She Switched Careers and Jumped Into a 'Male-Dominated' Industry. Two Years Later, She's Making $1 Million in Annual Revenue. When Rochelle Hendricks jumped into a new career, she bet on herself and brought her family along.
By Carl Stoffers Edited by Frances Dodds
This story appears in the July 2025 issue of Entrepreneur. Subscribe »
Rochelle Hendricks moves fast.
In 2022, a decade after opening her own insurance brokerage, she decided to try her hand at the siding business — fast-tracking the purchase of an Ideal Siding franchise in Ontario, Canada, in less than two months. Over the next two years, she opened three more locations and has now surpassed $1 million in annual sales.
But what's most important to her? It isn't just the numbers. It's the way her business benefits her family. She's transformed her Ideal Siding franchises into a true family operation, including immediate and extended relatives. Here, she shares how she built momentum, how working with family has been a game changer, and the advice she has for women ready to bet on themselves.
You opened your siding franchise in just six weeks. What made you move so fast?
I had gotten interested in the siding business because it's visual — people notice how beautiful the house is from the curb. And I briefly looked at buying a business a couple of years previously, but it was an individual person and came with no franchise support, so I stepped away. When I heard of Ideal Siding and found out that they do the marketing and provide the leads, I was interested. Once I saw the head office and how much passion there was for the business, it was an easy decision for me. I moved quickly, because at that point, I already had a firm belief in the brand.
What's been the key to scaling your franchises?
It definitely didn't come from aggressive sales tactics. It came from building relationships and establishing trust with clients and partners. It happened organically, by surrounding myself with family and friends who share the same passion for growth via quality and relationships as I do.
What's it like working so closely with your family every day?
I love it. I've surrounded myself with my oldest son and other family members. My partner in the Cambridge area is my daughter-in-law's father. My partner in the Muskoka area is my niece's father-in-law. I wanted to build something sustainable where we'd be known for quality and consistency, and I knew they had the same goal.
How do you manage boundaries when your business is a family affair?
We respect our personal space. Business is one thing, personal life is another thing. The staff meets once a month at work to address any issues or difficulties we encounter and find solutions together. All stakeholders have to come away with a win-win situation. That's been the heartbeat and culture in our company, and what keeps things balanced between that personal and business relationship.
Construction is still a male-dominated sector. Have you faced any pushback as a woman leading in this space?
When I first started, some people looked at me like I was playing at this. But it's also worked as an advantage, because I've had clients tell me they're happy dealing with a woman. If you have a passion and believe in it, just do it. I didn't have any safety net, I just had that deep belief in doing things differently in the construction world — that we make sure there are standards and protocols in the industry — and that women can be valuable to this industry.
Related: No Experience? No Problem. How This First-Time Franchisee Built a $3 Million Business.
Are there any lessons you've learned while scaling?
In the beginning, I was hard on myself — mentally beating myself up because I expected to know everything in the beginning. I realize now it takes time to learn the business and best practices.
