Franchise Industry Experts to Hold Free Workshop for Executive Women Career Changers and New Entrepreneurs

It’s a definite trend: women and men are leaving the executive grind and opting for self-employment and new methods of wealth creation. Many now own and manage nationally branded franchises and are successfully using their seasoned business and management experience to create lucrative new careers.

Because of the spike in interest in business ownership, local consultants from FranNet, a national network of franchise industry consultants and the Thypin Oltchick Institute for Women’s Entrepreneurship @ FEGS, are planning a free Franchising Workshop: “In Business for Yourself. Not by Yourself!” on Monday, June 13 from 6-8:30 pm at 130 East 59th St in the 7th floor Conference Center.

High-profile speakers on the all-women panel include: Shelly Sun, CEO and co-founder of BrightStar, a health care franchisor recently featured on the hit CBS show “Undercover Boss;” Eileen Huntington, co-founder of Huntington Learning Centers; Jania Bailey, president and COO of FranNet; and Janice Williams, a former health care executive and MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania who owns a thriving tutoring franchise in Manhattan. Joe Mathews, author of the best-selling book, “Street Smart Franchising,” will moderate.

Panel member Williams, who transitioned from the corporate life to become the owner of a Tutor Doctor franchise in 2009, is elated about where she’s ended up -– in business for herself but not by herself.

“When I was a market researcher at a pharmaceutical company, I spoke with customers through a facilitator behind a one way mirror,” Williams said. “Now, I survey potential clients while handing out balloons at my tent during a weekend street fair. For me, franchising is a dream come true. I’m building wealth instead of just collecting a salary.”

The event is appropriate for anyone interested in self-employment via the franchising model, but is particularly tailored to women searching for lucrative career opportunities and professionals in transition, said Alan Goldberg, franchise opportunity consultant with FranNet of New York City.

“There are highly skilled women everywhere you look; whether they’ve burned out in the C-suite, been downsized by the corporate machine or are to go back to work after taking time of for family and children,” Goldberg said. “They want more control over their time and lifestyle, and they want to build equity and wealth for the future.”

“Many are trying to figure out what to do next,” Goldberg added. “It’s time to get educated about franchising as an alternative wealth builder. The industry is about much more than fast food and retail. There are 3,000 national franchises that do just about anything you can imagine. Franchising is a proven system – structured risk with a high likelihood of paying off.”

A recent in-depth research report by Emergent Research and Intuit Inc. revealed that women are quickly becoming a dominant force in the global marketplace. The report has a name for it – the “She-conomy.” Data from the U.S. Dept. of Labor also confirms the trend. Latest numbers show that women-owned businesses are growing at almost twice the rate of all other U.S. companies.

For more information call 212-366-0033 or email ownyourbusiness@fegs.org.