There are certain trends and statistics in the franchise industry that stand out as indicators of a changing landscape . It ’ s valuable information , because it tells a more holistic story about important shifts in the industry which are based not only on market demand or growth , but also on who the key franchise stakeholders are .

In the course of analyzing over 2,500 individual franchise systems and helping prospective franchisees Find The Best™ investment , our research points to women playing a bigger role than ever in the franchise industry . In recent years , both the number of female executives listed in Franchise Disclosure Documents ( FDDs ) and the number of female-owned franchises have been increasing .

In fact , of our own client base in the last 6 months , 39 % of our prospective franchisee clients are women ; however , engagement rates are actually 30 % higher than for our male clients . Although our male clients still outnumber our female clients , our female clients tend to be more actively interested than their male counterparts in finding the best franchise and pursuing their dream of owning their own business .

HIGHER ENGAGEMENT FROM FEMALE CLIENTS

2016

FranchiseGrade . com provided us with a Franchise Investment Profile that highlights the investment value of TWO MEN AND A TRUCK ®. We give this report to all our candidates and feel it is a great addition to our sales process . Only franchise systems that meet their grading criteria are allowed to purchase this report , so we know this gives us a competitive advantage when selling our franchise .

Noelle Burak Franchise Development Manager

TWO MEN AND A TRUCK ®

On the franchisor side , the number of franchise executives listed in FDDs who are women continues to increase . In 2016 , the number of women listed in Item 2 was 27 %, which is a significant 7 % jump from recent years . The franchise sectors that saw the largest percentage growth of women executives include Personal Services and Retail Products & Services .

FINANCING A DREAM

A number of financial institutions in the U . S . continue to actively assist women in starting a franchise . For example , the Small Business Administration ( SBA ) is reaching out to women , in an attempt to increase the number of female franchisees . The SBA has more than tripled the number of loans to women business owners since 1992 and is a popular source of revenue for women franchisee start-ups .