A female-friendly business opportunity

With the UK lagging behind when it comes to female-led business ownership,
Right at Home are making it easier for women to take the leap and take control. 

In 2018, the Government announced women are half as likely as men to start their own businesses. Alison Rose, head of NatWest commercial and private banking, who recently led a Government review into the issue, stated, “Unfortunately, statistics show women make up only a third of all entrepreneurs in the UK.” The Rose Report[1] found only 6% of women in the UK are choosing to start their own business, among the lowest rate compared to peer countries.

In a bid to understand why so few women choose to start their own business, a survey by Unilever Foundry in 2018 found the three biggest reasons were:

1. Lack of role models. 61% of female entrepreneurs don’t believe there are enough female role models.
2. Lack of funding options. 42% of female start-up founders said funding was one of the biggest challenges they faced.
3. Feeling marginalised as a woman. 39% of female entrepreneurs frequently encountered sexism, with the main issue being marginalisation in meetings (83%).

At Right at Home, we firmly believe that women not only SHOULD start their own businesses, but they can build a profitable and successful business. Whilst we understand there is always an element of risk associated with starting a business, a strong franchise system helps to minimise these risks. At Right at Home we address each of the three reasons above with positivity.

1. A lack of role models
   Within the Right at Home franchise network, 32% of our business owners are female. As members of both Encouraging Women into Franchising, and the bfa’s Women in Business, we are passionate about seeing women achieve the dream of running their own business and you’ll find many successful role models to inspire you.

As a homecare franchise, Right at Home enables anyone who cares about people, to build a business based on a model which has been proven to work. Our business model was first launched in the UK in 2011, since growing to almost 60 franchises. Julie Foote was one of our original four franchisees when she bought Right at Home East Lancashire and Ribble Valley. With a turnover of over £1.1 million, Julie has become a role model for other women joining the network, demonstrating what they can achieve, and is often sought out for advice and guidance. “Starting your own business is hard,” Julie says. “You have to be certain it’s what you want to do. But, if you’re willing to put in the effort, the rewards are worth it.”

Amy Popat-Patel is also quickly becoming a role model for younger women interested in running a business. Still in their twenties, Amy and her husband Kev, opened Right at Home Solent in 2015. They have just launched a second territory in Southampton, and like Julie, also enjoy well over £1m turnover from their business. As a young franchisee, Amy has been a finalist in numerous awards and quoted in feature articles about women in business.

2. Lack of funding options
   There is long-held perception women don’t receive as many funding opportunities as men. Part of this comes from the belief the banking and finance industry is a male-dominated environment. According to the Rose Report, in 2018, “only 13% of senior people on UK investment teams are female and almost half (48%) of investment teams have no women at all.” Which adds to the hesitation many women have felt about asking for funding.

One advantage of joining Right at Home is the relationship we’ve established with banks. As a franchise, we have a history of people who are running successful businesses. Lenders appreciate this and – generally – are more likely to support the funding of your new franchise.

The Rose Report also found “the cumulative effect of women’s different decisions along the entrepreneurial journey is that men in the UK are five times more likely than women to build a business of £1 million+ turnover.” Julie and Amy, who we’ve already introduced you to, are both turning over £1m in their businesses! When you follow our business model, you build upon a strong foundation for the future of your business.

An additional benefit is the training you receive – not just about how to operate your Right at Home business, but for all aspects of business management: accounting, marketing, recruitment etc. You don’t have to try and work it all out for yourself. You also receive ongoing support as you grow your business, so you can reach a profitable level much more quickly than if you tried to go it alone.

3. Feeling marginalised as a woman.
   Within Right at Home, we have a number of women regularly contributing to the ongoing development of our franchise. For example, Amy created a way to better utilise social media

“Digitally, the care industry is ‘behind the times’,” Amy explains. “This is something we wanted to take full advantage of! We use social media to reflect our vibrant approach to business to our 800+ Facebook followers – the largest in RaH!” As a result, Amy won the Best Franchisee Facebook Campaign at our annual conference in 2016 and now mentors others in the network.

Ruth Solomons, owner of Right at Home Harrow, is another £1million business owner who is introducing new initiatives in her business. “I think it’s important for the generations within a community to interact,” she explains. “We recently launched workshops which enabled our older clients to mix with children. The impact on both generations is mutually beneficial.”

Far from feeling marginalised, Right at Home’s female business owners are fully involved. They enjoy the benefit of having the support of others from all backgrounds, all experiences, and at various stages of their own Right at Home journey.

If you are interested in finding out more about how Right at Home can support you into business ownership, please contact Franchise Recruitment Manager Kate Dilworth on 07825 047344 / kate.dilworth@rightathomeuk.com You can also click here to watch a short webinar on the Right at Home franchise model.