Women And Franchising

Posted on May 21, 2008 by Ginger Watford

It used to be that the man of a house was the “bread winner,” meaning that he was one who got to go out into the working world to make the dollars and cents necessary to feed his wife and kids back at the homestead.  Gentlemen, I hate to break it to you, but things have changed; though the business world isn’t entirely leveled between the sexes yet, it is quickly getting there.   Granted, a lot of that shift is historically due to the increasing inability for a single income to pay the way for an entire family, but the result of that cultural sway of necessity is that the value of women in the workforce is becoming more and more evident all the time.

Women as individuals certainly vary as much as men do, but as the female population has risen to represent 48% of the total national labor force in recent years, there are certain traits that business analysts have noted a higher degree of in the average woman than in the average man, and these characteristics translate into business revenue and general success, particularly in franchises.

What Franchisors Want: What Women Have
Though franchises, in many ways, are safer business opportunities than the average business start-up, nothing is ever a guarantee, and risk is always a piece of the formula for success.  As it turns out, female business-owners are considered by franchisors to be better risk-takers than are men.  This makes them perfect for any number of franchises, not the least of which being Blue Coast Financial Group, whose mission is to go out on a limb to save client corporations as much money from their bottom lines as possible.

Women have also proven themselves very relationally minded in the workplace, as compared to their male counterparts.  The female mind seems to have a far greater tendency to build interpersonal connections, even going as far as seeking the wisdom of experts, employees, and franchisors—it’s that age-old “asking for directions” thing, gentlemen: women can do it.  And when you’re engaged in starting your own Cruise Planners travel franchise, connecting people with the travel cruises that are right for them, there are a lot of questions to ask and many relationships to build.

That relational aspect of the feminine nature makes them shoe-ins for other particular kinds of franchises as well.  Along with travel, the most female-rich field is children’s products and services.  Why?  Children aren’t business; they aren’t numbers; they aren’t work.  Working with children is wholly and undeniably relational—the thing that women so clearly excel at.  Therefore, in theory and in time-tested fact, kid-based franchises like Gymboree and Kinderdance are perfect for, and most likely best run by, a female small-business owner.

More than anything else, what a franchisor is looking for are traits that can realistically be found in either a man or a woman: a good work-ethic and a high level of motivation.  Though it may sometimes seem that men still have the upper hand in the business world, franchisors are becoming more and more aware that a woman with the drive and persistence to make a Novus auto-glass repair franchise work by hook or by crook is as valuable a franchisee as any man, regardless of previous experience.

Breaking the Stereotypes
On that note, there are some places that female small business owners haven’t really gone yet.  In contrast to their high density in more interpersonal industries, like travel and children’s products/services, women have tended to steer clear of fields that have been considered more stereotypically male.  Actually, the industry with the lowest rate of female franchise ownership remains the automotive industry.  So a female-run Novus franchise would be a bit of an oddity.

For that reason, here are a few ideas for the woman who wants to dish a blow to societal norms and get in on franchise action that most women have stayed away from.

If you’re tired of depending on the men in your life—friends, relatives, and those guys at the local automotive shop—to change the various fluids in your car, give them the shock of their lives by taking on a Grease Monkey automotive franchise.  Some business experience is required, but with the right background, you could be well on your way to employing mechanical men instead of being at their mercy.

Want to do something not only out of the ordinary for your gender, but just generally out of the ordinary?  Get in on the next wave in home-security technology with BioAxxis.  Carrying on where the generic deadbolt leaves off, this home-based company produces and sells fingerprint-activated door locks.  On the surface, selling locks doesn’t seem very personal, but few things are more personal than protecting someone’s family.

One word: videogames.  At sight or sound of that word, the average young man brightens up a little, and the average woman rolls her eyes.  Even if you’re rolling your eyes, consider opening a Play N Trade video game store: not only will you decimate the stereotype, but you’ll be entering into one of the most profitable and consistently growing markets available—you might even learn to like it.

Whether you stick to your gender trends or not, ladies, definitely don’t hesitate to start your own franchise business.  The world is still slightly male-dominated, and it’s going to take women like you, who have the character traits to run a successful business, to change that and level the playing field.