Another major factor in their decision to buy into a franchise is the flexibility it offers, says Helen Grounds, managing director of Music for Health, which provides interactive, musically based workshops for people of all ages in residential care

She said: “For women with young children, the work can be fitted in around the demands of family life. A franchise can also offer the ideal route back into work once their children have gone to school.”

The very nature of the franchise can also prove appealing to women.

Ms Grounds added: “Music for Health franchisees work closely with small groups of people, some of who have been through very difficult situations, and we find that women seem to have a natural empathy with them.”

A number of franchises are geared towards a female market, such as Gymophobics, a ladies only health club franchise, which has 41 franchises, 95 per cent of which are run by women either on their own or with a partner.

Franchise sales manager Mark Vickers said: “We specifically aim to attract body-conscious ladies who don’t do regular exercise and are not members of a regular health club. We enjoy a very high membership retention rate and that loyalty has resulted in some former members investing in a Gymophobics franchise of their own.”

For some women, the prospect of running their own franchise business is a welcome escape from a career they no longer want to pursue.

Lawn and garden care franchise Greensleeves, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, has 22 franchises in the UK, many of them run by women on their own or with their partners.

Director John Draper said: “One of our franchisees is a lady who used to work in a high pressure job in financial services. She wanted a complete change of direction, and more importantly, some control over her life, and found exactly what she was looking for with Greensleeves.

“The work is thoroughly enjoyable, easy for anyone to do, delivers real job satisfaction, and if you enjoy being in the outdoors it doesn’t get any better than this,” he added. 

However, a franchise offers much more than choice and flexibility. The concept of franchising as a tried and tested system avoids many of the risks associated with a standalone business start-up.

And as part of your investment, you receive all the training and support you need from your franchisor to set up and run your own business, and have access to a much wider network of support from the other franchisees.