Reader TTS

MEL JONES, 50, TELLS HOW SHE CAME TO SET UP A MOBILE CATERING BUSINESS Seven years ago, I was working as a credit controller in a small business and had no thoughts of moving to France. 

Then, in the summer of 2017, my husband Hadrian, 56 and I came to France to help my father look for a holiday home. “Have you seen the property prices?” Hadrian asked me. Realising that we

could afford the type of home we had always dreamed of in the UK, as well as free ourselves to spend more time with our daughter Violet, now 11, we began to seriously consider making a move

and started searching for properties in earnest. In May 2018, we found our property in Scrignac (Finistère) as it was not too far from the Channel, meaning we could see family more easily. 

ARRIVING WITH ONLY BASIC FRENCH Before the move, I was working 40-hour weeks in the credit control office and Hadrian was working full-time as a lift engineer.  With my French quite basic

and little call for lifts in rural France, we both knew we would be making a career change.  Luckily, as we owned two properties in England we were in a position to sell both and buy a

property in France outright. This gave us the financial freedom to settle in before finding a regular income.  We moved over in February 2018 and Hadrian set himself up as a

micro-entrepreneur. He now works in DIY and gardening – often supporting elderly members of the local population who cannot always manage the bigger jobs themselves.  Initially, I was not

sure which direction to take. I knew I did not want to work in finance, and that my qualifications and skills would probably not translate in France.  While I was still thinking, Covid came

along and life stopped for a while. When the lockdowns ended, I decided the first step was to improve my French and in early 2022 I enrolled in a GRETA (groupement d'établissements)

through Pôle Emploi.  It was a three month, full-time course and by the end I was ready to look for employment.  Read more: Career change in France: from police officer to gardener WHY I

CHOSE THE RISKY OPTION Sadly, the only jobs available locally seemed to be in caring or cleaning – neither of which appealed. The final option was to open my own business – a daunting but

exciting prospect. Although I had worked in an office chasing accounts and liaising with businesses over the phone for 20-plus years, I had spent a couple of years in the pub trade

beforehand. I toyed with the idea of opening a restaurant or café, but felt the financial risk in securing premises would be too high.  Instead, I wondered whether I might start my own food

truck. In preparation, I took a four-day health and hygiene course in Brest for the certification I needed to prepare and serve food. Combined with my prior experience in pub kitchens, I had

enough evidence to set myself up in my new role.  I took my paperwork to the chambre de métiers and set myself up as a micro-entrepreneur.  I also bought a caravan, previously used on a

camping site in Morbihan, and had it kitted out to conform to health and safety specifications. La Coccinelle Food Truck was born! Now I have two regular gigs per week – one outside a local

charity and the other opposite a local bar. I work in other locations on an ad hoc basis.  It is very different from credit control, but in a good way. I get to chat to people, see new

faces, choose my working hours and work around our family commitments – none of which were possible in my old role. With two seasons now under my belt, my business is growing through word of

mouth and I always sell well.  WORKING ON ANOTHER PLAN Remuneration is not what it was back in the UK, but I was working 40-hour weeks and had so many more overheads – as well as the

mortgage, childcare ate up much of our income.  Now, I work nine hours a week in the truck and spend around two-and-a-half days doing the preparation. At the moment, I am looking to change

my business regime. With micro-entrepreneur status you cannot deduct for your overheads, so costs can be quite steep.  I may also start searching for fixed premises. I would still run a

takeaway, but from a building rather than a caravan. Either way, I have achieved the type of life I dreamed of – living in a great property and setting my own working hours.