For professional self-employment, the spouse or partner plays a special role. Their support is particularly important for the establishment and operation of a business. Despite this fact, little is known so far about how the parties involved deal with this unique situation and what impact it has on their private partnership and household. Therefore, this work first examines how self-employed individuals and their spouses or partners organize their relationship and household. It becomes evident that especially business owners and their partners try to bind themselves to each other early on through mutual investments. Secondly, it can be observed that this strategy indeed leads to more stable marriages and a higher division of labor in the household.