I’ve been reaching out to hospitality businesses recently, introducing myself and my photography. As you’d expect with outreach, some reply, some don’t and some simply say no.

But yesterday I received several replies I wasn’t expecting. They were selling their businesses.

One probably wouldn’t have particularly registered, but seeing several of them sitting in my inbox at the same time stopped me for a moment.

When we visit a restaurant, hotel, café or pub, we see what’s in front of us. The tables are laid, the lights are on, the food arrives and everything carries on as normal. We rarely know what’s happening behind the scenes.

I don’t know why these particular owners are selling, and I wouldn’t want to assume. But each of those emails represented somebody who had once decided to open a business, put their name above the door and give it a go.

I started the day looking for photography work. Instead, those emails made me think about just how much of somebody’s life can sit behind the words “business for sale”.

Ray