Female Founders in Hospitality

What Female Founders in Hospitality does

Female Founders in Hospitality (FFiH) is a private, global networking community founded in 2022 that serves women founders building companies in the travel and hospitality industry. The organization's stated mission is to raise awareness of women-led companies in the sector and accelerate their success through networking, resource sharing, speaking opportunities, and community support. Membership is free of charge and open to founders or co-founders who are actively working on their business full-time; CEO or president titles alone do not qualify. The organization is led by Founder Nina Kleaveland (also founder of Lanyard) with a Steering Committee comprising Lee Gonzalez (L & L Hospitality), Susan Barry (Hive Marketing), Melissa Maher (Pinnacle Enterprise Advisory Group), and Sara Murray (Murmaid International, Inc.).

The platform is built on a WordPress-based website (with development attributed to Cogwheel Marketing) and uses Google Forms for membership applications. Core member-facing assets include the FFiH Community Platform, a Speaker Directory PDF that showcases member expertise for media and event organizers, and a blog/content hub featuring hospitality industry articles, founder interviews, and guides. The organization distributes primarily through its website and a LinkedIn company page, with no mobile app, no API, and no developer-facing integrations. Membership acquisition is self-serve via Google Forms, and the geographic claim is global, though no specific markets served are disclosed.

FFiH operates as a free membership community with no disclosed revenue, no pricing tiers, no monetization mechanisms, and no recorded funding rounds. The revenue model is best characterized as pre-revenue or non-commercial; the organization does not appear to charge members, run paid events, or sell sponsorships in the disclosed data. Headcount is 1-10 employees per firmographic data, and ownership is private with no parent company or external investment disclosed. The legal entity operates as Female Founders in Hospitality, with FFiH as the stated trade name.

Name

Female Founders in Hospitality

Legal name

Female Founders in Hospitality

Website

https://femalefoundersinhospitality.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Female Founders in Hospitality (FFiH) is a free, global networking community founded in 2022 that serves women founders building companies in the travel and hospitality industry. It provides networking, resources, speaking opportunities, and a Speaker Directory to amplify member visibility.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Female Founders in Hospitality (FFiH) operates a free, global membership community for female founders building companies in the travel and hospitality industry. Members gain access to a networking platform, industry resources, speaking opportunities, and visibility through the FFiH Speaker Directory. Membership is curated to founders (not just CEOs or presidents) working full-time on their businesses.

Product overview

Female Founders in Hospitality (FFiH) operates as a unified community platform providing networking services, speaking opportunity directories, and industry content for female founders in the travel and hospitality sector. Founded in 2022, the organization offers a membership-based community (free of charge) where founders can access resources, connect with peers, and gain visibility through the Speaker Directory. The platform does not offer software products but rather serves as a networking and advocacy organization for women entrepreneurs in the industry.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• FFiH Community Platform Global networking and resource community for female founders in the travel and hospitality industry, offering networking opportunities, member resources, mentorship, and a Speaker Directory. Membership is free for founders working full-time on their businesses; eligibility requires founder or co-founder status (CEO or president titles alone do not qualify).
• FFiH Speaker Directory Published PDF directory showcasing female founders available as speakers for industry events, conferences, and media opportunities, enabling event organizers to source vetted female hospitality expertise.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves3 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• All Raise: Non-profit accelerating the success of women founders and investors through community, programming, and visibility. Closely comparable to FFiH as a membership-driven network amplifying women in business, though with a broader cross-vertical scope and stronger institutional backing.
• HeyMama: Community and networking platform originally for working mothers, expanded to include founders and leaders. Comparable to FFiH as a community-driven women-in-business network offering connection, content, and visibility, though not vertical-specific.
• Ellevate Network: Professional network for women, including founders and executives, offering mentorship, events, and Circles. Comparable to FFiH as a paid membership community for women in business with a similar networking-and-visibility value proposition.
• Chief: Private membership network for senior women executives and founders, offering curated peer groups, events, and programming. Comparable to FFiH as a women-only membership community built around networking and visibility, though with a paid B2B model and broader leadership scope.
• Dreamers & Doers: Membership community for ambitious women leaders, founders, and creators, providing networking and resource-sharing. Directly comparable to FFiH in mission, audience (women founders/leaders), and membership-driven format.

Emerging players

• Lesbians Who Tech & Allies: Community for LGBTQ+ women and allies in tech and adjacent industries, operating summits, mentorship, and visibility programs. Comparable to FFiH as a membership-based community amplifying underrepresented founders through content and events.
• The Female Quotient: Community and live-event platform focused on women in business, including consumer and travel/hospitality industries. Comparable to FFiH as a networking-and-visibility organization for women, with a growing presence in hospitality activations.

Others

• Lean In: Non-profit founded by Sheryl Sandberg supporting women in leadership through Circles, education, and resources. Adjacent to FFiH in mission and women-in-business framing, though with a much broader corporate-leadership audience.
• She Runs It: Organization for women leaders across marketing, media, and related industries. Adjacent to FFiH as a women-in-business community with networking and mentorship programs, though oriented toward advertising/marketing rather than hospitality founders.

Broad incumbents

• Women Who Travel (Condé Nast Traveler): Editorial community and platform from Condé Nast Traveler centered on women travelers. Adjacent to FFiH in gender-and-hospitality framing, but media-led rather than founder-led, and oriented toward travelers rather than founders.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/female-founders-in-hospitality

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Female Founders in Hospitality