can mean rebuilding what was lost, but it can also mean creating something new from a changed understanding of life.
These women did not all respond in the same way, and their experiences should not be simplified. Some rebuilt immediately. Some paused. Some changed careers. Some closed businesses and began again later. Resilience does not always look like constant productivity. Sometimes resilience is asking for help, protecting your health, caring for your family or giving yourself permission to begin again.
Your Business Needs More Than a Dream
September 11 also offers today’s entrepreneurs an uncomfortable but necessary lesson about preparedness. We love talking about launching, but we do not talk nearly enough about surviving.
What happens if you suddenly cannot access your physical business? Where are your important documents? Is your business properly insured? Are your files backed up? Can someone besides you access essential business information? Does your family know how your business operates? What happens to your customers if you are unavailable? Could your company operate remotely? Do you have emergency savings? Is there a succession plan?
Entrepreneurship is not only about preparing for success. Responsible entrepreneurship means preparing your business to survive unexpected circumstances too.
Black Women Were Building Too
As H.O.P. continues documenting women’s entrepreneurial history, we intentionally make room for Black female entrepreneurial history. Long before September 11, Black women understood what it meant to build businesses under uncertain circumstances.
Women such as Maggie Lena Walker, Annie Turnbo Malone, Madam C.J. Walker and Mae Reeves created economic opportunities during eras when racism and sexism placed significant barriers between Black women and traditional financial systems.
Mae Reeves provides a powerful example. In 1941, Reeves moved from Georgia to Philadelphia during the Great Migration in search of greater economic opportunity. She secured a $500 loan in her own name from a Black-owned bank and opened Mae’s Millinery Shop on South Street. She became one of the first African American women to own a business in downtown Philadelphia.
Her story reflects a recurring theme throughout Black entrepreneurial history: When existing systems did not create enough opportunity for us, Black women found ways to create opportunity for themselves.
That history matters on September 11 because resilience is not simply the ability to survive one catastrophic moment. Sometimes resilience is generational. It is building despite discrimination, limited capital, family responsibilities, financial barriers and a society that does not recognize your value. It is also teaching another woman how to build too.
Different History. A Shared Lesson About Resilience.
We should never compare the tragedy of September 11 with the historical experiences of Black female entrepreneurs as though they are interchangeable. They are not. However, studying both teaches us something important about business ownership: Entrepreneurship happens in the real world.
Your company does not exist separately from history, politics, economics, community, tragedy or social change. The world around your business can change. Markets change, communities change, technology changes and your personal life changes. Sometimes everything changes at once.
The entrepreneur who survives is not necessarily the entrepreneur who predicted everything correctly. Sometimes it is the entrepreneur who learns how to adapt without abandoning her purpose.
Entrepreneurship Is Bigger Than “I Made It”
September 11 also reminds us why community should be part of entrepreneurship. When communities experience tragedy, businesses can become more than places where money changes hands. A restaurant can feed people. A transportation company can move supplies. A salon can become a gathering place. A media platform can distribute information. A nonprofit can connect people with resources. A business owner can donate money, services, products or simply her time.
That is why H.O.P. believes female entrepreneurship should not end with “Look what I built.” The bigger question is: “What can what I built do for somebody else?”
Your business can make money and still have humanity. It can generate revenue and serve the community. It can create your independence while helping another woman discover hers.
Black Female Entrepreneurship Is American Business History
As we continue this series, H.O.P. will keep highlighting Black women because Black female entrepreneurship is not a side story. It is American business history.
Black women have created beauty companies, financial institutions, restaurants, fashion businesses, newspapers, real estate enterprises, entertainment companies, farms and neighborhood businesses. Some became famous, while many did not. But fame is not what makes someone part of history.
Impact does.
Every Black woman who created a business, employed someone, served her neighborhood, supported her family or showed another woman that ownership was possible contributed to the entrepreneurial history we inherited. Those stories deserve to be told too.
The H.O.P. Takeaway
September 11 reminds us that life can change quickly, and so can business. We honor those who lost their lives on September 11, 2001, along with their families, survivors, first responders, workers and communities forever affected by that day.
From an entrepreneurial perspective, we also remember something deeply human: Tomorrow is not promised, and neither is the perfect time to begin.
Build the business. Write the plan. Protect what you are creating. Tell your family where the documents are. Back up your information. Develop another leader. Support another woman’s company. Create something meaningful. Do not spend your entire life waiting for perfect circumstances to become who you already know you are capable of becoming.
Today’s H.O.P. Question
If life reminded you today that time is not guaranteed, what business, dream or idea would you stop postponing?
If you have already built it, ask yourself another question: Could what you have built survive without you?
Learn from yesterday. Prepare for tomorrow. Build something meaningful today.
Follow @hopempoweringwomen for more female entrepreneurial history, business conversations, resources and inspiration from House of Peach Inc.
House of Peach Inc.
Learn the history. Build on the history. Make some history of your own.
Sources
Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum. “Five Women to Know for American Business Women’s Day.” The Smithsonian documents Mae Reeves’ move to Philadelphia, the $500 loan she obtained in her own name and the establishment of Mae’s Millinery Shop.
Entrepreneur. “Entrepreneurs Changed By 9/11.” September 11, 2013. A collection of entrepreneurs’ accounts describing how September 11 affected their businesses, careers, priorities and decisions to pursue entrepreneurship.
Entrepreneur. “The Rippling Effects of the Terrorist Attacks.” September 24, 2001. Contemporary reporting on small businesses affected by the attacks, including florist Banchet Bianca Jaigla and her company’s relationship with Windows on the World.
Smithsonian National September 11 Memorial-related collections and historical materials documenting women’s participation in recovery and rebuilding efforts following September 11.
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