March is Women’s History Month and its purpose is to recognize the contributions and stories of women to society—both past and present. Whether in science, business, healthcare, or any number of industries and human needs, women have been there to provide their knowledge and inspiration. 

As a female business owner, I want to share a little about my journey and the other women who are a critical part of my business today, or the women’s history of Sticky Fingers Cooking.

Each year, the number of small businesses in the United States stays steady or increases, and so does the number of businesses that are owned by women. A small business is defined as having fewer than 500 employees. Check out these statistics:

• Women started 49% of new businesses in the United States in 2021, up from 28% in 2019, according to the World Economic Forum
• Women-led business employed 10.1 million workers in 2019, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration‍
• Women owned 43.2 of business as of 2021, based on data from the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy
• Between 1995 and 2019, U.S. small business employment grew by 17.2% (also according to the SBA)

Sticky Fingers Cooking became part of those statistics in 2011, when I took the concept from my kitchen table to a business plan. We have an illustrated timeline of the business here, and as you scroll down, you can see we’ve added franchising to the history of this company as of 2022.

Meet the Women of the Team

Sticky Fingers Cooking also employs more women than men at the home office, and also in our corporate-owned locations. 

COO Kimberly Douglas has traveled the world, settled down when she started her family in Colorado, and is a key part of expanding the Sticky Fingers Cooking brand with the franchise model. 

Chief of Staff Katie Brennan is focused on making Sticky Fingers Cooking the world’s most kid-friendly hospitality company, while also being a mom to two kids. 

Chief Financial Officer Lelania Howard majored in business and psychology at Notre Dame, then found a career in the franchise world before pausing to raise her three kids and now she’s back at work with us. 

Chief Integration Officer Amanda Adams is a former preschool teacher and speech pathologist who first joined Sticky Fingers Cooking as a chef instructor before expanding into a database dynamo we rely on every day. 

Learn more about the whole team on our website. 

‍Women and Franchising

Just like with all small businesses, the number of women in franchising—both as franchisors and franchisees—is growing. 

“Women, especially Gen Z and millennials, outnumber men in seeking franchising information, and today a third of franchises are owned by women,” Dan Rowe wrote in a 2022 Entrepreneur article, citing a 2021 Franchise Insights survey. “When I first got involved in franchising 30 years ago, I can't remember a woman-owned franchise brand, and there were very few women franchisees. Today there are examples of both, and their success is helping drive more and more women to make franchising a career.”

So what’s the appeal for women in franchising? Rowe, founder and CEO of Fransmart, cites these reasons that I agree with completely:

• The potential to close the gender pay gap
• Work/life balance
• Inspire the next generation of women

Thanks to those women who paved the way, today there are more resources than ever to help women who want to invest in a franchise business such as the International Franchise Association’s (IFA) Women’s Franchising Committee and Women’s Franchise Network. 

If you’re feeling inspired to seek out your own work/life balance and increase your earning potential, you can learn more about joining Sticky Fingers Cooking as a franchisee by clicking here. I hope to connect with you soon!