Getting out of the rat race?
Discussion
Pretty tempting at times I think!
I have enough reserves to retire and maybe buy a little post office/pub/B&B (or whatever) to keep my grey matter in tact. Pretty damned tempting at times. Anyone with any experience of the above? Somehow I have the feeling that the dream may differ from the reality!
I have enough reserves to retire and maybe buy a little post office/pub/B&B (or whatever) to keep my grey matter in tact. Pretty damned tempting at times. Anyone with any experience of the above? Somehow I have the feeling that the dream may differ from the reality!
Edited by srebbe64 on Sunday 23 November 00:41
Lets consider the list.
Post Office? Really? How many are likely to close soon? (Or does your investment level cover buying the Royal Mail?
)
Pub. Really? At the rate pubs are closing? (Or does your investment level cover buying Wetherspoons or similar)
B&B? Hmm. Could be a good one if you find out where Darling-Gordon are planning the state sponsored construction activity and set up a 4 beds to a broom cupboard operation for the construction workers. Better still if it is cloase to a regular football or stag/hen night centre so that you can fill the weekend slots too.
Alternatively you could stash the cash somewhere that pays interest (likely to be outside the UK) and go and live somewhere cheaper - like Goa for example, at least for now - and make a complete break.
In fact hang out there for a few years and your retained cash pot might be enough to return after a successful bid to buy UK Plc.
Post Office? Really? How many are likely to close soon? (Or does your investment level cover buying the Royal Mail?
)Pub. Really? At the rate pubs are closing? (Or does your investment level cover buying Wetherspoons or similar
)B&B? Hmm. Could be a good one if you find out where Darling-Gordon are planning the state sponsored construction activity and set up a 4 beds to a broom cupboard operation for the construction workers. Better still if it is cloase to a regular football or stag/hen night centre so that you can fill the weekend slots too.
Alternatively you could stash the cash somewhere that pays interest (likely to be outside the UK) and go and live somewhere cheaper - like Goa for example, at least for now - and make a complete break.
In fact hang out there for a few years and your retained cash pot might be enough to return after a successful bid to buy UK Plc.
Wacky Racer said:
Getting out of the rat race to me would mean spending my time cruising the Med, fellwalking, touring America, not opening a sub post office or corner shop, but I guess everybody's different.....
Only seven or eight years to go health willing.......
Done plenty of med cruising - bit bored of it to be honest. Done lots of America also. Not done any fell walking, but that sounds fun! Bit sentimental, but quite like the idea of just 'chilling' with my very best friend (who's also my beautiful wife.)Only seven or eight years to go health willing.......
Did it 11 years ago. Left the plc directorship behind, the 6 figure salary, the company Range Rover, the expense account, the health cover and hefty pension contributions etc.... Started a small business dealing in antique art and furniture, things that interested me rather than things I did to pay the mortgage.
I also got to go home every night, rather than spend 4 or 5 nights a week in hotels. Got to make maybe 4 landings a year for pleasure instead of 60 or 70 for shareholders profit. Got to watch my kids grow up which was nice...
My business was based in a high street freehold property that I bought in 97 when I left the plc. More by luck than judgement I sold it last year, just before the commercial property bubble burst.
You live once. Jacking in the highly paid job to work for yourself is rewarding in many ways other than financial, which it rarely is unless you are very lucky. Personally I wouldn't trade watching my kids grow up for anything and the chances are that if I had carried on at the pace I was I would have had a heart attack anyway. If you can afford to maintain your lifestyle or something close to it and work for yourself then it is a no brainer IMHO. After all, any of us could drop dead tomorrow.
I also got to go home every night, rather than spend 4 or 5 nights a week in hotels. Got to make maybe 4 landings a year for pleasure instead of 60 or 70 for shareholders profit. Got to watch my kids grow up which was nice...
My business was based in a high street freehold property that I bought in 97 when I left the plc. More by luck than judgement I sold it last year, just before the commercial property bubble burst.
You live once. Jacking in the highly paid job to work for yourself is rewarding in many ways other than financial, which it rarely is unless you are very lucky. Personally I wouldn't trade watching my kids grow up for anything and the chances are that if I had carried on at the pace I was I would have had a heart attack anyway. If you can afford to maintain your lifestyle or something close to it and work for yourself then it is a no brainer IMHO. After all, any of us could drop dead tomorrow.
srebbe64 said:
Done plenty of med cruising - bit bored of it to be honest. Done lots of America also. Not done any fell walking, but that sounds fun! Bit sentimental, but quite like the idea of just 'chilling' with my very best friend (who's also my beautiful wife.)
