When my little girl asked where all the ‘& Daughters’ business were, I knew what I had to do

Staring at the logo emblazoned on a warehouse, Sharon Rugge’s daughter had a simple question: Why are there so many businesses called “and sons..”?

It was a moment that sparked something in IT consultant Sharan, who was setting up her company – and she’s not the only business owner ready to shake up an age old tradition.

Recent statistics from Companies House analysed by Sum Up has revealed that over the last five years the number of ‘& Daughter’ organisations has increased by 59%, from 601 to 957, while ‘& Sons’ groups only saw a 52% growth.

A 2022 report by the Family Business Research foundation highlighted that family-founded SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) are more likely to have female leaders than their non-family counterparts, which is being reflected in this shift in naming trends.

Of course, while it’s an encouraging move, it’s worth nothing that although 48% of the workforce are women, only 12.5% of businesses using the ‘&…’ branding include daughters, compared to 87.5% referencing sons.

To champion the importance of this growing shift, Metro spoke with two founders of family corporations, who both say going against the name grain was the best decision they could have made when setting up their business.

I was just a teen when we started our family business

Inez Capps is the Managing Director and co-founder of ‘Kinton & Daughter Funeral Services Ltd’, based in the East Midlands.

She tells Metro: ‘It was a business that my parents and I set up together when I was 19, and I’ve been part of it ever since.’

Inez’s father, Nigel, already worked within the industry providing cars for funeral homes when the family decided to set up their own bespoke company. It soon saw them being called on to support bereaved families after someone from the town had died.

‘At first, like anyone at the age of 19, I was slightly apprehensive,’ Inez remembers. ‘I had actually never seen anybody that had passed away before.

‘But when I saw the way my dad cared for that person and their family, I thought to myself “this is exactly what I want to do”. It ignited a light in me, and in turn, our working relationship.’

Inez explains the family had the first discussion about founding a business together just after her 19^th birthday, and by the following January the company was officially set up.

‘Kinton & Daughter’ is solely comprised of Inez, her mother and father, and all three of them agreed instantly on the name.

‘We said, wouldn’t it be nice within such a sensitive sector to have ‘And Daughter’ as the name, instead of Son, as you never see it,’ explains Inez.

‘I suppose there was a business aspect to it, because it would make us unique. This is 14 years ago, when you really didn’t see females in the funeral profession. It’s still not as common, but it’s definitely better now.’

‘People said I was inexperienced and couldn’t offer what men could’

Inez is a firm believer that after-life care is a profession that benefits from having women at the centre.

‘I’m not saying men can’t be compassionate, as of course they can be, but you can’t buy a woman’s touch sometimes. In my funeral home, not one thing says ‘funeral’, as if you’re walking through that door you know exactly why you’re coming.

‘We’ve created a calm, warm environment that’s really welcoming. We look after them, supply a coffee, or cake. At Christmas we always have a tipple of Baileys. And being a woman I can offer my arm to a lady, or a gentleman, I can offer a smile or a gentle hug they needed.’

Despite this, Inez has faced backlash in the industry due to her gender.

‘People said I didn’t have the stature and dominance of a man, and we were faced with that within weeks of starting,’ she recalls.

‘I’ve dealt it with elegance and poise, and I’ve tried never to let it get to me. I’ve pushed through barriers and achieved something I am very, very proud of, and I hope my family are too.’

‘It’s really important for girls to know they are capable’

Sharan Rugge, an IT Consultant, is similarly proud of Northampton-based ‘Sharan & Daughters’, which she set up in January of this year.

An asset-focused business in the early stages of development, Sharan registered the company to show her two young girls, aged six and eight, that they can be business owners one day.

‘My daughters and I have done it together since the start. We’d drive around and look at lorries, and branding in general, on warehouses,’ says Sharan, explaining how the girls saw so many ‘& Sons’ logos and wondered why they had never seen ‘& Daughters’.

Sharan’s daughters helped design the business’ brand, and their mum even takes them to the bank, so that they understand the financial side of the company.

‘It’s really important for girls to know they are capable, so I am showing them that they can do anything and aren’t limited just because they are female.

‘Growing up, I was one of eight girls. My capabilities were overlooked because my father always wanted a son. He still has this traditional thought that only males can do certain things, which is partly why I went for my first name, rather than being led by my surname.

‘I’ve instilled in my daughters the belief that they, themselves, can run successful businesses.’

Inez adds: ‘It would be nice to see more father-daughter duos’ founding companies together.

‘Of course, businesses are often generational, and the ‘& Son’ name came from fathers passing down to their boys, as the ladies didn’t work and were to stay at home.

‘But things have changed. It’s empowering for women in business to step forward and take control.’

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