Audrey Gelman, the chief of female, shared workspace business The Wing, shared the happy news on Twitter to 30k+ followers.
I’m honored to be on the cover of @Inc’s Female Founders issue and the first visibly pregnant CEO to be on the cover of a business magazine pic.twitter.com/2X2PY99X2L
— Audrey Gelman (@audreygelman) September 18, 2019
Writers from Inc. also posted about the history-making moment, with Christine Lagorio-Chafkin describing it as “a huge day” for the magazine.
It’s a huge day for @Inc as we debut the cover of our October issue, featuring the first pregnant CEO on the cover! It was fascinating and an honor to profile @audreygelman of @the_wing as it reaches fast growth internationally https://t.co/YD11iViV7w
— Christine Lagorio-Chafkin (@lagorio) September 18, 2019
A visibly pregnant woman on the cover of a business magazine? This is the new normal! @audreygelman spoke to @Inc about how women are reshaping the world of work & what the future holds for The Wing, including taking Wing membership outside of our 4 wallshttps://t.co/dgK6XXEdQL
— The Wing (@the_wing) September 18, 2019
“You can’t be what you can’t see, so I think it’s so important for women to see that it’s possible to run a fast-growing business and also to start a family,” Gelman told ‘Today’ of her decision to take part in the photoshoot.
“My hope is that women see this and again feel the confidence to take greater professional risks while also not shelving their dreams of becoming a mother and starting a family,” she added.
Gelman’s business ‘The Wing’ set up a successful chain of female-focused co-working spaces across the US in recent years. Although the business faced gender discrimination charges in 2018 and now allows men to join, it’s spaces are still predominantly catered for women and working mothers. All spaces include pumping rooms, and “women-focused lending libraries”.
In 2012, former Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer was featured on the cover of Fortune’s “The 50 Most Powerful Women” issue. She was pregnant at the time, but declined to be photographed for the magazine.