WOMEN FRANCHISORS INTERVIEW
How do you think franchising has changed over the course of your career? Lots of things have changed since I’ve been part of the franchising industry. At first franchising was very entrepreneurial. Now at bfa meetings there are more managers, and although you still see some, there are not so many hands-on franchisees.
I’ve also seen a dramatic change in Molly Maid. It no longer simply provides extra income; it is often the main source of income for a home. It has been such a pleasure to be able to transform housewives into successful businesswomen, earning more money than they could ever have dreamed of. Now we have husband-and-wife teams earning a great wage with Molly Maid. Previously those who used cleaning services
were those who had large houses or who had always employed cleaners. Now it is an affordable necessity for anyone, from people with work pressures and long hours to those who have just had a baby.
Maid it
Pam Bader OBE, CEO of domestic cleaning franchise Molly Maid, opens up about her path to success as a woman in franchising
W
hen Pam Bader OBE, joined Molly Maid in 1984, it was at a standing start. Now, as CEO, she sees an annual
turnover of £15million for the business and its 70 franchisees. She is on the bfa board of directors and was recently awarded the Outstanding Contribution prize at the Encouraging Women into Franchising (EWIF) awards for her work as a mentor for female franchisees. She discusses business, boardroom quotas and book festivals with Franchisor News.
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How did you make the transition into franchising?
I left school and started out as a nursery nurse before working in various roles including restaurants and a boutique. A mutual friend introduced me to Malcolm Tall, who had just bought the master franchise license for Molly Maid from its Canadian owners, and he invited me to come and work with him. He sold it to me as a part-time job, but of course it was far from it! I worked 24/7, all days of the year. I loved the business and we encouraged other women to join, initially packaging it as an add- on to family income.
I’ve also been thinking about how Molly Maid has changed the lives of the women we have employed. I remember when a maid was just a woman in uniform on a bicycle, and women often had few assets. But we gave our maids a company car, a bank account, and a tax number perhaps for the first time. Our next step is taking women into pension schemes. It’s such a great feeling to give women this financial independence.
Is there still work to be done to get women into successful careers? There has been talk recently about girls at school not being as ambitious or as aspirational enough for good jobs, which I find concerning. I am dyslexic, but I am also determined and I have the willpower to succeed. To be successful, it is important to be inquisitive and to always be learning. We need a lot more female leaders.
As the first woman to be elected onto the board at the bfa – and then re-elected – what do you think about mandatory quotas for women on company boards? I have been on government-related and private boards, and was often the only woman. When I was awarded my OBE for services to training, I was the only woman on the Thames Valley Enterprise Training and Council board. At the time, there were too many men so they had to find a woman. Having a quota worked then and I think it is
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