A man who quit his high-flying job for a quiet life in a seaside town has said he's "so much happier now" after settling down with a woman he met online.
Richard Fergie helped to build the award-winning chain of American-style restaurants named Monterey Jack's, and despite being honoured with several accolades in his role - which saw him oversee more than 150 staff at 12 sites throughout Scotland - the man was left struggling as the pressure left him unable to sleep.
His life may have seemed "great" to people who knew Richard, from Stirling, at the time, but he insisted he could feel that he was "really lacking something" that was keeping him from being truly happy, the Liverpool Echo reports.
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And in 2020, Richard found what he was missing when he began talking to a woman named Ellie from West Kirby, Merseyside, after they met on a dating site.
He told the Liverpool Echo: "To everyone looking in, life was great for me and I was smashing it as director of a big well-known hospitality brand, but what they didn't see was the stress that brings. Monterey Jack's exploded as a business and with that quickly came dealing with thousands of customers every week, over 150 staff, financial pressures and even a fire at one of the sites.
"It was a very fast-paced life and as we opened more restaurants I ate and slept less. The thing that really hit home for me was when I was in Spain on a much-needed holiday. I remember being at the beach on my own watching the sunset and thinking how nice it would be to share that with someone. I had been far too busy for love but suddenly realised I was really lacking something in my life."
Richard described meeting Ellie as "the best thing that's ever happened" to him, and he soon found himself falling in love with her and her hometown in West Kirby.
And it was after meeting Ellie that the businessman decided to ditch his stressful job and move to Merseyside to live with his girlfriend, with whom he recently welcomed his first child, Effy.
He added: "I didn't think love was possible working in my fast-paced director role, but meeting Ellie has been the best thing that's ever happened to me. The difference between life back then and my life now is pure joy — the slower pace of life makes me appreciate things more, the little things, and West Kirby is utterly charming. The people here are so friendly and accepting of an outsider who's new to the area."
In November 2021, Richard decided to start his restaurant business over again and opened up a New York-style eatery named The Good Hood in his new home of West Kirby.
But he has insisted he will be taking things slow this time and is keen to focus on being a small business owner.
He said: "The Good Hood is about creating somewhere you can kick back, relax and hang out, with a simple, raw and urban style and top-quality, fun American food. The feedback has been amazing and people love the fact we have one of the only sun traps in West Kirby at the back. It feels so much better running a small independent.
"We've created an amazing team here who all share the same passion as me and I'm really enjoying it as I can get stuck in every day and really connect with the staff on a personal level. Of course, we're ambitious and would like to grow as a business but I'd never grow a brand as rapidly as we did with Monterey Jack's and lose myself the way I did. I'm so much happier now."
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