Meet five Bay Street escapees who left six-figure jobs to work for themselves

They left six-figure corporate jobs for the queasy uncertainty of self-employment. Tales of emptied bank accounts and the elusive but oh-so-sweet gratification of running your own shop By Denise Balkissoon | Photography by Daniel Ehrenworth

The Candy Man

Tim English, 46
Then: Bay Street lawyer
Now: owner of Chocolateria

I started my Bay Street career as a labour and employment lawyer at Filion Wakele Thorup Angeletti in 1991. Then I moved to Ontario Power Gener­ation for eight years, and after that to Direct Energy for about a year and a half. I had a high salary, about $250,000, and was on the cusp of moving up into the executive ranks, but in the back of my head, I’d always wanted to run my own business and work for myself. In the summer of 2009, when I turned 45, I decided it was time.

My first step was to study every shopping district in the city, to figure out what kind of business appealed to me and which neighbourhood was booming. I realized chocolate is really hot right now. I had taken baking classes at George Brown College for fun and enjoyed it. So I set up a production kitchen in my house and rented a candy kiosk at the Downsview farmers’ market for three months last summer. I wouldn’t call it a hugely successful apprenticeship: the chocolate melted in the summer heat, and I ended up giving most of it away. Also, Downsview doesn’t attract a demographic that buys quality chocolate and pastries.

At the end of the summer, I opened a storefront on Roncesvalles because it has a burgeoning food culture and a kind of bohemian affluence. The space I rented used to be a restaurant. That really cut down on the need for permits and major renovations. I had budgeted $40,000 but spent only $25,000, mostly on equipment and ingredients and packaging for my products.

It’s been a challenge to find my niche in the chocolate-making world. I’ve hired some counter staff but make all the products myself. My chocolate-dipped chips are popular, and I’ve had a lot of success with bacon dipped in peanut butter and chocolate. My plan is to turn the store into a café and chocolate salon by adding pastries, house-made ice cream and an espresso machine. At this point, every penny I make gets plowed back into the business. I pay to work.

There have been bad days when I’m so exhausted and wondering why I did this. After all, I worked hard to become a lawyer, to put myself through school. I’ve given myself a two-year trial period, though I doubt I’ll ever return to law. As a lawyer, your interactions with people aren’t always happy. Now I go home every day with a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. Everybody loves chocolate.

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