Chris Reynolds and his wife Louise Marshall traded the sound of London traffic for a flock of noisy peacocks. The couple quit their corporate careers, sold their Battersea flat, and bought a 10-acre smallholding in Porton, Wiltshire, where they now run a vineyard and glamping business called Liba Vineyard.
What I'd tell a client about this
The story behind Chris and Louise's move did not start with a business plan. It started with exhaustion. They met on the Deloitte trainee scheme back in 2012, and Chris went on to work as a management consultant and associate director, spending his days on "business strategy operations, powerpoints and spreadsheets, shirts and ties." Louise built an impressive career too, earning an MBE for her climate legislation work on the 2021 UN COP26 conference. By any outside measure, they were doing well. But somewhere along the way, Chris says, "our passion for that lifestyle was waning."
The real turning point came during the pandemic, when both of them were working longer hours than ever and running on empty. A short glamping trip to East Sussex became the moment everything shifted. Work delayed Louise's arrival, and Chris found himself alone with a glass of wine, surrounded by birds and quiet. When Louise finally got there, they asked each other a simple question: what are we doing with our lives? That night they decided to start a vineyard and a glamping business.
As a coach who works with clients navigating career and life changes, I'd point to this as the real lesson here. Big decisions rarely arrive as a tidy five-year plan. They usually show up as a quiet, honest moment when you finally admit something isn't working anymore. Chris and Louise didn't quit on a whim. It took two years to find the right property, since a proper vineyard needs specific conditions like a south-facing slope and low altitude. When they found the £1.4 million estate in Porton in 2023, Chris knew instantly it was right. That patience, paired with a clear internal signal that change was needed, is what separates a reckless leap from a considered one.
It also helps to remember that passion does not require a background in the field. Chris admits he didn't come from farming or winemaking. He took a week of training at Plumpton College's wine school before making the jump, volunteered at vineyards for hands-on experience, and filled in the gaps with books and YouTube. He calls it "a bit of an odd choice," but one that is working out.
One small action to take this week
If some part of your current life feels like it's running on autopilot, don't wait for a dramatic crisis to force the issue. Take thirty minutes this week to write down, honestly, what you'd actually want your days to look like if nothing was holding you back. You don't need to sell your flat tomorrow. You just need to stop avoiding the question.
Chris and Louise sold their London flat, which they'd bought in 2015 and paid off over eight years, to fund much of the purchase. They put £75,000 of savings and family help into planting nearly 4,000 vines across 2.5 acres, run the whole operation organically, and hope to produce up to 10,000 bottles of wine a year by 2028. Another £250,000 went into building three woodland glamping pods, complete with wood-fired hot tubs and rain showers, though planning permission alone took 18 months of stress. The site opened a year ago and now stays busy most days, with rooms starting from £149 a night.
It hasn't been simple. A late frost recently forced them outside in the middle of the night to light fires and protect the vines. They know the business won't turn a real profit for a couple more years, and they're already planning a farm shop, café, and barn hire for small businesses and weddings. Chris is candid that they're working harder than ever, not living some easy, simplified version of life.
But when he looks out at the estate now, his answer is clear: "100% we are living the dream." He still misses London, the pubs, the takeaways, the friends close by. No regrets though. His advice for anyone considering a similar move is straightforward: if you have the real drive and desire, go for it.
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