WASHINGTON (DC News Now) — DC Startup Week is returning to the District for its eighth year. The five-day event will start on Oct. 16 and will feature more than 250 speakers, including Brett Schulman, the Co-Founder and Chief Executive of Cava Group, Inc.

“Last year we had over 6000 attendees who came throughout the week. We expect more. We’re at six different locations through the week,” said Seema Alexander, Co-producer of DC Startup Week.

Even though tech has been known to be male-dominated, organizers say Startup Week will have something to offer for everyone.

“We have a lot of women representation from an attendee perspective, a speaker perspective,” said Rachel Koretsky, director of DC Startup Week.

Alexander and Koretsky – both women in the field – understand what it’s like to run a startup.

Alexander is the founder of business advisory and coaching firm Disruptive CEO, and Koretsky started Upace, which connects people to recreation centers in their communities.

“Being a young female founder in tech was very, very challenging, and one thing I learned early on was the importance of community,” Koretsky said.

Organizers expect that DC Startup Week will continue to grow in the coming years.

“We see this thing becoming almost the South by Southwest of the Northeast,” Alexander said.

Click here to register for DC Startup Week.