On August 6th of 2008 I registered the business name of Noble Ink Design and Print. On January 6th 2009 I opened my first shop.
That’s 15 years of being in Business.
To help celebrate in the lead up to these milestone events, I’ve written a few little memoirs that I wanted to share with you.
Maybe you can relate to them, or maybe you will be inspired to create something for yourselves, just as I have.
Part 1: Moving to the other side of the world.
February 6th 2008 was my last night’s sleep in England.
And it was on my mum’s floor!
My suitcase and backpack were busting at zippers.
Just how can you pack your life into 30kg of luggage?
I was about to start a new life on the opposite end of the earth, 10,813 miles away, a 38-year-old born and bred Englishman leaving a damp, dark, wet and cold winter U.K for (what I was about to find out) was an unpredictable hot, windy, rainy, snowy Summer in Tasmania.
So, having a full suitcase I decided to leave my winter coat behind.
Well, it wasn’t until 4 months later and in June of that year when I set up my first market stall, (under the guise of Noble Ink) that I realised what a mistake it was to leave my coat behind.
I came to the decision to start a new life in Tasmania for several reasons.
Firstly, for Love! My Tasmanian partner and I lived together in Nottingham U.K for the 5 years prior to her leaving to go back home in October 2007 after a family tragedy saw her fly home almost straight away. It wasn’t until 4 months later that I was able to join her.
Secondly, and if by very rude timing, the 2008 global financial crisis had hit, affecting economies around the world. It led to the deepest UK recession since World War II, with rises in unemployment, debt and home repossessions.
My job was promised to be kept safe, and I was even offered an Engineering Degree if I stayed, and believe you me, this was an opportune carrot dangled in front of my face. You see having left school with just Art and a Woodwork GCSE this was finally a chance to make something of myself!
Heck, I could even have a few letters after my name!
But I knew deep down I wanted to run my own printing business (I have harbored this idea for as long as I can remember) and after all, I’m an artist not an engineer.
Thirdly, it seemed that all roads at this point in time seemed to be leading to nowhere, I had to dig deep and I knew my time in the U.K had come to an end, with a bleak future ahead of me, I decided to jump with both feet and take the road not taken, the road that had presented itself before me. A 10,000 mile move!
Now at this point too, I must mention I never drifted far from my comfort zone. I wasn’t a “traveler” of sorts and had for the last 5 years mostly walked or took a bus to work.
Heathrow Airport, my Mum, my Brother and Aunty were there to see me off and 23 hours later, February 7th, I had arrived, sun beaming down on me!
My partner and her family greeted me with an Aussie gift pack of vegemite, stubby holder, thongs (flip flops if your British), hugs and handshakes.
I’d left behind the cold, my family and friends, and brought with me my very pale skin, a very English accent, a suitcase of Jumpers, Cd’s, Photo’s and a financial debt to the National Westminster Bank of England – of a few thousand pounds.
In those first few days of climatising to my new life, to my amazement, three slightly scientific observations had begin to baffle me.
1). Water goes down the sink in the opposite direction of how it had in England.
2). Jet lag was like an unwanted hangover that no amount of sleep or coffee could cure in that first week of arrival.
3). Time travel is a real thing. Being born on the 17th June in England, converts to the real time of 16th June in Tasmania. And a hot summer birthday is now celebrated in a cold Tassie winter. ☹
I came here with just a suitcase of clothes, no job no plan, and broke.
In Part 2, I’ll share with you how I created a business from scratch.
