Women Leading the Way: Cruise Planners Marks Women’s History Month with Top Franchise for Women Honor

Franchise recognition

The annual ranking from Franchise Business Review is based on surveys from more than 8,000 women franchise owners across 325 franchise brands, evaluating factors such as leadership, training and support, financial opportunity, and work life balance. A recent study revealed that 88% of women reported enjoying being part of their franchise organization, and three out of four said they would recommend their franchise to others, with Cruise Planners’ supportive and systematic success plan topping the list of opportunities in the travel space.

For Cruise Planners, the recognition carries particular significance because 99% of franchisees report that they enjoy operating their Cruise Planners business, are likely to recommend the franchise to others, and hold Founder and CEO Michelle Fee in high regard for developing a business model that enables entrepreneurs-- many of them women-- to build a successful travel businesses while maintaining flexibility and independence.

Women in travel

Women have been a significant force in the travel advisor profession for quite some time. In fact, nearly 80% of travel advisors in the U.S. are women, and they also own a substantial portion of travel agencies across the country. However, within the broader travel and tourism sector, women remain underrepresented in executive roles, holding only about one-third of board seats in major travel and hospitality companies.

Cruise Planners’ franchise model aims to bridge this gap by empowering women entrepreneurs with the backing of a nationally recognized, billion-dollar travel enterprise.

“Empowering women to build businesses and shape their own futures has always been at the heart of Cruise Planners,” said Michelle Fee, Founder and CEO of Cruise Planners. “Women have long been a powerful force in the travel industry, despite leadership roles not always reflecting our influence. Entrepreneurship creates pathways forward, and the work we do here is helping to break barriers by providing the tools, support, and platform for women to become CEOs of their own travel businesses, benefit from the strength of a national brand, and define success on their own terms.”

Empowering women

Cruise Planners boasts a thriving network of women franchise owners. Their success is rooted in a robust foundation of mentorship, innovative training programs like STAR University, turnkey marketing programs and cutting-edge technology.

“As more women pursue entrepreneurship, franchising offers an accessible and supportive pathway to business ownership,” added Chief Operations Officer, Theresa Scalzitti. “We are honored to be part of that journey and to help thousands of women turn their love of travel into successful careers.”