Wild Rye founder Cassie Abel (left) and Sensi Graves Bikinis founder Sensi Graves.
Sun Valley, ID, July 2, 2020 – Cassie Abel, founder of Wild Rye, the brand dedicated to crafting beautiful and technical mountain apparel for women with a mission to inspire confidence and welcome more women into the outdoors, and Sensi Graves, founder of Sensi Graves Bikinis, the ethical and sustainable swimwear brand that empowers and inspires women to move, are thrilled to announce their selection into the annual Tory Burch Foundation Fellows Program – the first two outdoor industry brands to be accepted into the prestigious cross-industry program.
“It is such an honor to have been selected alongside this amazing list of women entrepreneurs as a Tory Burch Fellow – I’m still in shock and in complete awe of the accomplishments and resilience of my peers,” said Cassie Abel, Founder of Wild Rye and Women-Led Wednesday.
The Tory Burch Fellowship, which receives thousands of applications annually, provides women entrepreneurs with $5,000 for business education, mentorship and access to an online community of peers. This year’s diverse group of women entrepreneurs are from 36 cities across the United States.
“Out of the 50 fellows in 2020, 11 different industries are represented,” continued Abel. “I think I speak for Sensi and I both in saying that now more than ever, we need to reach beyond the outdoor industry to learn, grow and improve. The timing of our acceptance into the Fellows program couldn’t be better. This year will be an incredible opportunity to learn from, share resources with and support women founders of all different backgrounds, growth stages and experience.”
Traditionally, the year-long Fellowship begins at the Tory Burch offices for a week of workshops, networking and mentoring from business leaders. To ensure everyone’s safety, the Tory Burch Foundation has pivoted to create virtual programming to help these women entrepreneurs navigate the challenging economic environment.
“Small businesses, especially women-owned businesses, are being disproportionately impacted by the coronavirus crisis. The Fellows Program is the community of support, access to resources and tools that business owners need right now,” noted Laurie Fabiano, President of the Tory Burch Foundation.
Since launching the program in 2015, the Tory Burch Foundation has provided hands-on, community-focused programming to 130 early-stage women entrepreneurs from diverse industries and communities across the country.
For more information about Wild Rye, visit https://wild-rye.com/
For more information about Sensi Graves Bikinis, visit https://sensigravesbikinis.com/
For more information about the Tory Burch Foundation Fellows program, visit: http://www.toryburchfoundation.org/fellows/
