In summer 2003 Jamie Birks made the life-changing decision to quit his high flying job in corporate finance to become his own boss,
putting family first and reclaiming his quality of life. His business now yields around the same income level as his previous salary of £80,000, yet he now gets to spend more time than ever with his young family, as well as having plenty of opportunities to pursue his passion for outdoor pursuits, including mountain biking, canoeing and hill walking.
Having spent several years managing large IT projects and company mergers, Jamie felt he had achieved everything he wanted from corporate life. He’d just got married and while sitting on a beach on honeymoon in the Caribbean, he realised he wanted to do something completely different.
“It was quite a daunting decision to make, but I was determined to step off the corporate ladder and take control of my future,” he says.
First, Jamie made the decision to move from the South East of England back to Scotland, where he planned to buy some land and build a house in the Scottish Borders.
“Although beautiful, it is not the most thriving area, so I had to be careful in my choice of business,” he recalls. “After looking at various businesses for sale in the region – most were failing B&Bs and restaurants – I turned my attention to franchising.”
According to Jamie, ChipsAway came top of his list for a variety of reasons.