Just as women in business have often been hidden by men, they have often also been hidden by the 'home' and the conceptualization of separate spheres of public and private agency. Drawing on contextual evidence from 1747 to 1880, including fire insurance records, directories, trade cards, newspapers, memoirs, the census and extensive record linkage, this study concentrates on the early to mid-Victorian period when ideals about gender roles and appropriate work for women were vigorously debated.It argues that active business did not exclude women, although careful representation was vital and this has obscured the similarities of their businesses with those of many male business proprietors. "Foundations" offers new insight into the motivations of the Victorian women who opted to pursue enterprises of their own and argues that industrialization inaugurated a commercial and retail revolution responsible for the creation of niche markets and service industries, expanding the variety of opportunities for women.By engaging in empirical comparisons with men's business, it also reveals similarities and differences with the small to medium sized ventures of male business proprietors. The link between home and enterprise is then further excavated by detailed record linkage, revealing the households and domestic circumstances and responsibilities of female proprietors. Using both discourse and data to connect enterprise, proprietor and household, "Foundations" provides a multi-dimensional picture of the Victorian female proprietor and moves beyond the stereotypes.