Are you considering a change of scenery that includes the freedom of your own business and the low-stress lifestyle of living away from the city?
Buying a business always comes with many considerations, but buying away from a city brings new questions. As you consider how much money you’ll be able to make, whether you can find quality staff or whether to buy a business at all, you may find that the answers surprise you.
Buying a Job?
The first question you may ask yourself is if you’re buying a job rather than a business.
What’s the difference? Generally, it’s understood that in a job you’re swapping your hours for money or taking on a role an employee would normally take; such as a salesperson. A business concentrates on passive income, allowing employees to do the day-to-day work while you concentrate on strategy and growth.
If you purchase a smaller business though, you might position yourself in a company where you spend most of your time running day-to-day tasks and reap the reward of a steady pay check.
Whether or not you’re okay with “buying a job” depends on your goals. There’s not anything wrong with settling into a business where you work for yourself and earn a steady pay, especially if it’s in an industry you love.
It’s also possible to transition from a job to a business. You can begin to concentrate on growing your business in ways that let you step back and leave the day-to-day operation to employees. When you own your own business, your own ambition and dedication are your only limits.
Money
Once you’ve investigated whether you’re buying a job or a business and decided how comfortable you are with either decision, it’s time to look at more practical matters. The first would be money: how much can you make and how much do you need to make?
You may think that a business outside of Auckland will make less money than one based in Auckland. There are fewer potential customers, meaning fewer potential sales. but there are also fewer competitors in the provinces. It may be that your business will be a big fish in a smaller town.
Also remember that Auckland is the most expensive place to live in New Zealand. The lowered cost of living in the provinces means you don’t need to earn as much to have an enviable lifestyle. It also means that your business costs, especially in terms of renting your premises, are lowered. This means that even if you’re not bringing in as much money, your lowered costs may still mean a similar, or even higher, profit.
Staff
You may also ask yourself if you’ll be able to find high-quality, qualified staff away from Auckland. The answer to that question has two parts.
First, the provinces are full of people ready to work. It’s important to do your research to get an idea of population and the number of people looking for employment. But as in every area of New Zealand, people want quality employment without having to leave their home region.
Second, there are employees who, like you, are ready to find a new lifestyle away from Auckland. If there are specific skills you can’t find, you’ll likely be able to find people willing to exchange the excitement of the big city for a more relaxed lifestyle in the provinces.
Remember that an abundance of resources are available to help you in your quest to run a business in the provinces. Communities want businesses and councils, business organisations and trade organisations all look to attract new business owners and help them get established in the area. If you’re itching to escape the city and buy a business in the provinces, there’s no reason you can’t succeed.
