2025 NatWest EWiF Award winners announced

This 14th annual celebration of the achievements of women in franchising crowned some truly inspiring winners

On Thursday, 15 May, at the London NatWest building, Encouraging Women into Franchising (EWiF) honoured the women who are inspiring change, creating opportunities, and empowering others to thrive in the franchising industry.

This year’s awards saw over 100 entries, with each of the shortlisted finalists demonstrating remarkable talent and fierce dedication to their work. Though competition was fierce, the judges commented, the winners truly stood out.

The winners

New Woman Franchisee of the Year 2025, sponsored by Coconut Marketing

Shanu Subra – McDonald’s Restaurants
Thanks to her people-first approach to leadership, Shanu’s business is thriving. She’s seen remarkable growth and already expanded into a second territory! Her success also enables her to support her local food bank, raise funds for local charities, and organise events to foster community connection.

New Woman Franchisor of the Year 2025, sponsored by Rev PR

Karen Neil – Cardea Healthcare
Authentic, empathetic, and purpose-driven, Karen exemplifies the kind of leadership that not only drives business growth but also creates lasting, meaningful impact in the care sector – a vision that brought in her first two franchisees shortly after launch and a third one not long after.

Woman Franchise Employee of the Year 2025, sponsored by Hartbeeps

Rene Swart – Snap Fitness
Over the past year, Rene was instrumental to Snap Fitness’ most financially successful period. She also developed a comprehensive cashflow projection tool for prospective franchisees, which contributed to a significant rise in franchise sales over the last year.

Service Provider of the Year 2025, sponsored by NatWest

Monica Basuc – Atlas Mapping
Monica has an amazing ability to analyse data, turning it into practical, profitable insights to empower client growth more efficiently. Exceeding sales targets, she also led and developed some projects, adding significant value to franchises, having only joined the franchise industry last year!

Young Woman in Franchising of the Year 2025, sponsored by McDonald’s Restaurants

Lucy Crabtree – babyballet
Lucy has a deep passion for her brand. Last year, under her direction, the franchise recorded its most successful financial year to date! Lucy introduced a bold, personalised, goal-driven engagement strategy and grew the support team. The results spoke for themselves!

Woman Franchisee of the Year 2025, sponsored by Atlas Mapping

Lynne Kerrison – Tutor Doctor
At the beginning of 2024, Lynne was enjoying strong business growth. But when a key revenue stream was unexpectedly lost, Lynne embraced the challenge head-on! Pivoting to previously unexplored opportunities, she safeguarded her business and showcased the adaptability of the brand.

Woman Franchisor of the Year 2025, sponsored by Social Places

Anna Neville – Kidslingo
Anna stood out for her exceptional leadership and how she elevated her brand—not only driving growth but creating new revenue streams. Through her innovative thinking, franchisees were empowered to expand into new territories, with many achieving six-figure growth as a result.

EWiF Ambassador of the Year 2025, sponsored by Elite Franchise

Catrina Newman – Goldstein Legal
Catrina is someone you’re almost guaranteed to run into at any major franchise event—relationship-building is at her core. Whether it’s a client, a colleague, or someone simply doing amazing things in franchising, she never misses an opportunity to shine a light on the success of others.

Inspirational Woman of the Year 2025, sponsored by Platinum Wave Franchising

Rebecca Dean – Concept Claims Solutions
In elevating her brand, Rebecca increased franchisee numbers and boosted overall sales performance. She even smashed the previous no female franchisees by onboarding women who made up a quarter of new franchisees last year, even personally mentoring their youngest female franchisee. Her passion for young people comes from personal heartache: discovering her 14-year-old son had been exploited by County Lines gangs. Since then, she’s advocated for policy reform to protect children from modern slavery and exploitation, all while championing for the franchise industry she’s passionate about!

Find out more about EWiF here.