Iris Apfel says young women must grab opportunity

Fashion icon and interior decorator Iris Apfel, at age 95, has some advice for young female entrepreneurs: When opportunity presents itself, take it and run with it.

“Taking opportunity and running is very important, because I never had a business plan in my life. Things just came along and I grabbed them,” Apfel said Friday at the Women’s Entrepreneurship Day conference at the United Nations.

According to organisers, Women’s Entrepreneurship Day (WED) is a day celebrated in 144 countries on November 19. It’s also the name of an organisation that seeks to eliminate poverty by empowering, celebrating and supporting women in business worldwide.

WED also announced that it is launching a portal ChooseWomen.org on November 30 that will allow consumers to shop with retailers who support women-owned businesses.