Tory Burch’s Leadership Lessons for Women Entrepreneurs
The Tory Burch Foundation has expanded its 2026 Fellows Program to its largest cohort to date, selecting 120 women entrepreneurs while continuing programs focused on capital, coaching and professional networks. The expansion offers a closer look at how Tory Burch’s approach to entrepreneurship connects business development with leadership, community and workplace culture.
Key Takeaways
- The 2026 Fellows Program includes 120 women entrepreneurs, the program’s largest cohort to date. A recent profile reported that they were selected from nearly 1,000 applications.
- The Tory Burch Foundation now has a network of more than 500 Fellows, and 91% of its entrepreneurs remain in business after five years.
- Fellows surpass $1 million in annual revenue at 10 times the national average for women-owned businesses, according to Foundation data.
- The Capital Program, powered by Bank of America, has distributed $100 million in low-interest loans to 5,600 women entrepreneurs.
- Burch has made workplace culture, resilience, leadership and support for family responsibilities central to her approach to business.
Tory Burch Foundation Expands Its 2026 Fellows Program
The Tory Burch Foundation has increased the size of its Fellows Program to 120 entrepreneurs in 2026, marking its largest class since the program began. A September 2026 profile reported that the cohort was chosen from nearly 1,000 applications.
The expansion builds on a program that now connects more than 500 women entrepreneurs with coaching, advisers, educational resources and a professional peer network. The Foundation describes the Fellows Program as a way to help founders scale their businesses while strengthening their leadership skills.
Foundation data also points to longer-term business outcomes. More than 91% of its entrepreneurs remain in business after five years, while Fellows exceed $1 million in annual revenue at 10 times the national average for women-owned companies.
Burch established her fashion company in 2004 and launched the Tory Burch Foundation in 2009. Her experience building a company while seeking investors later became part of the rationale behind creating resources for other women entrepreneurs.
The Foundation has also expanded how its network meets in person. Its first Founders Circle brought entrepreneurs, advisers and speakers together for a three-day program in June 2026. The gathering at The William Vale Hotel in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, included workshops, panels and opportunities for Fellows to meet business advisers.
Capital Program Addresses Financing Access
Access to financing remains one of the most measurable parts of the Tory Burch Foundation’s work.
Its Capital Program, powered by Bank of America, has distributed $100 million in low-interest loans to 5,600 women entrepreneurs. Bank of America separately confirmed the $100 million deployment and the number of entrepreneurs reached through the program.
The financing initiative is paired with educational support, including webinars, advisers and business resources. That structure addresses both access to money and the operational knowledge founders may need as their companies grow.
Those challenges also connect with broader funding barriers for women founders, including limited access to investor networks, financing options and mentorship.
Burch has said her own fundraising experience influenced her interest in expanding access to such resources. While building her company, she encountered resistance from investors when discussing her plans to connect the business with philanthropic work, according to accounts of her early fundraising experience.
The Foundation’s 2025 annual report provides another measure of the businesses within its network. It reported that Fellows added $470 million to the economy during the year and that entrepreneurs in the community surpassed the $1 million annual revenue threshold at 10 times the national average for women-owned businesses.
Community Becomes Part of the Business Infrastructure
Tory Burch has repeatedly linked entrepreneurship with access to professional relationships.
She has said she did not have a strong community of women entrepreneurs when she started her own company. That experience influenced the Foundation’s emphasis on creating connections among founders, advisers and established business leaders.
The Fellows Program formalizes that network through peer relationships, coaching and access to advisers. The Foundation’s current program materials describe a community that includes hundreds of business owners working across more than a dozen industries.
Burch has described herself as a “people collector,” reflecting an approach that looks beyond public visibility when building professional networks. For Fellowship applicants, however, community is paired with an assessment of the underlying business and the founder’s leadership qualities.
The Founders Circle extended that structure in person. The three-day event brought Fellows together with advisers and executives for workshops, discussions and one-on-one business conversations.
Leadership Criteria Extend Beyond Business Visibility
Business viability is only one part of the Foundation’s selection approach.
Burch has identified leadership, resilience, grit and positivity among the characteristics she considers important in entrepreneurs. She has also pointed to optimism as a quality she associates with founders capable of navigating the uncertainty of building a company.
The approach places less emphasis on an entrepreneur’s public profile. The Foundation’s selection process considers whether a company has a viable foundation and whether the entrepreneur demonstrates qualities associated with leadership, adaptability and persistence.
Foundation President Tiffany Dufu has similarly said the organization looks for founders who are community-oriented, coachable, adaptable and capable of visionary leadership.
Burch applies those ideas against the background of her own experience building a global fashion company. A recent profile described the Tory Burch business as operating more than 400 stores worldwide with approximately $2 billion in annual revenue.
Her Foundation therefore connects leadership development with practical business support rather than treating the two as separate areas.
Workplace Culture Shapes Burch’s Leadership Approach
Burch’s leadership philosophy also extends to how employees manage professional and family responsibilities.
While building her company, she was raising three young sons. She has said she wanted employees to feel able to attend their children’s activities or medical appointments without treating those responsibilities as incompatible with professional commitment.
That view is summarized in a phrase Burch has used to describe her business philosophy: “Cash is king, but culture is queen.”
Her position reflects changing modern workplace expectations around flexibility, leadership and the ability to manage responsibilities outside work.
Burch has said her objective was to build the best company rather than necessarily the biggest company. The emphasis places workplace culture alongside financial performance as part of her broader definition of leadership.
As her children have grown, her own approach to balance has changed. She has described setting aside time to disconnect, read and spend time with family, while maintaining her responsibilities at the company and Foundation.
The Expansion Puts the Foundation’s Model at Larger Scale
The 2026 Fellows expansion gives the Tory Burch Foundation a larger group through which to apply a model built around capital, coaching and professional networks.
Its available data shows both the scale of the financial programs and the continued operation of businesses within the Fellows community. The Capital Program has reached 5,600 women entrepreneurs with $100 million in low-interest loans, while the Fellowship network has grown beyond 500 founders.
The Foundation’s expansion also makes Burch’s leadership principles more visible within the program itself. Business viability remains central, but the organization also emphasizes resilience, community, leadership and workplace cultures that recognize responsibilities beyond work.
For the Tory Burch Foundation, the 2026 cohort represents an expansion of an existing model rather than a change in its central mission: helping women entrepreneurs build businesses through access to capital, knowledge and professional relationships.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the Tory Burch Foundation provide to women entrepreneurs?
The Tory Burch Foundation provides women entrepreneurs with access to business coaching, advisers, educational resources, professional networks and financing programs. Its Fellows Program focuses on business and leadership development, while its Capital Program provides access to low-interest loans.
How many entrepreneurs are in the 2026 Fellows Program?
The 2026 Tory Burch Foundation Fellows Program includes 120 women entrepreneurs, making it the program’s largest cohort to date. A recent profile reported that the group was selected from nearly 1,000 applications.
How much capital has the Foundation provided?
The Tory Burch Foundation Capital Program, powered by Bank of America, has distributed $100 million in low-interest loans to 5,600 women entrepreneurs. Bank of America has independently reported the same figures.
What qualities does Tory Burch look for in entrepreneurs?
Burch has identified leadership, resilience, grit, positivity and optimism as important qualities. The Foundation also considers business viability and whether applicants demonstrate the capacity to participate in and contribute to its entrepreneur community.
How does Tory Burch approach workplace culture?
Burch has described workplace culture as central to her leadership approach. She has advocated an environment where employees can meet family responsibilities while remaining engaged professionally, an approach summarized by her phrase, “Cash is king, but culture is queen.”
