Your Business: Rural businesses - Dave Kirk-Jones and Sarah Campbell, Pah Road Accommodation

Sarah Campbell and Dave Kirk-Jones, owners of Pah Road Accommodation.

Sarah Campbell and Dave Kirk-Jones are the owners of Pah Road Accommodation based in Riwaka, just outside of Motueka.

Can you tell me a bit about your rural location?
We moved from Mt Roskill to Riwaka, just outside of Motueka, 18 months ago. It was mainly to be closer to family, but we also wanted to bring up our girls - who are four and two - in a rural location for lifestyle reasons.

We brought our business, Pah Road Accommodation, which has two cottages on the property where we also live. This gave us an income, but also some flexibility to work from home on our own businesses while also looking after our girls. For the price of an average three-bedroom house in Auckland, we could afford a property with an orchard, a house, two cottages and a workshop/gallery.

What have you found the biggest challenge of running a business in a rural location so far?
The biggest challenge for us has been time. We run other businesses as well as the accommodation, so we wear lots of different hats. It's been a lot of work and we work from seven in the morning until 11 at night. But we've managed to balance things with help from family, and also by sharing looking after the girls between us.

Have there been other challenges?
We both ran successful Trade Me-based businesses in Auckland, and it was easier and cheaper to have items imported to Auckland than it is to get things to Nelson.

We also had no business contacts here, so we've had to build them from scratch. Dave now works in construction equipment sales - a business he started when we moved here - and I now also make lampshades and lipstick. I've grown those businesses through word of mouth and recommendations, which mean a lot in a small community.

But has the sea change been worth it?
Living five minutes' walk from the beach, being able to pick your own fruit, veges and collect your own eggs means it has been worth it. We really enjoy the variety of our lifestyle; it's exhausting at times, but a lot of families can say that no matter where they live, and it's never boring. We also love being able to share our property and ideas with others and we love it when we have guests who stay who 'get it'. We get to meet people from all over the world without leaving home.

What advice would you have for others looking to make a similar move from city to country, in terms of creating business success?
Be prepared to back yourself, and each other. What works in a bigger city doesn't always work in a rural location, so you need to be prepared to try different things. And if it feels right - and you think that you can manage it financially - then do it. We call it the 'rocking chair' philosophy. When we're older and sitting in our rocking chairs we don't want to say 'remember that place we found years ago? We should have done it.'

Coming up in Your Business: What does it mean to start a business later in life? I'm keen to learn about what's motivated some laterpreneurs to set up their ventures, and the challenges and opportunities they've encountered along the way. If you've got a story to tell about being a laterpreneur, drop me a note: nzhsmallbusiness@gmail.com