Breaking up is hard to do—just ask the 30 million women in the U.S. who are divorced or on the brink of it.

That's the target audience of a budding franchise looking to build relationships that stick through social networking, TV, live events, books and blogs. The project, dubbed First Wives World, takes its inspiration from First Wives Club, the 1996 Paramount female buddy/ revenge comedy (tagline: "Don't get mad. Get everything.") The company recently hired Hollywood consumer products veteran Andrea Hein, former Martha Stewart Living publisher Shelley Lewis Waln and journalist/TV correspondent Jill Brooke to develop the concept into a cross-platform enterprise.

Founders of the company, former advertising and entertainment execs Paul Lambert and Jonas Neilson, already have licensed First Wives Club for a musical Broadway show, continuing the flood of Hollywood films to live stage productions. It's set for a Southern California premiere next year before heading to New York, with Rock & Roll Hall of Fame hit makers Brian and Eddie Holland and Lamont Dozier writing the songs.

First Wives World has launched a Web site, with an emphasis on social networking for women in various stages of uncoupling. A regular feature on the site, called Hot Flashes, written by TV writer/producer Mimi Schmir (Grey's Anatomy), is being shopped for a TV series, and there's a 20-city tour kicking off early next year.

"The idea is to really embrace this audience," said Hein, who spent about 15 years as head of consumer products at Paramount and shepherded the licensing deal for the Broadway show, and now is executive vp at First Wives World. "We're creating a destination and a series of products and services to educate and inspire this woman."

There's a novel on the way from Putnam based on FWW blogs. Also possible: syndicated columns for print and the Web, and one-woman stage shows. Hein refers to the demo as a "designated niche audience" on which little research has been done. FWW is in talks now with an established research firm to study the estimated 30 million women in some stage of ending their marriages.

U.S. Census figures say that, for perhaps the first time, more women are living without spouses than with them. The share of married women has dropped drastically in the last 50 years: in 2000, 58% of those between 25-34 were married, down from 82% in 1950.

Getting back at the ex, and moving on after a break-up, has become a popular conceit in entertainment, a la The Starter Wife, which was a successful miniseries on USA Network and launches next month as a regular television series.

Licensing and branding expert Ronni Pollack, who isn't involved in FWW, says she sees potential for the concept in nontraditional licensing like branded seminars, cruises and pampering packages at salons. She's less convinced that the name First Wives World carries the weight and recognition of the original movie.

"The name 'First Wives Club' brings the equity and the presell and the relationship," said Pollack, who runs The Licensing Department consultancy. "It's all about authenticity; having the authentic brand. Otherwise you have to start from scratch."