Tips for Female Franchise Owners
Offering both the flexibility and independence of being a small business owner, plus the support and infrastructure of a large corporation, owning a franchise can be the ideal opportunity for anyone interested in becoming an entrepreneur. As a result, more and more women are embracing this type of business ownership.
Why Women Choose Franchising
Franchising makes a lot of sense for women, particularly those who have families and may have put a traditional career on hold or who are seeking more flexibility in their career. Over the last decade, there has been a 38% increase in women-owned franchise businesses, and of all new franchises opened in the past 24 months, 32% are women-owned businesses.
Entrepreneurial women with a strong background in business often find a franchise opportunity that allows them to follow their passion, to meet their business ownership goals, and to fit their investment budget. Franchising also provides the support of the franchisor to maximize the chances of success and mitigate some risks associated with business ownership.
Tips for Female Franchise Owners
While there is no question that successfully running a franchise requires a serious investment of time and effort, it does allow for more flexibility than a traditional career. So with more women choosing franchising as their path to business ownership, let’s look at a few tips for female franchise owners:
- Follow your passion - Starting a business is never easy as there will almost certainly be long hours and hard work, especially in the beginning. Success comes from within, so franchise owners must be driven by a clear sense of purpose and passion in order to achieve it. A belief in a franchisor’s brand mission is the vital first step to franchisee success. The second step is to then have the drive to build the business and profit.
- Be a realistic risk taker - Entrepreneurs are oftentimes people who are willing to accept risk in a business setting but take the time to gather information and identify business ownership opportunities that minimize the risk. Entrepreneurs however do realize that success only comes when taking a leap of faith. The ability to be able to leverage the built-in brand recognition and product quality offered by a franchise appeal to a women’s calculated approach to risk taking.
- Find a mentor - A mentor is someone who has been where you are, who has learned the ropes, and who has mastered the skills required to perform the job successfully. As such, mentoring activities with that person will help you, as a new franchisee, to immerse yourself in the business and become a leader in your own right. Training and mentoring should be an ongoing endeavor, because even seasoned veterans need help and support from time to time.
- Identify women-specific financing options - Owning a franchise requires a significant investment of capital and not everyone has access to that liquid capital. If you need a business loan, it’s smart to start with your bank or credit union, and specifically inquire about grants or loans that are designed for female business owners. The Small Business Administration’s Office of Women’s Business Ownership can be a good resource that can help women entrepreneurs get access to credit and capital as well as business training and counseling.
- Build your network - Business owners must network as a way to create relationships with others, in like or related fields, that help to expand their business' ability to find new customers, partner and grow. Not only can your network help you get more business leads, but collaboration with others can help identify best practices and new trends.
- Enjoy work-life balance - While owning a franchise takes a lot of work and commitment to achieve success, it also offers the opportunity to infuse flexibility into your business. With operating and marketing support in place, ongoing training opportunities, and a collaborative network of support, franchise owners can gain a better work life balance while achieving their business ownership goals.
Why Caring Transitions
By providing older adults and their families with trusted and comprehensive downsizing, right-sizing, estate sales, online auctions, and move management solutions, Caring Transitions franchise owners truly walk beside their clients and their families every step of the way. Similarly, as a franchisor, Caring Transitions provides the support and resources necessary for success to our franchise owners from the very beginning and throughout the life of the business.
Caring Transitions provides our business owners national brand power, multiple revenue streams, turnkey marketing campaigns, and low start-up and operational costs. In fact, your success as a franchise owner is so important to the company that you can earn your entire franchise fee back upon meeting certain milestones through the Winner’s Circle program.
Owning a Caring Transitions franchise has never been easier and you can be up and running in just a few months. Once you request information, our franchise director will answer all your questions and help you to learn more about the business so that you can decide if it is the best fit for you to meet your goals. We make the Steps to Ownership simple and straightforward so that you are comfortable making the right decision for your future.