I think you have to have a point of difference otherwise everyone is doing the same thing. You need a USP,” says Vanessa Howard, and as USPs go, hers is certainly unique. She and her partner William McDonald have created a private vintage fashion museum at their home in Dordogne, where they also run gîte accommodation.
The benefits are twofold: the museum offers their guests an additional experience that they’re unlikely to find elsewhere and allows Vanessa to continue to indulge her passion for vintage fashion.
Vanessa first visited France at the age of 14 and always thought that she’d like to live there, but it would be 40 years before she was in a position to seriously think about making it happen.
“I was approaching 55 and had a long commute to work, and I decided I needed to get off the treadmill,” says Vanessa. “We felt we needed to do something different and as we don’t have children we decided we would move to France, so we visited the French Property Exhibition in London and subscribed to the magazines.”
CREATIVE THINKING
At that stage, Vanessa, ahead of marketing, and carpenter William didn’t know where in France they wanted to move to but knew it needed to be somewhere rural.
The couple would also need to generate an income of some description and thought a B&B could be the answer. When they learned of one for sale in Dordogne they arranged a viewing and combined it with seeing a number of other properties in the area to help them get an idea of what they were really looking for.
Denne historien er fra January 2020-utgaven av Living France.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Denne historien er fra January 2020-utgaven av Living France.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Guide To: Working For A Foreign Company
If your current employer is happy to let you continue working for them after you move to France, there are a number of rules and regulations to be aware of to ensure you stay on the right side of the law, as Catharine Higginson explains
On vintage soil
Life in the vineyards of Aude is a dream come true for Leicestershire-born Katie Jones who now successfully exports her wines back to the UK, as Brigitte Nicolas learns
KNOWLEDGE IS POWER
What happens if you are buying a French property but can’t attend the completion meeting at the notaire’s office in person? Matthew Cameron explains how a power of attorney can be used and how it works
In safe hands
There can be few more unusual homes than the 11th-century Château de Clérans, situated close to the Dordogne river in the Périgord Pourpre region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine.
THE CAPTAIN'S TABLE
Robin Ellis made his name as the original Captain Poldark but a diabetes diagnosis led the Tarn-based actor to add cookbook writing to his CV, as Richard Webber learns
My frugal France
Embracing modern technology could save you money and time on both the pleasures and essentials of life in France, says Laura Harley as she shares some of her favourite French apps
Hidden Talents
Moving to France enabled these three expats to switch off from busy careers and in turn discover new creative talents, says Gillian Harvey, who counts herself among them
Beauty to behold
With its legendary vineyards, charming old towns and rich gastronomy, Gironde is quintessential France at its best, as Alison Weeks discovers
AS SEEN ON SCREEN
A Dordogne town, a Charente city and a Pyrenean village all have a starring role in three new films hitting the big screen this year, joining a long list of French locations that have gone before them, as Vicky Leigh learns
A local's view
Trish and Mark Tyler run a beautifully restored chambres d’hôtes, set in six hectares of park and woodland near StÉmilion, which has a fascinating history
