Founder, FWIB and AVAS
Gwen Stefani Ayala
She built the room she once needed.
Gwen started working at seventeen. She was a breadwinner before she was a founder, taking early jobs, including at McDonald's, to help carry her family. She knows what it is to be tired in a way that does not show, and to keep going anyway.
She learned how to build from nothing. She also learned that the loneliest part of the climb is doing it with no one who understands. So she stopped competing, and she started gathering women instead.
Today she is the founder of Filipina Women in Business and Ayala Virtual Assistance Services, both built from the ground up. She created FWIB for one reason she still feels in her chest. She did not want another woman to have to figure it out alone.
From the women in the room
“Of all the leaders I have met, you are one of the few whose heart, authenticity, and good intentions shine the most. Keep adding value, and never lose the heart in everything you do.”
A message from an FWIB member.
Why we exist
A safe place to build, and to belong.
We hold a space where a Filipina never has to shrink, pretend, or prove that she belongs. Through education, gentle mentorship, and honest connection, we help her grow the business, and come home to herself while she does it. No matter where she is starting from.
Where we are going
A generation of Filipinas who rise together.
To become the home every Filipina founder grows up in, where women build wealth, lead with heart, and reach back for the next woman the moment they find their footing.
Our values
What we hold to, in every room.
You do not have to build alone anymore.
Join the free community, look into the Inner Circle when you are ready, or just tell us where you are and we will help you find your place. Whatever you have been carrying, you can set some of it down here.