How a Career Change Created a Successful Drainage Business
After more than two decades at the top of the investment banking world, most people would expect Richard Kempson to be planning a slower pace of life. Instead, he chose to start again in an entirely different industry.
Today, Richard is the owner of Metro Rod Sussex & Kent, operating a successful drainage and wastewater business alongside his wife, Daphne. The move marked a dramatic career change from international finance to hands-on business owner, proving that it’s never too late to take a completely different path.
Leaving the Corporate World Behind for a Drainage Franchise Business
For over 20 years, Richard built a successful career in investment banking, ultimately becoming a Managing Director at Credit Suisse. His role involved leading large international teams across London and Moscow, navigating financial markets, regulatory challenges and corporate strategy.
By most measures, Richard had achieved significant professional success. Yet as the years passed, he found himself questioning whether he wanted the next decade of his life to look the same as the previous one.
“I realised I was tired of the corporate hamster wheel,” Richard explains. “The role was exciting and rewarding, but it came with relentless pressure and long hours. I found myself asking whether I wanted to spend the next ten years doing the same thing.”
It was a question that ultimately led him to consider an entirely different future. Rather than focusing on the next promotion, corporate milestone, or continuing a familiar path, he began looking for a new opportunity where he could build something of his own.
Building a Family Drainage Business
The decision to leave investment banking wasn’t simply about finding a new career. For Richard and Daphne, it was about creating something with long-term value. They wanted to own a business that belonged to their family.
When exploring potential routes into business ownership, franchising stood out as an attractive option. Metro Rod offered the backing of an established national brand while still allowing Richard and Daphne to build and grow their own business.
For a couple entering a completely new industry, it provided the confidence of a proven business model without removing the independence that had attracted them to entrepreneurship in the first place. They saw it as an opportunity to enter a new industry without needing years of drainage experience, while benefiting from the support, training and expertise provided by the Metro Rod Support Centre.
The Challenges of Starting a New Career
Like many people who make a major career change later in life, Richard quickly discovered that the biggest challenge wasn’t technical knowledge. The biggest adjustment came from operating in a completely different environment. Instead of focusing on corporate strategy and financial performance at a global level, his attention shifted to customers, engineers, operations and the day-to-day realities of running a service business. It wasn’t learning about drains; it was changing his mindset.
“I went from international strategy and financial markets to managing engineers, responding to emergency call-outs and learning a completely new industry from the ground up,” Richard explains. The transition also brought a level of personal responsibility that can be difficult to appreciate until you’re running your own company. Every decision has a direct impact on the team, customers and future growth of the business. Like Richard says, every decision matters: “but the difference is that every hour you invest is building something for your own family rather than someone else’s business.”
A Drainage Business Gave a Different Kind of Reward
Despite the challenges, Richard says the move has been one of the most rewarding decisions of his career. Today, no two days are the same. One moment, Richard may be meeting commercial customers; the next, he could be supporting engineers on-site, reviewing business performance or planning for future growth.
Although the drainage industry is vastly different from investment banking, Richard found that many of the core skills he had developed throughout his career remained highly relevant. Leadership, financial planning and strategic thinking all proved highly transferable, playing an important role in the growth of the business. What changed wasn’t the need for those skills, but where their impact was felt. Instead of contributing to the success of a global organisation, Richard could see the direct effect of his decisions on his own team, customers and business, making the role far more hands-on and personally rewarding.
Creating Opportunities for the Next Generation
What began as an ambition to build something meaningful for future generations is already taking shape. Today, Richard and Daphne run the business together, while their children are becoming increasingly involved, helping to turn a long-term vision into a genuine family business. Richard says, “That was always part of our long-term vision.”
For many business owners, success is measured by turnover or profit. For Richard and Daphne, success is also measured by the opportunities the business can generate for their family.
Considering a Career Change? Consider a Franchise Drainage Business
Looking back, Richard believes one of the biggest misconceptions people have about changing careers later in life is that their previous experience won’t be relevant, and that someone with a corporate background would not be able to adjust to a hands-on drainage business. His experience suggests the opposite. While industries may differ, the skills developed throughout a successful career often transfer far more effectively than people expect. “You don’t need industry experience to run a successful franchise. You need the willingness to learn, work hard and trust your experience. The leadership, financial and people skills I’d built over twenty years transferred far better than I expected.”
His final reflection is simple:
“Looking back, I only wished I’d made the move sooner.”
For Richard, swapping investment banking for drainage may seem like an unlikely career move but it has delivered something he values far more than a corporate title: the opportunity to build a successful business alongside his family and create a legacy for the future.
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