La Porchetta CEO, Sara Pantaleo has been appointed to the national board of directors of the Franchise Council of Australia (FCA).

Pantaleo takes up one of the five board positions appointed by direct election from the membership.

A former Franchise Woman of the Year (2010) and a Telstra Business Woman of the Year Finalist (2012) Pantaleo has served as vice president of the Victorian State Chapter.

A passionate advocate for franchising, she often acts as a mentor to others in the sector and is involved with FCA Women in Franchising (WIF).

“The FCA does great work to support women in the sector,” she says. “Women are a great force in the franchising industry and many notable women have been behind some of our most successful businesses.”

“I believe it’s very important to encourage more women to grow into leadership roles in the industry and I hope that my appointment to the FCA board will help to further that goal.  I have been very warmly welcomed and I look forward to serving.

“In the end however, I firmly believe that it makes no difference whether you are a woman or a man in franchising. We should support women to succeed because of who they are and the great skills and talents they may have, not because of their gender.

“I have been in this sector for almost two decades and I’ve had the privilege of working with many very talented women along the way.”