Historically, one’s career followed a simple pattern. After school, you would secure your first job at the entry level, hopefully work your way up, stay with that company for your entire career, and then retire. At that point in life, you would find pastimes or hobbies to fill your time. Not many years ago, that began to change. Successful people became bored or burned out with their chosen field. Those who retired found that they missed the challenges and structure of the workday. So many who had left the workforce began to turn to totally new careers and ventures, many for personal fulfillment rather than monetary reasons.
Gary Dodd and his wife, Sally, own The Sporting Tradition in Lexington Center, the exclusive Orvis dealer in Kentucky. Dodd is a perfect example of one of today’s nontraditional transitions from retirement back to work. He had an extremely successful career, beginning at Ashland and eventually becoming the general manager of the Toyota plant in Georgetown for 13 years. Subsequent to that, Dodd became a successful supplier to Toyota, but sold that business two years ago. Following a not unfamiliar pattern, he left the business world and moved to Hilton Head, S.C. Soon, however, he found that his life lacked the daily structure he was used to in business, and he was simply bored with his routine.
He decided he wanted to go back to work in some way, but there were some key elements to that. He wanted to be able to truly enjoy what he did, and not have to travel for business as he had done in the past. That led to exploring various business opportunities and franchises, but none seem to kindle his interest.
One day, leafing through an Orvis catalog, Gary noticed that in addition to catalog sales and company stores, Orvis also had retail dealers. That took him back in time to his experiences while growing up in the Northeast, where he had enjoyed fly-fishing in his youth. As his career demands grew, that interest had become a dormant one.
On a hunch, he called Orvis headquarters to inquire about the possibility of becoming a dealer. Somewhat to his surprise, they asked if he would be interested in the existing store in Lexington, which was for sale. Of course, one thing led to another, and last August, Gary became the proud owner of the store in the Civic Center.
In talking to him about the store, you can tell he’s having fun. He knows that a significant number of customers are not from Lexington, but are drawn here on occasion by UK basketball games or other events in Lexington. He makes it a point to introduce himself to not just those, but new customers who may never have been in the store before. While committed to customer service, his efforts haven’t stopped there. He’s launched a Web site whereby he can sell to anyone around the globe. He carries a large selection of quality outdoor and sporting clothing, whereas many Orvis stores carry equipment only. He points out that this generates traffic by bringing in those who might never come in otherwise. He’s expanding into equestrian and wing-shooting lines and would like to market custom-fitted Orvis shotguns in the future. On top of that, he has plans to open additional stores in other Kentucky cities.
Does this sound like someone who decided to buy a business simply so he wouldn’t be bored? Decidedly not. Gary is passionate about his new venture, which harkens back to his youthful love of fly-fishing. He can quickly tell you what his goals are on both the business and personal levels. In business, he wants to be able to provide not just quality products, but the best possible customer service, and have a smoothly operating company. But beyond that, on the personal side, he wants to continue to have fun doing what he is doing and to be able to support conservation efforts. Also, one of his personal goals, obviously, is never having to retire again.
Many who have re-entered the business world after retirement simply want to stave off the boredom. But if there’s a formula for finding the right second career, Gary seems to have found it. He reached back to find something that he was truly interested in. He’s applied his business acumen to a personal interest. Not only is he building a successful business with a vision, but he’s truly enjoying what he does. There can’t be a better job than that.