Kathleen King Teams Up with BALI for New Training Program

The Bella Abzug Leadership Institute (BALI), in collaboration with Tate’s founder Kathleen King, is launching a new, innovative, two-day entrepreneurship-training program for college women this August in New York City.

With the support of the Kathleen King Charitable Fund, BALI will be offering The Millie King Entrepreneurship Program for women across the country, to be held at Hunter College on August 2 and 3. The program will include a series of lectures, workshops and seminars held by successful professionals who specialize in social entrepreneurship, small businesses and start-ups. The seminars will address business strategies, development and social entrepreneurship including topics such as financial structuring, “one for one” company models and brand marketing for digital and social media. BALI students will gain the necessary footing as a new millennium entrepreneurial business owner as professional men and women from all sectors critique them.

King thinks that the program is a great opportunity for young women to learn what it takes to be entrepreneurs.

“Hopefully it will give them the confidence and encouragement to proceed with their dream. It will teach them through mentoring to put ideas forward for the future,” King said.

Liz Abzug founded BALI in 2005 with a mission to inspire young women across the country to help bring about positive social change in the world and to take on leadership position in all different professions. Named after Abzug’s late mother, a New York State congresswoman, BALI helps to train and mentor girls and young women in leadership and debate skills in order to help develop the confidence and leaderships skills necessary to thrive in the entrepreneurial world.

“We are going to teach them the mechanisms which you start a businesses. We’re going to connect them to some very successful entrepreneurs and we are going to give them workshops that will challenge them to create their own business plans,” Abzug said.

In addition to starting BALI, the Sag Harbor resident is the CEO of national consulting firm Liz Abzug Consulting Services and a professor in Urban Studies and Women and Leadership at Barnard College.

King is the founder of Tate’s Bake Shop. Her highly acclaimed products are nationally recognized. Tate’s Bake Shop is now top-rated by Consumer Reports and the Food Network’s Rachael Ray and its products are now sold in 16,000 gourmet retails across the country.

King believes that being an entrepreneur takes patience and perseverance. “To be an entrepreneur, be 100% yourself—even if everyone is telling you that you’re crazy. It’s about believing in yourself…you have to have thick skin and you have to be not super emotional. It doesn’t mean that you can’t be passionate and caring, but if you are attached to something it will cloud your decision-making process and ability to move forward,” she said.

King named the program for her late mother, who showed her all the qualities one needed to persist as an entrepreneur.

King and Abzug are looking to collaborate on future projects including next year’s Millie King Entrepreneurship Program. The duo is also looking to bring an entrepreneurial program to the Hamptons next for local high school kids.