Why We're Leaving City Life for One Very Specific Corner of England

Don't get us wrong.

We still love cities.

San Francisco has an entrepreneurial energy that's difficult to match anywhere else. London remains one of the most globally connected cities in the world. Singapore is remarkably efficient. Copenhagen demonstrates how cities can be both modern and liveable. Paris can be beautiful beyond words. Berlin retains a creative spirit that few places can replicate.

But after a while, you start noticing that your quality of life becomes strangely disconnected from the prestige of where you live.

You stop being impressed by another Michelin-starred restaurant.

The things that initially attracted you gradually become background noise.

And different questions begin to emerge.

• How much time are we spending commuting?
• How often do we actually use everything the city offers?
• How stressed do we feel on an average Tuesday?
• How much time do we spend outdoors?
• Do we know our neighbours?
• Are we building the life we want, or simply maintaining the life we've created?

Those questions become harder to ignore with every passing year.

If this were 2005, this move probably wouldn't be happening.

The reason we lived in major cities was simple: that's where business happened.

• The investors were there.
• The customers were there.
• The talent was there.
• The opportunities were there.

Today, that's no longer entirely true.

Technology has fundamentally changed where ambitious people need to live.

Together, we can speak with partners, customers and colleagues around the world from almost anywhere. We can have meetings with people across multiple continents in a single day without leaving home.

The ability to work effectively from somewhere exceptional has become a genuine competitive advantage.

This is one of the questions we get asked most often.

If you're leaving city life, why not move somewhere sunnier?

It's a fair question.

The truth is, we had options.

My wife's parents live in Split, Croatia. We could have chosen a beautiful life on the Adriatic coast, surrounded by sunshine, great food and spectacular scenery.

And there is certainly a version of our future where we might have done exactly that.

The North Cotswolds allows us to remain connected to family, friends, business networks, clients and everything we've built over the years.

Perhaps most importantly, our daughter is currently studying music at a university in London.

One of the things we love about our move is that we're not moving away from her. In many ways, we're staying connected to her.

From our local station, Paddington is only around one hour and twenty minutes by train. That means seeing her regularly is easy. We can meet for lunch, attend performances, spend weekends together and remain actively involved in this exciting stage of her life.

That matters enormously to both of us.

The North Cotswolds wasn't an accidental choice.

We spent a long time considering different regions, different countries and different lifestyles.

What kept drawing us back was the balance.

The area feels genuinely rural without feeling isolated.

There are beautiful villages, thriving communities, independent businesses, good pubs, excellent schools and some of the most attractive countryside in England.

Yet you're not disconnected from the modern world.

• London remains accessible.
• Oxford is nearby.
• Fast internet is available.

There is a growing community of entrepreneurs, creatives, business owners and professionals who have made similar choices.

As people who have spent much of our adult lives surrounded by ambitious and interesting people, that combination matters.

In many ways, it feels like the best of both worlds.

When we were younger, success looked like growth.

• More employees.
• More customers.
• More markets.
• More travel.
• More everything.

As we've got older, our definition has changed.

Success increasingly means control.

• Control of our time.
• Control of our environment.
• Control of how we spend our days.

• A shorter commute.
• More evenings together.
• More space.
• More freedom.
• More walks with Sunny, our dog, through villages, fields and footpaths rather than along busy city streets.

Ironically, we think these things make us better entrepreneurs rather than worse.

Almost every meaningful breakthrough either of us has experienced happened when there was space to think.

The North Cotswolds offers more of that space.

This move isn't simply personal.

We're not moving to slow down. If anything, we're moving because we're excited about what comes next.

Part of that next chapter involves building businesses connected to this area and documenting the relocation journey itself.

We believe there's enormous value in sharing the reality of moving to the North Cotswolds.

• The challenges.
• The surprises.
• The lessons.
• The things that work.
• The things we'd do differently.
• The parts no estate agent brochure tells you.

If we're going to help other people understand this part of England, the best way to do it is by living it ourselves.

Let's be honest.

There are trade-offs.

• We'll have fewer restaurants within walking distance.
• Fewer cultural events.
• Fewer spontaneous evenings in major cities.

Some deliveries will take longer.

Some journeys will require more planning.

We'll almost certainly spend more time in the car.

But every decision in life involves trade-offs.

The question isn't whether trade-offs exist.

The question is whether the gains outweigh the costs.

For us, the answer is increasingly obvious.

When we imagine life five years from now, neither of us pictures another apartment in another international city.

We don't picture another urban skyline.

We don't picture another luxury development.

Instead, we picture something surprisingly simple.

• Morning coffee looking out over the countryside.
• Walks with Sunny.
• A strong local community.
• Building businesses from somewhere inspiring.
• Having friends and family to stay.
• Being able to get to London when we want to, without having to live there.
• Being close enough to see our daughter regularly as she pursues her music career.
• Having more time together.
• Having more space to think.
• Having enough time to enjoy the success we've spent years working to create.

For the first time in a long time, that vision feels more exciting than another move to another city.

Cities gave us opportunities, friendships, experiences and careers that we'll always be grateful for.

We wouldn't change any of it.

But every stage of life asks different questions.

For years our question was:

Today our question is:

After living in some of the world's most exciting cities, travelling extensively and having the freedom to choose almost anywhere, my wife and I have arrived at an answer that feels surprisingly simple.

• Not London.
• Not San Francisco.
• Not Singapore.
• Not Copenhagen.
• Not Paris.
• Not Split.

And honestly, we couldn't be more excited about it.