Work Wife: The Power of Female Friendship to Drive Successful Businesses

Billed as a “celebration of female friendship,” this slim, cheerful guide from friends–turned–business partners Cerulo and Mazur offers a rousing toast to women working together—and not much else. After meeting in college, the authors were friends for a decade before launching their fashion business, Of a Kind. They discovered that female-friend pairs starting businesses were more and more common, a trend they think is less coincidence and more symptom of an evolving business world. As part of the natural process of diminishing male dominance, the authors write, companies have started making space for women to collaborate instead of compete. This has led, in turn, to an increased focus on compassion and mutual support. The authors acknowledge that these traits are widely considered “feminine” but don’t sufficiently analyze the gender stereotypes such assumptions reflect. The pair discuss how budding entrepreneurs can choose the right person, forge a partnership, prepare for success, plan for transparency, preserve the friendship, become mentors and managers, and survive the rough patches. The advice is earnest and friendly, but the patchy content is a magazine article’s worth at best. (Mar.)