Astrid & Anil Patel

The idea of working with your partner is enough to make even the happiest of couples a little nervous but, for Astrid and Anil Patil, both 32, going into business together offered them the opportunity to change their lives.

High-flier Astrid Patil made the decision to leave her job as a solicitor in 2005 to become a Domino’s franchisee. Two years later Anil followed suit and set down his barrister’s wig to join Astrid full-time.

Now the joint owners of three successful stores in Portsmouth, Southampton and Christchurch, the husband and wife team are relishing the challenge of running a business together with plans to open a new store each year for the next three years.

Anil comments: “When I was a teenager I worked part-time in an international burger franchise and I’ve been gearing myself towards franchising since then. I saw that with hard work and dedication there was money to be made without the high risk that comes with a start up. So, when Astrid got bored and frustrated with her job, we began to look at the different options available to us.”

Astrid continues: “I felt trapped on the office treadmill, with very little time to enjoy life beyond work and, with my impending hopes for children, I felt that my legal career just didn’t fit into my life plan anymore.

“In fact, there were some weeks where I hardly saw my husband, and I knew that I needed to find a job that would enable me to more directly reap the benefits of working so hard, plus spend more time with Anil.”

“After extensive research into the franchising industry, consumer trends and expanding markets, we decided to go with Domino’s Pizza. We felt that food was something we could relate to and we were already Domino’s customers!””

For the first two years, Anil continued practising as a barrister while Astrid did the lion’s share of the work getting the first two stores up and running, but they made all of their business decisions together.

Astrid continues: “I think a lot of people in the legal profession would be horrified by the idea of trading in a day in court for a shift slapping dough but we knew this was the right decision for us.

“Most legal work is done behind a desk and doesn’t give you the opportunity to interact with people - we felt that we would have a greater opportunity give something back to the local community if we were running our own business, plus getting out of the office chair definitely keeps you fit!”

In fact, the Patils are well-recognised within their local community and have engaged in a number of charitable endeavours. They recently organised a charity football match against the local newspaper to raise money for Special Olympics Great Britain, the Domino’s charity of choice.

Anil comments: “What really makes my working day is the interaction I have with the community. Not only have we been able to create new jobs for local people, but it’s great meeting people you wouldn’t usually meet. A real highlight for me was playing on the same team as the SOGB athletes in the charity football match - they certainly taught me a few skills!”

Astrid concludes: “We’re so glad we made the leap of faith and are feeling more positive about the future than ever before. I know it sounds clichéd but I do think we’re the perfect team. Anil is the visionary, thinking ahead, and I’m the doer – pointing out the practicalities. He’s got huge ideas but he often needs bringing back down to earth.”