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Women retailers are beginning to question why, if 33% of store owners are women and 70% of people working in stores are female, they are relatively under-represented when it comes to retailer steering groups and advisory panels and why their numbers attending trade shows, conferences and other networking events also appear disproportionately low.
The situation in the closely connected wholesale sector is similar, with 47% of the workforce made up of women but only about 17% being senior managers or directors, according to the latest figures from networking group Women in Wholesale, which was set up a couple of years ago to address precisely such issues.
Truth be told, the whole sector – both wholesale and retail – has historically been a bit of a boys’ club.
Why does this matter? General unfairness aside, gender diversity leads to better business. Not having a broad range of views represented among those helping shape the direction of the sector is quite simply a waste of talent.
If women felt more comfortable attending industry events and sharing their knowledge and experience, we would end up with a richer industry that better reflected the make-up not only of the people who work within it, but also of the customers upon whom the success of the sector ultimately rests.
Having more-visible women retailers in key positions could also help inspire more young women to enter the sector, making it a more attractive choice of career to a wider variety of talent.
With the sector having long questioned where the next generation of independent retailers is going to come from, opening up to more female entrepreneurs could be one way to tackle the problem.
Addressing such a historical imbalance is not going to happen overnight, but if everyone plays their part, we can bring about change.
by David Shrimpton, Editor
