Female entrepreneurs leading work revolution as creative businesses snub 9-to-5 routine
Female entrepreneurs are leading a revolution in the world of work as an upsurge in small creative businesses has seen more people than ever shun the humdrum of a ‘9-to-5’ routine, according to a report released on Tuesday.
The number of self-employed women has increased by 50 per cent over the past decade, with advances in technology allowing many to benefit from a more flexible approach to work, according to a combined study by notonthehighstreet.com - an online marketplace for small business products - and Oxford Economics.
Across men and women, there has been a 27 per cent increase in self-employment over the last ten years, bringing current numbers of self-employed workers to 4.8 million in the UK, according to figures compiled by Oxford Economics.
But the shift has been particularly empowering for female entrepreneurs. As part of the study, notonthehighstreet.com surveyed 361 of its partners, with one in 10 saying that starting their own business had offered them a path back to work after a period of unpaid leave to care for young children.
Dani Bolser founded Deluxe Blooms, a luxury flower specialist, after she realised that a return to full-time work would prevent her from caring for her young children while a part-time job would be financially unviable.
“My husband encouraged me to take the plunge and put my skills to use and be my own boss,” said Ms Bolser.
“I get to be creative, earn money and still do the school run!”
Kathryn Tyler, co-founder at online digital skills training company Digital Mums, warned employers that they risked jeopardising their own future if they failed to adapt to changing work habits.
“The changes we’re starting to see in the working world where women in particular are retraining or setting up their own business to find work that works around their families, are going to continue to rise,” said Ms Tyler.
“If employers want to tap into this talent, they need to wake up to a new way of working or be left behind. The current ‘9-to-5 coat-on-chair’ culture is not only failing women, it’s failing a new generation of workers who have grown up in an entrepreneurial environment where today’s technology negates the need for such a rigid and restrictive way of working,” she added.
The report also shows that those who work in small creative businesses have a high-level of job satisfaction. Of the notonthehighstreet partners interviewed, 95 per cent said they felt a greater sense of achievement since starting their own business, while 80 per cent said they enjoyed the responsibilities that came with running a business.
CEO of notonthehighstreet.com Simon Belsham highlighted the role of “advances in technology” in “allowing more people to find greater autonomy over working lives and fulfilment through work”.
According to Oxford Economics, there are 134,000 small creative businesses in the UK, employing 192,000 people and contributing £3.6bn gross value added to the UK economy. One in 40 UK businesses is a small creative business.