This is what I found strange about your post Steve...the idea that you would find running a post office or convenience store "chilling out"..I would suggest it would be more tying you down....To me getting out of the rat race means waking up and thinking "Where shall we go, or what shall we do today?".......But I accept even that might get boring, hence why people like Bill Gates, Paul M'cCartney, Richard Branson, Philip Green etc still enjoy work....(but not for a living)
srebbe64 said:
Know what you mean. However, my research indicates that post offices and convenience stores (not previously mentioned) can be quite profitable and pretty cheap to buy!
Doesn't that sound sort of mutually exclusive in a typical business concept?Edited by LongQ on Sunday 23 November 02:52
unrepentant said:
Did it 11 years ago. Left the plc directorship behind, the 6 figure salary, the company Range Rover, the expense account, the health cover and hefty pension contributions etc.... Started a small business dealing in antique art and furniture, things that interested me rather than things I did to pay the mortgage.
I also got to go home every night, rather than spend 4 or 5 nights a week in hotels. Got to make maybe 4 landings a year for pleasure instead of 60 or 70 for shareholders profit. Got to watch my kids grow up which was nice...
My business was based in a high street freehold property that I bought in 97 when I left the plc. More by luck than judgement I sold it last year, just before the commercial property bubble burst.
You live once. Jacking in the highly paid job to work for yourself is rewarding in many ways other than financial, which it rarely is unless you are very lucky. Personally I wouldn't trade watching my kids grow up for anything and the chances are that if I had carried on at the pace I was I would have had a heart attack anyway. If you can afford to maintain your lifestyle or something close to it and work for yourself then it is a no brainer IMHO. After all, any of us could drop dead tomorrow.
Well Said.I also got to go home every night, rather than spend 4 or 5 nights a week in hotels. Got to make maybe 4 landings a year for pleasure instead of 60 or 70 for shareholders profit. Got to watch my kids grow up which was nice...
My business was based in a high street freehold property that I bought in 97 when I left the plc. More by luck than judgement I sold it last year, just before the commercial property bubble burst.
You live once. Jacking in the highly paid job to work for yourself is rewarding in many ways other than financial, which it rarely is unless you are very lucky. Personally I wouldn't trade watching my kids grow up for anything and the chances are that if I had carried on at the pace I was I would have had a heart attack anyway. If you can afford to maintain your lifestyle or something close to it and work for yourself then it is a no brainer IMHO. After all, any of us could drop dead tomorrow.
LongQ said:
srebbe64 said:
Know what you mean. However, my research indicates that post offices and convenience stores (not previously mentioned) can be quite profitable and pretty cheap to buy!
Doesn't that sound sort of mutually exclusive in a typical business concept?I looked at it, did some figures and dropped the idea pretty quickly.
The only way to make it work is to be prepared to work 12 hour days / 7 days a week.
You need to be open very early, very late every day, including Sundays and Bank Holidays, to take advantage of the times when local supermarkets are closed.
If, as an experienced retailer, I can find no sensible way in which to make the convenience store / post office thing work..... ask yourself, is it really a sensible thing to do.
unrepentant said:
Lots of sensible stuff
Good on ya mate 
I did similar, gave up my engineering consultancy business. Got bored, bought a pub, partied out, got bored and am now looking for something else to keep me out of trouble/boredom.
My mate lives in France (20 mins from Le Mans) he sold advertising in specialist magazines...took the tube into London every day and sat amougst the glum faces. At 50ish he sold-up, moved to France and bought a farmhouse with a fishing lake a few years back, and now enjoys a laid-back and chilled existance.
When asked 'any regrets moving abroad and starting out all over again, learning propper French and leaving all yer friends and family behind'
he replies 'yes....we wish we'd done it 10 years ago when we were in our early 40s' ....'nuff said and good on ya mate'
srebbe64 said:
LongQ said:
srebbe64 said:
Know what you mean. However, my research indicates that post offices and convenience stores (not previously mentioned) can be quite profitable and pretty cheap to buy!
Doesn't that sound sort of mutually exclusive in a typical business concept?
If something is really naturally profitable would it be cheap to buy?
