Behind every women-owned business in Pakistan lies a story of persistence against all odds. For many women, entrepreneurship is not only an economic pursuit but a way to navigate the social structures confining them. In a country that ranks last out of 148 countries on the Global Gender Gap Index (2025), entering this marketplace can mean challenging deeply embedded norms about women’s roles in society.¹ Nevertheless, digital platforms and the growing e-commerce sector have become important tools of access, enabling women to engage in entrepreneurship by utilizing these tools and platforms in Pakistan.²

Earlier research on women entrepreneurship in Pakistan offers limited insight into digitization’s effect on the entrepreneurial landscape for women rather it focuses on the enforced patriarchal barriers. Our study endeavours to address this gap by placing women entrepreneurs within the digital economy and exploring how digitization is serving as a tool of empowerment for women in Pakistan.³

Employing a qualitative methodology, we conducted semi-structured interviews with nine women entrepreneurs operating small-scaled, medium-scaled and large-scale businesses, based in Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad. These businesses operate partially or entirely through online platforms, spanning sectors such as food, jewelry, and skincare. Our conversations highlighted that societal perceptions still reflected patriarchal scripts where women’s entrepreneurial activities are underplayed by labelling their businesses as “passion projects”. In this context, family support, both financial and emotional, became crucial in sustaining women’s entrepreneurial ambitions. For smaller scale ventures, family members often played an active role in sustaining the business, by helping out with marketing, routine tasks, and product testing and feedback. Contrary to widespread assumptions, we also saw that joint family systems did not necessarily restrict autonomy.

Women entrepreneurs juggled their business alongside domestic chores and care work, coming up with an adaptable schedule. When asked about typical hours devoted to the business, many avoided quantifying their working hours, explaining that their schedules varied on a daily basis, often blurring the boundary between professional and personal life. For those running small-scale start-ups, weekends were often devoted to preparing inventory and handling operational tasks, while weekdays were spent studying or working full-time jobs. Every woman in our sample acknowledged the difficulty of balancing these overlapping responsibilities. One entrepreneur reflected that her children “grew up alongside the business,” often spending time in her workspace. Women described their businesses as a round-the-clock commitment, with work expanding to fill every available hour, leaving them with little to no time to recuperate.

For e-commerce businesses, digital platforms, such as Instagram and WhatsApp are crucial for marketing, but also bring forward new challenges such as unpredictability and exposure to online harassment. However, women entrepreneurs demonstrated remarkable resilience and adaptability, leveraging informal support networks with peers to share resources and collective strength in pursuing their ventures. Moreover, digital literacy also played a role, with responses showing that women with prior experience or business training demonstrated stronger adaptability. Financial constraints also pose a challenge to new entrepreneurs in Pakistan, as most small-scale businesses in our sample relied on personal savings and informal loans due to a widespread mistrust of formal financial institutions. We saw that inflation and rising electricity costs are issues shared by all businesses operating within Pakistan’s volatile economic landscape, further increasing financial pressures. Almost all of the entrepreneurs we talked to described how unpredictable raw material prices, delays in delivery and unstable supply chains hindered their businesses’ production.

OUR CONVERSATIONS HIGHLIGHTED THAT SOCIETAL PERCEPTIONS STILL REFLECTED PATRIARCHAL SCRIPTS WHERE WOMEN’S ENTREPRENEURIAL ACTIVITIES ARE UNDERPLAYED BY LABELLING THEIR BUSINESSES AS “PASSION PROJECTS”.

For policymakers, our insights highlight the vital need for more inclusive financial programs, accessible training in digital marketing, and simpler registration procedures for small-scale businesses. Increasing access to exhibition spaces like Haryali Market and ensuring reliable internet access for women entrepreneurs can help bridge the gaps in women’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.

However, we also acknowledge the limitations of our research given the sample size and regional representation because of logistical constraints, which limits the generalizability of our findings. Our sample highlights a selective group of women who already operate a business, and their experiences may not reflect those who are excluded from entrepreneurship altogether.

Through their stories, women entrepreneurs unravelled the gendered barriers that hindered them amidst the opportunities afforded by digitalization. Together, these narratives shed light on the deeply personal ways in which women adapt and assert themselves within the entrepreneurial landscape of Pakistan.

Anushey Tahir and Khadija Amer are seniors at the Mushtaq Ahmad Gurmani School of Humanities and Social Sciences, LUMS. They are interested in the intersection of gender across economic, social, and political structures.

1. World Economic Forum. “Global Gender Gap Report 2025.” World Economic Forum, https://reports.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GGGR_2025.pdf.
2. Akram, Mubashir. “Digitalisation and Women in Pakistan.” National Commission on the Status of Women and United Nations Development Programme, 21 July 2023, www.undp.org/sites/g/files/zskgke326/files/2023-07/digitalisation_women_in_pakistan_-_ncsw_report_2023.pdf.
3. Supervised by Miss Rimsha Arif.