The demographics of the restaurant industry are changing. Nowhere is this clearer than in the spectacular increase in restaurants owned by women.
According to the most recently available figures, the majority of restaurant businesses are either owned or co-owned by women. A whopping 45 percent of all restaurant managers are women – this is in comparison to a 38 percent average of female management in other industries. Restaurants owned by women grew by 50 percent between 1997 and 2007 – the most currently available figures – while the total number of U.S. restaurant businesses rose by 36 percent.
A majority of all workers in the restaurant industry – the second largest private sector employer in the U.S. with 10 percent of the nation’s workforce – are women. Sixty-one percent of all U.S. women have worked in the restaurant industry, and 37 percent of women found their first jobs at a restaurant. With numbers like those, you’d think women must have some special, innate advantages when it comes to working in the restaurant industry. And if you’re thinking that way, you’re on the right track.
A natural fit
“This is an excellent industry for women,” said Karissa Bresheare, owner of Mill Creek-based Gourmet Latte.
“It’s a natural fit. Women are excellent multitaskers, hard workers and they’re naturally people pleasers. They’re used to that with their families and in their personal lives.” And all those old stories about female intuition? Well, there’s a lot of truth in those tales, and women’s often intuitive characteristics help them greatly in the restaurant environment. “Women are naturally intuitive on serving others,” said Amy Igloi, owner of Port Orchard’s Amy’s by the Bay. “Not to say men are not good at it because some of the most professional wait staff I’ve worked with were male. Our cultural history had leanings towards women providing support to the male doctor, women as flight attendants while men were pilots, and so on. Likewise, society has and, in some ways, still does prefer male police officers, firefighters, soldiers, but women do have more hands-on experience caretaking others.” Another reason women gravitate to and thrive in the restaurant industry is because it offers flexible schedules.
“Restaurants really have the ability to give a very, very flexible schedule because restaurant hours are not just bank hours,” said Monique Trudnowski, owner of Tacoma’s Adriatic Grill who began her restaurant career bussing tables as an 18 year-old single mother. “Our restaurant, for example, is open from 11 a.m. to almost midnight. It’s really important when you have to juggle childcare.”
Hard work, great rewards
Restaurants, more than most workplaces, are true meritocracies, which is another factor that works to women’s advantage. Lacking degree or certification requirements, entry-level restaurant jobs are typically easy to obtain. Once you get your foot in the door at a restaurant, you have a great opportunity to prove yourself, obtain plenty of hands-on experience and move through the ranks. The large number of restaurant owners, executives and managers who began bussing tables or washing dishes is proof of the great opportunities to be found in the restaurant industry.
Erin Everhart, general manager of Spokane’s Longhorn Barbecue, began working at the restaurant as a hostess while she was still in high school. Over the years, she gained invaluable experience that prepared her for her current position.
“I was able to learn the different revenue centers that we have at Longhorn,” said Everhart. “I’ve been in each one of the departments.”
No glass ceilings
And what of the much discussed and agonized over “glass ceiling” beyond which women supposedly cannot pass as they rise in the business world? It may exist in some places, but not in restaurants.
“Restaurants are no respecters of gender,” said Trudnowski. “Restaurants are respecters of hard work, hospitality and ultimate consistency. If you do a good job, regardless of your gender, you will excel. If you don’t do a good job, regardless of your gender, you will probably have a very short restaurant career.”
Reaching the top in the restaurant world, whether it’s being an executive with a large chain or owning your own small business, is something many women and men have achieved. None, however, have achieved these levels of success without a willingness to make sacrifices to reach their goals.
“I believe the only glass ceilings that truly exist are the ones we make up in our own heads,” said Igloi. “I know lots of people who have defied all odds and refused to accept failure as an option. But the real question is whether the price you pay to get ahead, like time away from family, commuting, no holidays, overtime and so on, is a price you’re willing to pay for that promotion. I always remind myself that if success was so easy, everyone would be successful.
You have to be willing to make sacrifices others won’t. You have to want to be succeed in this business and work hard to get noticed so you can be promoted. This is absolutely the industry of opportunity but, essentially, where you go and how far is in your hands. This is the industry where the world really is your oyster.”
