Is Now the Time to Start a Lifestyle Business?

Will we see more women starting lifestyle businesses as a result of COVID? What is a lifestyle business? A small retail shop or the mommy blogger? Yes and no.

“Lifestyle” sounds like a good thing. Yet, it is often said with a negative connotation. Let’s break it down.

What Is A Lifestyle Business?

What it is. As the name suggests, it’s about balancing your work and life, -- living a fulfilled and full life. The goal is to create time for life outside of your business – time for family, travel, health & wellness, hobbies, community and philanthropy.  Said another way, revenue and growth are not your #1 priority. You are looking to maintain or support an income level that you require to fit your lifestyle.

What it is not. A bad word. Sometimes viewed as not a “real business”, one that doesn’t make money, that isn’t about growth. True, the owners are not looking for a lucrative exit or to raise venture capital money and be beholden to investors. Yet, these can be growth businesses and can have sizable impacts, for example, women-owned businesses employed approximately 9mm people in 2018. Another misconception – it’s a side hustle. Not true. One study found that for 62% of women, it is their primary source of income.

What it can be.  It can be whatever you define it as really. Your definition of success. Whatever balance looks like for you at any given point in your life and that will shift. It doesn’t mean you aren’t focused on growth or can’t generate lots of revenue. Gabby Bernstein runs what I would call a lifestyle business, she is very successful financially and her work has a global impact.

Why Start a Lifestyle Business?

Flexibility is top of the list. Many women are the primary caregiver in their households and with COVID this pressure of being “on” all day, managing school, activities and care, flexibility is paramount. 74% of women says flexibility is more important than money.

It may allow one to finding meaning in their work, to connect with their purpose. Perhaps, if you have had some time and space to step away from the office both mentally and physically, you realize you want something more meaningful if you are going to put in the hours.

It gives you more control over your business activities and your level of financial and career stability. That isn’t to say market factors can’t have a huge impact on your business but relatively you have more control than if you are subject, for example, to corporate layoffs or reorganizations that are happening right now.

You control the speed at which you grow. If you want to make more money, you can work harder. Take on more clients. Automate and outsource to leverage your time or bring on employees. Yes, these businesses tend to be 1-2 owners or employees, but you can build a team around you to grow as big as you want. Again, it is your lifestyle you are crafting.   

You are not subject to the glass ceiling that still exists in many industries and at many companies. You are your own boss, you decide where the ceiling is, what you charge and what your worth is (subject to market validation, of course!).

Is Now the Right Time?

With or without COVID, women are starting businesses faster than men. Between 2017 and 2018, there were 1,821 new women-owned businesses added every day.  Women own 1 in 4 businesses. I think this trend will continue not only for all the reasons we mentioned but also as part of the generational shift in our workforce. 

When it comes to lifestyle businesses, Gen Z and Gen Y want to make their business and personal lives, and their purpose or goals work harmoniously. Today, approximately 44% of women-owned business are owned by Gen Xers and 12% by Millennials. Those numbers will continue to skew toward younger generations who in large part have been forced to create their own path and opportunity.

There are also those that will do it out of necessity because they are unemployed or cannot find quality work to support their households.

What businesses will they start? Most women-owned businesses are health care and social assistance related, professional/technical services, and “other” service businesses (nail care, salons, event planning, health & wellness (very hot right now)…)

Yet, these are some of the hardest hit industries that may suffer from a very slow recovery.  Retail, leisure, education and social services, hospitality and healthcare have taken some big blows.

On the whole, I think the pandemic will encourage or push more women to start lifestyle businesses but the industries they focus on and the services they provide may have to change. Women, like any entrepreneur, need to get creative and use what they know as consumers. What is missing? What isn’t working? What could be more efficient?

There is opportunity and there will be challenges. I hope to see more women starting and building businesses they love and making the money they deserve.