Richard England wasn't unhappy in his corporate role; he just longed to have his own business, selling his own designs and creations. Here, he shares how re-evaluating his finances offered surprising insights, and how it's all working out a couple of years on.
Name
Richard England
Old Position
PR and marketing
New Career
Full-time designer and maker of handmade bespoke furniture
What work were you doing previously?
I had an 18-year career in PR and marketing, largely within financial services.
What are you doing now?
I’ve set up my own company, Glencairn Furniture, and I’m now a full-time designer and maker of handmade bespoke furniture. In recent months I’ve also launched a furniture restoration and repair service.
Why did you change?
Overall, I really enjoyed my previous career, but as the years passed I gradually realised it wasn’t what I wanted to do for the rest of my working life.
I wanted to set up and run my own company. I didn’t want it to be about providing PR and marketing services for other companies and brands. I wanted to market something that was tangible, something that I was passionate about, and something I had created.
Initially, though, I didn’t know what that thing was!
I’d be lying if I said I’ve always wanted to be a furniture maker. In fact, even after I did a five-day taster course in furniture making a few years ago, I still wasn’t sure. But it clearly got under my skin.
As the weeks and months passed, my obsession grew and I knew I had to do the year long professional course – if nothing else, just to satisfy my curiosity.
What do you miss and what don’t you miss?
I miss the financial security – a regular salary, holiday and sick pay, pension, etc.
But if you’re in a job or a career where you’re no longer fully engaged, the financial side can become little more than compensation.
I certainly miss some of the people I’ve worked with, but I don’t miss meetings, office politics or the nagging doubt that I should be doing something different.
How did you go about making the shift?
I did a five-day introductory course in furniture making a few years before embarking on the year-long professional course at the Chippendale International School of Furniture.
In between, I spent a lot of time working out exactly what I wanted to do, and exactly what I didn’t want to do.
Importantly, I also stripped out all unnecessary costs from my life. This obviously helped me save more, but perhaps most importantly it made me realise just how much (or how little) I needed to live on.
How did you handle your finances to make your shift possible?
I have savings that are providing funding for the transition, and for the early months and years of building the business.
It also provides psychological comfort. I’m not sure I would have been brave (or reckless) enough to take the plunge without that cushion. The full-time course was expensive and the cost of doing business as a furniture maker (workshop, equipment, materials, etc.) is high.
I’ve had a rough financial plan from the outset.
And sitting here now, I’m pretty much on track. So, yes, financially things are developing pretty much as I hoped and expected.
What have you learnt in the process?
Realise that you are not what you earn.
I’m quite surprised about how little the significant drop in salary has affected my quality of life and how I view myself.
What would you advise others to do in the same situation?
If you really want something in life, you can achieve it.
The first step is the hardest. The key, I think, is not being overwhelmed by the immensity of it. Break it down into a series of tiny steps. Take each step at a time. And don’t get ahead of yourself.
