Fritz Fryer antique lighting

Walking through the Fritz Fryer antique lighting business is a remarkable experience - room after room of dazzling lights, from 200 year-old chandeliers to '60s Italian design classic lamps. It's one of many specialist businesses operating in the Ross area but selling online to further afield. Locals get to visit.

'We're not a traditional antique business,' says owner Simon Wallis-Smith. 'We buy the stock, restore it, catalogue it, put it in the studio, photograph it and send the pics to our advertising agency to put on the website. Then we put it in the shop and sell it.'

Formerly an IT consultant, he and his wife were customers of the shop when it was run by its founder - the eponymous Mr Fryer - before his retirement. 'I always used to think I'd love to give up what I'm doing and do this instead,' says Simon.'Then one miserable night when I was still in IT, I was sitting in my flat thinking 'I can't do this any more' when I saw the shop was for sale. I sold my flat and just went for it.'

Simon doubled the turnover of the business in four years, and now has a loyal client base throughout the UK and internationally, with around 30 per cent of the business internet-based. As well as Simon and his wife, there are three full time restorers as well as shop and accounting staff.

'We deliver and install stock all over, and we have people who travel very long distances to visit us,' he says.'People will drive to us from London, Birmingham or wherever because they've seen one of our adverts in a magazine, and then they'll subsequently buy from us over the internet.'

As well as buying old fittings to restore from antique fairs, Simon makes trips abroad to look for stock. Fritz Fryer sells lighting from France, Italy and the Benelux countries, as well as South America. 'There are lots of crystal chandeliers there from the days of the empire,' he says. 'I have a dealer that goes and buys them for me.'

So what are the best things about being based in Rye? 'It's a beautiful place to live,' he says. 'It's very well connected - the M50 is a fantastic road which means you can get to so many major towns very quickly. Property prices haven't seen quite the growth other places have, so it's still possible to buy a house with some land, and there are very good local schools with small class sizes.'

In fact two of the shop'srestorers came from the local school and also help out with the website and photography. 'It's a great place to bring children up,' he says.'The local cricket club doesn't even lock the doors - it's a very civilized place, and a bit undiscovered. There are lots of people with good arts and crafts stalls - furniture makers and restorers - as well as beautiful countryside and lots of interesting architecture.

'A lot of our friends that we've met through our kids have moved back here from London or abroad,' he continues.'There's a real pull about the place. In fact, we moved to the area because my wife used to come camping here as a child.'

So what would his advice be to someone thinking of starting a business here? 'You need to be forward thinking and serious about it - really attack it as a business,' he says. 'It's not just a lifestyle decision, although that certainly plays a huge part - I try to work as few hours as I can.'