Encouraging Women into Franchising Conference a Success!

Encouraging Women into Franchising’s national conference was a resounding success

Encouraging Women into Franchising’s successful year continued with its national conference in Northampton, which was attended by a record number of members.

The event gives members the opportunity to come together, network and share ideas and expert knowledge. Every year EWIF’s network grows bigger and the organisation says its proud of what it’s accomplished over the last seven years.

Guest speakers

This year’s guest speakers were Gaynor Hodge, TONI&GUY’s national franchise manager; Adie Luff, TONI&GUY’s regional education manager; and Tanya Robinson, senior contract manager for HMPPS, who founded a charity to support and rescue sex workers in east London.

The day had a great vibe about it, with the speakers inspiring and encouraging those in attendance. Women are excellent at breaking rules and adapting to what’s happening in life, which Gaynor says is crucial for franchise development.

She adds: “As a franchise manager, I have learned there is only one rule - there are no rules. As franchisors, adapting to situations, learning to be flexible and not sticking rigidly to the rules is what’s important for the development of our franchises.”

Gaynor’s colleague, Adie, agrees. He says: “The bigger you grow, the nimbler you need to be if you’re going to keep moving forward with your franchise.

“I once heard it said: ‘Even if you’re the size of a tanker, you still have to be able to move like a speedboat’.”

Tanya urged members to believe more about what we think we can accomplish.

“I believe I’ve been blessed with the capacity to do more and don’t feel as though I have reached anywhere near my full potential,” she says. “I don’t want to be forced by others to become someone I don’t want to be and you shouldn’t have to either.

“We should always be able to strive to be better - for ourselves.” Attending the national conference provides business owners, franchisors and franchisees with the opportunity to network with some of the biggest brands in the franchise industry.

We learn together and speaking to others who are facing the same challenges is beneficial for all business owners, while sharing best practice and ideas helps make the industry more successful as a whole.

EWIF’s primary focus is to support women looking for a route into franchising. Its remit is threefold - to encourage women to consider buying a franchise, to encourage business women to franchise their existing operations and to help franchisors attract more women to their networks.

Sharing ideas

Clive Sawyer, CEO of EWIF, says: “It’s always lovely to see our members coming together at our national conference - it’s one of the only times of year we manage to get most of our members in one room.

“I’m always astounded to see how willing they are to share their successes and ideas for development.

“Last year, figures for women in franchising overall dropped, so our cause is now more important than ever before.

“We want as many people as possible to be involved, inspiring and supporting more women into franchising and business ownership, even just through attending our conference and awards events.”