Exilior Co-Founder Maya Benham Shares Insights on Her XXcelerate Experience

Entrepreneurship is no longer the sole domain of men. In the US alone, 42% of all companies, about 13 million, are owned by women. This means four out of 10 businesses in the country are women-owned. These enterprises have created around 9 million jobs and generate around $1.8 trillion in sales every year. Moreover, women are starting up their own companies at a faster rate than men.

Despite these long strides, becoming a womxn entrepreneur can be extremely challenging. The odds are simply not stacked in the womxn business owner’s favor. Reasons include gender bias, limited funding opportunities, lack of support, and traditional household dynamics.

This is where the XXcelerate Fund comes in. Exilior co-founder Maya Benham joined the XXcelerate program in the late 2020s. She shares her experience with us here.

What is XXcelerate?

But first, what is XXcelerate?

According to its website: “XXcelerate Fund provides a uniquely powerful combination of business education, peer support, and a pathway to financing. It’s a model that has been proven to produce higher rates of success.”

The program is open to womxn business owners in Portland who want to create positive changes in their communities and participate in the city’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. Through XXcelerate, womxn entrepreneurs can find mentors who can guide and support them, peers who can cheer them on, and access to fundraising opportunities if they need to.

Additionally, in response to the Covid-19 pandemic’s effects on women entrepreneurs, XXcelerate began offering legal and mental health support in 2020.

Q&A with Maya on her XXcelerate experience

When did you participate in XXcelerate?

I participated from October 2020 to March 2021.

Why did you decide to participate in XXcelerate?

As a woman founder, there’s a tendency to feel like the challenges you are going through are unique. Sometimes, you can also feel like you are drowning. I quickly realized that I need to be in a space where other womxn entrepreneurs are present for morale and to gain more confidence. Additionally, I need to hear other ideas and have an opportunity to brainstorm with other womxn on ideas that I had. I thought it would be a good growing experience to take time for myself and learn from others who are in similar shoes and stages of their business.

How did XXcelerate impact you as a business owner?

It allowed me not to work in isolation and know that there’s a network of womxn entrepreneurs I can reach out to.

It also helped me understand the importance of goal-setting and accountability as a founder. As a group, we would talk about the goals we wanted to achieve for that week. Some of them were small things, like sending a follow-up email or reaching out to customers or business partners. I soon realized how such mundane tasks end up leading to something bigger.

It was also comforting to see that other entrepreneurs, especially womxn founders, were going through the same challenges as mine. I built more networks with others in the food and beverage industry. I also continue to receive support right now.

How did XXcelerate impact your business?

XXcelerate helped me grow through connection with resources, peer support, and knowledge on how to scale profitability. XXcelerate gave me the knowledge to define my success, find growth capital, and be sustainably profitable. The networks and opportunities that XXcelerate provided allowed me to see how I could scale my business as a woman founder while knowing that I have support from other womxn founders.

What did you love most about XXcelerate?

I loved engaging and talking with other like-minded womxn founders running their own businesses. It was refreshing to talk and hear about leveraging our strengths. Most important was listening and talking about our vulnerability and challenges and continuing to fight and move forward with our businesses.

It was a joy to meet some amazing womxn and take time with one another and as a group to do things and discuss how to better ourselves and our companies. We were all able to learn from one another, even if our businesses were different. We were able to explore how to handle our budgets and forecast, plan for the quarterly ahead, and sometimes just what we would do in the coming days.

What was your biggest takeaway?

Building some amazing contacts with other womxn founders! It was GREAT to see the support we created for each other. We ended up building friendships, and from time to time, we reached out to each other and collaborated on some projects, [like the one I have with] Sibeiho. We offer support to each other through text, email, and social media. Also, we call each other on the phone just to check in.

We are always thinking of how we can continue to partner or offer support to help spread the word about each other’s brands. For example, a few of us went in together and did gift baskets that helped promote each other. We also give shoutouts and information via social media to our followers. I had the pleasure of doing a holiday giveaway with Mendwell, Asiyah Rose, Seeking Space Yoga, Free Flow Botanicals, and Hapibod Coaching.

In addition, XXcelerate is widely known to be a place where womxn can feel safe.

A cherished moment I had with the program was I had the opportunity to work with a mentor and coach, Lori Spencer. Lori started Oregon Chai by passing out samples. She then sold it to a global food and beverage manufacturer for $75 million. She inspired me with her knowledge and helped me navigate ideas on making Exilior a brand that sets itself apart. We still keep in touch, and she’s a phone call away when I need advice. Lori is an amazing person and loves spending time to help womxn entrepreneurs grow personally and within their businesses.

Would you recommend XXcelerate to others?

Whenever I meet other womxn entrepreneurs, the first question I ask is, “Have you ever heard about XXcelerate?” That’s because XXcelerate offers a safe space where womxn founders can engage with each other and provide support.

The resources that XXcelerate offers help set you on a path to success as a woman founder by helping you remain accountable and hit goals to move your business forward. They also cater to individual business needs. Moreover, they help open doors to coaches who have amazing experiences and a wealth of connections that can potentially take your business to the next level of growth.

Who would benefit most from participating in XXcelerate?

Any womxn-led or owned business who would like support to scale and grow their business. The businesses need to be Oregon-based and want to contribute to the entrepreneurial ecosystem. Lastly, a person who is committed to learning and open to learning from other womxn.