Mina Haque On The Future Of Inclusive Entrepreneurship For Female Founders

Mina Haque, CEO of Tony Roma’s, appearance at this “Her Power: Progress Under Pressure” event in association with the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) event in NYC.

Courtesy of FP

Mina Haque, CEO of Tony Roma’s, joined Andrew Sollinger, Publisher & CEO of Foreign Policy, for a conversation titled “Making Ownership Possible: Women, Capital and the Future of Inclusive Entrepreneurship.” The fireside chat took place at “Her Power: Progress Under Pressure,” held alongside the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York City. Haque spoke about everything from funding to providing educational tools and support for first-time female entrepreneurs.

Haque took an unconventional path to the C-Suite. As a practicing lawyer, she initially advised the company as outside counsel before becoming interim, then permanent, CEO. One of Haque’s goals as CEO is to increase the number of female franchisees at Tony Roma’s. “Our internal statistics show that we only have 0.02% ownership of women franchisees. I would like to change that, and part of the reason is that it’s such a capital-heavy build-out cost, and that deters women. One of the biggest challenges is access to capital. There are also not many ecosystems that advise women on how to be a franchisee. Sometimes you see that there are a lot of women who are running franchises, but it’s more like learning centers or daycare centers as opposed to a restaurant chain. When I became the CEO of Tony Roma’s, the first woman in the 53-year history, my predecessor came to me and told me that franchisees were emailing, asking, ‘Who is that woman?’’ They weren’t asking about my credentials; the first reaction was simply, ‘Who is that woman?’ It was just a completely uncharted path for the company. And that’s what I want to change. I think there are many women out there who would be absolutely great franchisees,” she shared.

Haque said she is building pathways to encourage more women to become franchisees. Tony Roma’s locations once averaged 10,000 square feet; Haque has introduced models starting at 700 square feet and up.”If we reduce franchise fees, improve access to capital, and educate women on becoming franchisees, there would be a lot of fantastic operators who would become wonderful franchisees. I’m a big advocate of education. Education does not only mean obtaining a degree, but learning about systems and processes, how to obtain a license, and how to obtain permits. We need to put genuine knowledge out there because there are bureaucratic hurdles.”

Asked about challenges with H1B visas in the American workforce, Haque discussed the generational impact immigrants have. “I think that’s what’s missing from the conversation. It is not just about paying a one-time fee for immigrants to get a pathway to the United States. “It’s the long-term, generation-to-generation value of immigrants who stay. That can’t be replaced. There’s a real ROI in the labor and spending these generations provide.”

Overall, Haque sees more people leaning towards becoming entrepreneurs. “As a population, we’re seeing a trend towards entrepreneurship, as technology gives people more flexibility,” she said. She added that education should be democratized around what funding is available, regulatory requirements, licensing, and permitting processes across industries. “As a community of stakeholders, we need to have those discussions to spread the knowledge that creates sustainable entrepreneurs and businesses.”

As part of Haque’s innovation at Tony Roma’s, on October 14th, Haque open up Tony Roma’s newest franchise opening in Kimball, Tennessee, co-led by a local female franchisee. The new location will feature some modernized menu items like Smoky BBQ Corn Ribs, Thai Vegetable Pot Stickers and 9 refreshingly satisfying, Zero-Proof Mocktails.