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scratch and having to go through all the various development stages. Again, this is hugely attractive to parents who more than likely will have significant financial obligations each month and income needs to be replaced pretty quickly. The supportive and cooperative nature of a good franchise brand model is also likely to appeal to many would-be parentpreneurs. Starting a new business is like having a new baby. It requires a lot of time, attention and nurturing to grow and thrive. Having the additional challenges of raising a family alongside starting that business means time and resources are limited. Therefore, having the support of a community you can rely on for advice and support, especially when problems inevitably arise, is invaluable. Having the backing of a franchise network can mean the often daunting leap into the world of self-employment can seem a lot less scary. Women want to be their own boss Drilling down into the parentpreneur statistics, there has been a significant rise in women looking to launch their own businesses. Service-based franchises, in particular, appear to attract a higher proportion of females. Such franchise opportunities are likely to involve a lower capital investment, but often allow a significant proportion of home working, together with the flexibility to set hours and appointments around child and home care commitments. Working at home allows many parents to spend more time with their children during school holidays while still working and might even mean they can keep young children out of childcare. Building any business while caring for or sharing the care of children is a challenge. I personally believe there’s no such thing as a perfect work-life balance and that as individuals and parents we have to decide on what our needs and priorities are and then see if we can build something that meets as many of these as possible. Win-win situation Starting a business, especially a franchise business, may well allow many budding parentpreneurs to achieve the flexibility they’re seeking in terms of working around caring commitments, but that’s not to say it will always be an easy ride. And that’s where the benefit of having a franchise network behind you comes into play. Given the fact many parents not only have a wealth of experience from their previous careers to bring to the table, but also the skills of multitasking we develop as parents, we as franchisors can most certainly benefit from having parentpreneurs within our franchise networks. “I left behind the security of the legal profession as I struggled to maintain the balance I wanted between my career and my role as the primary carer of two young children” WHAT-FRANCHISE.COM 19