It would take more than successful careers for Joe and Rose Glendinning of Lansing, Michigan to find joy outside their home state, reports The Detroit News.
The siblings longed to return home and run their own business, looking to create a less-stressful, more relaxed lifestyle closer to family and friends.
Joe Glendinning, a high-paid attorney in Chicago, moved back in 2007 and opened a Biggby Coffee franchise in Bloomfield Hills the following year. After some cajoling, he convinced his little sister, a Boston banking executive, to join him in his entrepreneurial venture.
Today, the pair run two Biggby Coffee franchises; the second opened last month in Birmingham. While there is no data on the return of Michiganians, the Glendinnings are among the stories of natives who are coming back home and partially countering the population exodus from the state.
"I'm very glad I came back," Rose said. "Sure it's been through tough times, but you have to have faith in Michigan."
The reasons many return to Michigan run the gamut. Some are lured by the desire to be near family and friends. Some see an economic landscape ripe for entrepreneurial opportunities, and others are heeding a call to invest in their native state and help bring Michigan out of its lingering slump.
They're also bucking a trend: In what's been dubbed the "brain drain" many college graduates and young professionals are leaving for greener pastures in other states. The repatriated Michiganians are undeterred by the state's high unemployment, the implosion of the automotive industry and a host of other economic woes.
"When times are tough, people tend to move back home," said John Challenger, a consultant at Challenger, Gray and Christmas, a Chicago-based business consulting firm. "Starting (a business) where you know people is crucial."
From Business Opportunities Weblog.