There was a time, perhaps not so long ago, when taking on just a post office and maybe selling a few card and gift wrappings and similar, could earn a nice living and allow a manager to be installed. From my knowledge via someone who took over as the postmaster (having been the manager) probably 30 years ago and saw the guaranteed income and opportunities decline during his tenure, along with increased stress levels and declining health, I can only observe that things on that side are not what they were and don't look like they might be improving with current plans for the future. He sold up about 5 years ago and took on some relief postmaster work in semi-retirement.
Convenience stores seem to change hands regularly. I suspect to qualify as a valid emergency source for the local community the long hours, mentioned in another post, are part of the credibility. The concept often appeals to extended families so the load can be shared - especially when newspaper deliveries were part of the deal, though fewer people seems to be into that these days.
I'm not suggesting people don't make a living - many obviously do, though not all. It just seems to me that climbing on a treadmill is an odd way to 'leave' the rat race if one is comfortably off.
B&B in the right location at the right time could be more relaxing in that, other than answering the phone to take bookings, afternoons are mostly likely to be free for recreation. A small, niche market, country hotel might offer more in the long term if only by justifying the cost of staff to cover your recreation time. Might be a bit of a volatile market though.
LongQ said:
srebbe64 said:
LongQ said:
srebbe64 said:
Know what you mean. However, my research indicates that post offices and convenience stores (not previously mentioned) can be quite profitable and pretty cheap to buy!
Doesn't that sound sort of mutually exclusive in a typical business concept?If something is really naturally profitable would it be cheap to buy?
There was a time, perhaps not so long ago, when taking on just a post office and maybe selling a few card and gift wrappings and similar, could earn a nice living and allow a manager to be installed. From my knowledge via someone who took over as the postmaster (having been the manager) probably 30 years ago and saw the guaranteed income and opportunities decline during his tenure, along with increased stress levels and declining health, I can only observe that things on that side are not what they were and don't look like they might be improving with current plans for the future. He sold up about 5 years ago and took on some relief postmaster work in semi-retirement.
Convenience stores seem to change hands regularly. I suspect to qualify as a valid emergency source for the local community the long hours, mentioned in another post, are part of the credibility. The concept often appeals to extended families so the load can be shared - especially when newspaper deliveries were part of the deal, though fewer people seems to be into that these days.
I'm not suggesting people don't make a living - many obviously do, though not all. It just seems to me that climbing on a treadmill is an odd way to 'leave' the rat race if one is comfortably off.
B&B in the right location at the right time could be more relaxing in that, other than answering the phone to take bookings, afternoons are mostly likely to be free for recreation. A small, niche market, country hotel might offer more in the long term if only by justifying the cost of staff to cover your recreation time. Might be a bit of a volatile market though.
They can be cheap to buy and can be made to look profitable.
But only for the reasons you state above.
You can't make any money from convenience retail unless you do all the work yourself or use your kids as slave labour.
Add to that that there's increasing competition from the big supermarkets in this sector and I think the days of the local independent convenience store are soon to be gone.
Alfa_75_Steve said:
Yup, was kind of agreeing with you.
They can be cheap to buy and can be made to look profitable.
But only for the reasons you state above.
You can't make any money from convenience retail unless you do all the work yourself or use your kids as slave labour.
Add to that that there's increasing competition from the big supermarkets in this sector and I think the days of the local independent convenience store are soon to be gone.
Sorry, forgot who made the post when I was posting and you got back in before I had un-distracted myself to check, edit and credit ...They can be cheap to buy and can be made to look profitable.
But only for the reasons you state above.
You can't make any money from convenience retail unless you do all the work yourself or use your kids as slave labour.
Add to that that there's increasing competition from the big supermarkets in this sector and I think the days of the local independent convenience store are soon to be gone.
Now in a reasonably sized countryside located village I could see some potential for a post office/pub/shop that could make half the car park available for a local market two or three days a week ...
Early morning deliveries - POST (now that would be a winner, our postie was out yesterday deliveriing at 5pm - normal time now for our daily delivery but on a SATURDAY???), papers, milk and a six pack ...
A little creativity required I think ...
Of course it would help if one was to buy the village and keep the residents in thrall but that might be a challenge these days. At least it might be until the EU carbon credits fiasco starts to bite and traps people in their homes huddled together trying to keep warm. THEN the local shop might become very convenient.
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