Lady Project outlet for women

PROJECT MANAGEMENT: Sierra Barter founded The Lady Project in 2012. In three years, its membership has grown to 650 and it now includes chapters in six locations. / PBN FILE PHOTO/TRACY JENKINS
PROJECT MANAGEMENT: Sierra Barter founded The Lady Project in 2012. In three years, its membership has grown to 650 and it now includes chapters in six locations. / PBN FILE PHOTO/TRACY JENKINS

Sierra Barter didn’t set out to begin a national movement when she started a nonprofit social organization, The Lady Project.

Instead, she and her friend co-founded what they thought would be a fun way for interesting women to network, for social and professional reasons. That was in 2012, and in three years, The Lady Project has branched out from Providence into cities across the country.

More than 650 women have become members, with 300 in Rhode Island alone.

Chapters exist now in New Haven, Conn.; Nashua, N.H.; Boston; New York; Washington, D.C.; and Seattle. This spring, affiliated chapters will launch in Philadelphia; Boulder, Colo.; and San Diego.

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Barter, who grew up near Milwaukee, moved to Rhode Island to attend Johnson & Wales University. After graduating, she started her own social media consulting business, @SierraBarter, and also worked part time for the university. Now, she has a full-time social media job at Johnson & Wales. She continues to run her own business on a contract basis in addition to her leadership role at The Lady Project.

Such a busy schedule is typical of the women who join the organization, she said. “A lot of my friends are what I like to call ‘slashers,'” she said. “They might be a social media consultant/CEO of a nonprofit/graduate student/mother.”

The women who participate get together in fun, lively settings about once a month. They listen to speakers and participate in activities together. The demographic skews to women in their 20s and 30s, but there is no age barrier.

Forty percent of the women in the club own their own businesses and 90 percent have at least a bachelor’s degree, a demographic that has made its events and newsletters attractive to advertisers. MailChimp, an email-marketing service provider, and The Dean Hotel, a boutique hotel in Providence, have sponsored some of the group’s meetings.

When the group formed in 2011, Barter, 28, and her co-founder, Julie Sygiel, 28, set out to create an outlet for networking that wasn’t dominated by men. The Lady Project has since taken off, expanding by spread of their network into primarily college towns and cities.

In the larger cities, such as Boston and New York, the club has taken root because, once outside college, people have found it harder to meet others outside work. “It’s hard to make friends as an adult,” Barter said.

The annual events, including a summit that draws members of all chapters together, are held in Providence. She’s seen women from around the country become enchanted with Rhode Island and hopes some will relocate here. •

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