Hottest Women's Franchise Business Opportunities

Posted on December 18, 2008 by Ginger Watford

Every day more and more women are claiming positions of authority in the business world, from roles as CEO and advisory board members down to jobs as managers and overseers of daily operations in almost every corner of every industry. There is even a growing trend of women stepping out from under the umbrellas of large corporations to go into business for themselves as small business entrepreneurs.

As it turns out, this shift is even more positive than one might imagine. In 2000, one research agency conducted a simple study on the job performance of business managers in the US. Though the agency hadn’t set out to discover anything in particular, what they found was that, in general, women in leadership roles were more likely than men to be team players, more interested in the success of the business than personal reputation, and better appreciated by both their supervisors and subordinates than their male counterparts. Another study discovered that women in leadership tend to have a very positive effect on the value of the businesses that they work for, often increasing the equity of their businesses by up to 80% over similar businesses operated by only men. And specifically in the world of small business, at least 40% of all privately owned firms currently in operation are led by women, according to the Center for Women’s Business Research.

All that is to say that the combination of women and business is a good one, and that applies to franchises as well as all other types of business. If you’re a woman interested in leaving your mark on the business world, there are plenty of business opportunities available to you, but some are especially well suited to female leadership, and within that list, there are some that stand out as exceptional opportunities. Among those listed as women’s franchises, here are five that may be some of the hottest franchise businesses out there.

Apricot Lane
A very unique presence in the retail industry, Apricot Lane has taken advantage of two stellar markets, gifts and fashion apparel, which together account for $32bil in annual sales. With 15 years of retail experience, this established name in gifts and apparel has the necessary knowledge to train new franchisees in the best ways to acquire and keep clientele. For a retail outlet, the initial purchase price is relatively low, and with a potential for e-commerce sales as well as walk-in shopping, that cost can quickly be recovered. Best of all, the franchisee is not required to be a full-time manager, so tackling other business activities simultaneously is completely valid.

Network Communications
Based out of Lawrenceville, GA, a suburb of Atlanta, Network Communications is the nation’s largest publisher of home-related magazines, with over 45,000 advertisers depending on their work for exposure throughout the country. And it’s in relationship with these advertisers that franchisees, or independent distributors (IDs), come into the picture. In a specified territory, IDs are responsible for drumming up advertising clients, helping them develop ads and write copy, and sending the advertisements to the central publishing department for each monthly print. Then when magazines are scheduled to hit the shelves, IDs are the ones who receive the shipments and put them there. This home based business has worked for thousands or aspiring business owners, from all kinds of previous industries, and it can work for you.

StretchAlicious Active Wear Boutique In recent years, active wear has become one of the biggest sectors of women’s clothing. Well aware of this, StretchAlicious Active Wear Boutique, the only franchise business specializing in active wear, has stepped in to take advantage of this huge business opportunity, but not without keeping a social conscience about it. The tendency in clothing retail is to target a certain demographic of women, but StretchAlicious Active Wear Boutique is interested in serving all women, from size 0 to 22, and they do so with a style that is all their own.