Cleaning businesses top the list of firms run by women

Simply Business looked at the most popular types of business owned by women and cleaning topped the list followed by hairdressing and consultancy.

Other trades appearing in the top ten of female-owned businesses were IT contractor and market trader, reflecting the diverse range of career paths chosen by female entrepreneurs today.

Top 10 most common businesses owned by women:

1. Cleaning

2. Hairdressing

3. Consultancy (business & management)

4. Beauty

5. Market trading

6. Teaching / tutoring

7. IT

8. Cake making and decorating

9. Caring

10. Café

The new research also found that London remains the small business capital, with the greatest number of female-led businesses of the UK’s biggest cities. Birmingham and Leicester followed close behind, indicating that the Midlands Engine is creating an environment that supports female entrepreneurs.

Top 10 cities by number of female business owners and tradespeople:

1. London

2. Birmingham

3. Leicester

4. Liverpool

5. Bristol

6. Edinburgh

7. Manchester

8. Glasgow

9. Exeter

10. Sheffield

Simply Business is one of the largest business insurance providers in the UK, with over 425,000 small businesses across over 1,000 different trades. Analysing its customer base, they found that accountancy was the fastest growing type of business for female entrepreneurs, with 16 times the number of female-run accountancy businesses in 2017 than there were in 2014.

Fiona McSwein, Chief Customer Officer at Simply Business, comments: “One hundred years after women got the vote in the UK, it is brilliant to acknowledge and celebrate female entrepreneurs around the country. Their hard work, expertise and commitment contributes significantly to the UK economy, and it is important that they are supported and encouraged as they grow their businesses.

“Our data shows the fantastic variety of career paths female entrepreneurs have chosen – from accountants and IT contractors to beauticians and market traders. At Simply Business we are so proud to insure the success of female-run businesses up and down the country.”