For most women, once they have started a family, they need to make a choice: family or career?  Should they stay at home and look after their children in those important growing up years and miss out on their own career opportunities or, swallow the guilt, hire childcare and go back to work?

There seems to be little on offer between these two extremes.  Out of financial necessity, many women take a part time role.  However, even then it can be tricky to get the balance right and choice is often limited.  Such roles can be undemanding and don’t allow valuable skills to be utilised. As a result it often a constant struggle to juggle family and rewarding work for many mums, so what are the alternatives?

In recent years, the rise of the internet has sprung a new breed of ‘mumpreneurs’ who have started their own business from home.  These days it is not necessary to have premises and so if you have a great idea and a good business head, plus an engaging website, you can start trading from your kitchen table.  Working hours can be fitted around childcare and some mums have found this to be the ideal solution.

However, if you have never run your own business starting up can be daunting and not without risk.  With estimates of UK business failure rates of up to 30%, depending on the industry, it is right to be cautious.  The investment in a website and initial marketing could all be lost if the business idea is not strong enough.  An alternative to consider is franchising. 

Franchising offers a proven business model and all the support and training you need from an established brand and head office team.  Start-up costs can vary but you are buying into a guaranteed income generating idea and because the business is still your own, you can still be as flexible as needed to fit around family commitments. 

Sarah

“As a mum of three I was looking for a flexible career that would fit around my family, this is why I set up The Creation Station in 2002.  I now provide part-time franchise opportunities for other mums who also want to achieve a flexible and rewarding work life balance delivering The Creation Station experience through Art and Craft classes, Birthday Party and Event Entertainment.  I now work with almost 30 mums across the UK whose businesses fit perfectly around their families, as they can take their own children along to the creative activities they run within their local area.”

The franchise was also established to develop children’s creative thinking skills from an early age, in a safe and nurturing environment by stimulating the 5 senses.  The fun and educationally based programmes, engage the child at their own pace and developmental stage, to nurture a journey of exploration and discovery.  The classes, birthday parties and events are really popular as everyone can enjoy creating their own unique artwork at their pace.  Our franchisees say that developing relationships within the local community is incredibly rewarding and being part of a national team, with the same values really makes them feel supported and valued.

The Creation Station is affiliated to the British Franchise Association and training and ongoing support is provided by head office, so all our franchisees have all the skills, knowledge and top tips to run their own successful creative business.

So if you are considering returning to work and really don’t want to make the painful choice between family and career, why not consider a part-time family friendly franchise like The Creation Station?  It is a great way to earn money and have the freedom to work in a way that suits and still have time to spend with your children.