Business Leaders reveal what’s best about work and play in Devon

Business leaders reveal what’s best about work and play in Devon

Forget your scone-based food fantasies. There’s more to Devon than jam and cream. With excellent digital infrastructure, convenient travel links with London and Birmingham, a top university supplying a steady flow of bright-eyed graduates and some of the most beautiful coastal and countryside scenery in the UK, it’s little wonder local business leaders are so proud to call this part of the West Country home. And if you subscribe to the misconception that Devon is just a hopeless backwater, well that’s fine with them...

We asked seven local business leaders what they loved about living and working in Devon. Here’s what they told us.

Sarah Judd

Practice & HR Manager | Gilbert Stephens Solicitors   

“Our location - with its proximity to the sea and the moor - offers the opportunity to benefit from an enhanced work/life balance.”

Lucie Roberts

Recruitment Manager | Exeter City Futures

“After spending ten years in London, I relocated to Devon seven years ago and haven’t looked back. I’m really lucky working in such a dynamic, fast-paced environment with passionate people, and then having Dartmoor on my doorstep and the beach only 20 minutes away. It’s a special place for my daughter to grow up and I wouldn’t swap it for the world!”

RELATED: >> 8 reasons why you should leave London for Devon

Adrianne Gillies

Marketing Manager | DSCallards

“Given the choice of working for a colossal defence manufacturer like British Aerospace or a small but perfectly formed Devon-based business intelligence and software specialist, right on the fringes of beautiful Dartmoor – where the air is pure and fresh - I know what I’d choose, any day!”

Jodie Wheeler

Operations Assistant Manager - Desktop Publishing | Link Asset Services

“The best thing about living and working in Devon is you have access to some of the most beautiful parts of the country, while still being within commutable distance to large cities such as Exeter, Bristol and even London. Devon has a community feel, where people work hard to achieve together.”

Lauren Ashman

Recruitment Assistant | Ashfords Solicitors

“The friendly people and the lovely views”

Mandy Scott

Executive Assistant | South West Academic Health Science Network

“I have lived in Devon all my life, aside from a short stint in London many years ago. I often say that we take how lucky we are for granted, but in truth I really do appreciate the lovely environment I call home.

“Exeter is a wonderful city, a great place to live and has evolved over recent years, whilst retaining the perks of being so close to the coast and countryside. Everything is accessible. I love that I can jump in my car and be at my destination within no time. I also love being close to the sea and the estuary; to be able to enjoy such pretty places like Topsham, Budleigh Salterton and Sidmouth. In the summer I can be sat on a beach after a day at work enjoying fish ‘n’ chips and a glass of wine in the early evening sunshine! 

Devon also produces some of the best food and drink in the country. There are lots of lovely local companies that offer wonderful produce.

I don’t think I would swap Devon with anything or anywhere else!”

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