The Rise Of Lipstick Entrepreneurs - From Fledgling to Passionista

While some of us may not warm to the term 'Lipstick Entrepreneur' others are likely to embrace the images it conjures up of bright, brash, dulcet tones of determination, drive, unique insight and persistence.

In the last decade, FMEs have enjoyed a period of sustained growth. ‘The number of women setting up their own businesses has increased dramatically, due to the lifestyle fit that owning and running your own company provides,’ says the Rt Hon. Theresa May, MP, Shadow Minister for Women in the UK. ‘Women who want flexible hours and to be their own boss have been drawn to setting up their own businesses and there are now more than one million self-employed women — a 17% rise since 2000.’

Ireland has seen a similar positive trend in the number of women becoming entrepreneurs. However, we are still below the OECD average of 4.8% and are less than half the rate prevalent with the US which sits at 8.8* (2008).

According to Avon...

There are eight distinct types of Lipstick Entrepreneurs; Each adopting a range of different business styles to fit their lifestyles and career goals.

The Meritocrat
The Meritocrat has enjoyed significant career success, but is fed up with banging her head against the glass ceiling or struggling to combine family life with the inflexible corporate world. As a result, she has chosen to ‘opt out’ and strike out on her own instead.
Research shows us that women are increasingly driven to become their own boss, and this goes some way to explaining the slow growth in the numbers of women at the top — they would rather take control and set up their own businesses, rather than work for someone else.

According to the Female FTSE Report 2008, women make up only 11.7% of board directors, which is a small improvement from 6.9% in 1998. However, during the same period, there has been a steady rise in the number of FMEs. Research from female business network Prowess shows that women are increasingly moving from permanent to self-employment; since 1990, the proportion of women moving from employment to self-employment has increased from 22.2% to 32.6%.

Read more about The Rise of Lipstick Entrepreneurs in the Spring 2010 issue of WMB, on newsstands now.