The best business to buy if you want a sea change
Those looking to make a sea change this summer might want to learn how to make coffee as, according to the experts, cafes are the most common and often most successful businesses in small coastal towns.
While the lifestyle of these seaside hamlets is the biggest drawcard of any move from the big smoke the reality is that the job market in coastal areas is tight. So for many, choosing to run small business can be a way to ‘buy themselves into a job’.
Wollongong-based director of Conti Business Brokers, Enzo Conti, said cafes were a popular option for those who didn’t have a lot of experience.
“People who want an income coming in straight away will buy an established business because they can’t afford to wait while the development applications come through, or wait for construction,” he said.
“I often say to people it’s better and cheaper to buy an established business because it’s an immediate income and a lot less stress.”
Where restaurant owners need to hire qualified chefs and apply for liquor licensing, cafes and takeaway stores can be more straightforward to manage.
South coast towns such as Batemans Bay, are popular with sea changers. Photo: Stuart Walmsley
Mr Conti said on parts of the NSW South Coast, where rents were lower, cafe operators could expect to take home a net profit of up to 25 per cent of the business’ earnings a year.
The Illawarra region, including Wollongong, is a popular destination for sea-changers. Recent analysis from the University of Wollongong shows 60 new businesses, including cafes, have opened up in Wollongong in the past three years, and the city’s population is expected to increase by 150 per cent in the next three years.
Principal business broker of South Coast Business Brokers, Brian Baldie, said in areas such as Sanctuary Point, about an hour and a half’s drive south of Wollongong, where there is a cluster of retirement villages, sea-changers were looking to run accommodation businesses, such as motels and B&Bs.
“People need somewhere to stay when they’re visiting their retired relatives, so we’re seeing more people interested in opening motels, and also more cafes,” he said.
”Working in hospitality you’re not going to be instantly wealthy and running an empire on the south coast but you can get a good wage and look after your family well.”
Also those looking to set up national franchises could do well because there was a process to follow running the business, and there was help from other franchisees, Mr Baldie said.
He recently sold a local woodworking business to a nationally operated franchise.
He said the local man running the store found it “much easier and more straightforward” to be working for a larger company.
But many sea-changers were often not realistic about the difficulties of moving away from the big cities, said a spokesperson from Coffs Harbour-based Seachange Business Brokers.
“Sometimes people’s ideas of what a sea change will be like are too romantic.
“It’s very difficult in regional areas to secure a full-time job so people want to run cafes and small businesses to ‘buy themselves’ a job.”
