A couple who decided to start a new life in France to pursue their dream of running an alpaca farm say it’s the “best decision” they’ve ever made.

Will and Sophie Hargreaves moved from Cuxton, near Rochester, to Argentonnay, a village in western France, in December 2020.

Will had lost his job selling wine to pubs and restaurants because of Covid.

Sophie had a good job in housing management but they had both always wanted more of an outdoor lifestyle and to run their own business.

With Brexit about to make it more difficult to up sticks to France, they decided to take the plunge.

Now, more than three years on, they say they have no regrets.

Will, 40, said: “In the UK we had a really nice four-bedroom house but with a tiny postage stamp garden overlooked by other very nice houses. Here we’ve got a lot more space.

“We’re self-employed here so in day-to-day life we get to choose what we want to do to a certain extent.

“We’re working for ourselves so we get to set out our schedule.”

Sophie, 36, added: “It wasn’t necessarily an easy decision although it was a quick decision, because we did love Kent and we still love visiting Kent and have home comforts there.

“There’s so many more people in Kent and the roads are a lot busier it’s quite overwhelming – but you can’t beat a pub back home.

“There’s also so much more convenience and fast consumerism back in Kent, in France if you want to eat a meal it has to be at mealtimes.

“But one of the big factors for us was the affordability of the property and the farm in France.

“It was the fact that we could realise our dream now rather than in 20 or 30 years time.

“When we were discussing our plans a lot of people said do it now whilst you’ve got the energy and while we’re young.

“I guess it seemed close to the UK, it was an adventure but not too scary.

“We’d been on holiday in France before so it was a destination that we knew we liked.

“It’s so much more difficult to do it now, so we’re really pleased we rushed it.

“Once we made the decision we jumped right in.”

When they first moved to France, they had to live in a caravan along with their two cats and a dog.

A lot of work needed to be done at the farm to get the land ready for the alpacas, which they bought from a farmer a three-and-a-half-hour drive away in Limousin.

Sophie and Will fell in love with the animals after visiting Lower Bush Alpacas in Cuxton.

Sophie said: "They are incredible animals, so versatile for business with agri-tourism, animal therapy, their precious wool and fertiliser.

"The positive feelings we had when we were around alpacas was hard to describe and clearly very good for our well-being.

“We’ve purposely kept our herd small, first and foremost they’re our pets.

“When people come here they see the trust the animals have with us, and our animals trust our customers because we keep the groups small.”

The couple trained with the British Alpaca Society before heading to France and also did some hands-on training with the team at Lower Bush Alpacas in Cuxton.

They have 10 alpacas and offer a variety of experiences including farm visits, walking the alpacas, picnics with the animals, yoga and well-being sessions and wool workshops.

They also offer overnight stays in a luxury glamping bell tent, which sleeps up to six people and has a hot tub and outdoor kitchen.

And if they were not busy enough, in November, Sophie gave birth to the couple’s first child, Emily.

She said: “Life has changed in the last four months since the baby came along, there’s a lot more juggling now so we can continue to run our business.

“It’s hard, I probably didn’t work for the first few weeks but from when she was six weeks old I did start to juggle work and being a new mum.

“Sometimes she works with us, so she’ll be strapped onto me or in her pram and she’ll be out there with us and the alpacas.

“It’s so lovely to be able to do that, you can’t do that with contracted work.”

She says the healthcare system in France was “incredible and attentive”.

“I couldn’t fault it, I was so well looked after,” she explained.

“People have said to me ‘babies don’t come with a manual’ – well they do in France. You get several manuals on how to look after your baby and parent, it’s quite incredible.

“Emily being a bilingual child from such a young age will give her a real opportunity in life.”

The family’s new lifestyle caught the eye of TV producers, and in 2022, the couple featured on the Channel 4 programme A New Life in the Sun.

They have since expanded the business by renovating an outbuilding into a small holiday cottage with views of the 13th century Chateau de Sanzay which they live opposite.

They are due to appear on A New Life in the Sun: Where Are They Now? this year.

Find out more about the farm and how to book click here. You can also follow the farm on Facebook and Instagram @lapetitefermedalpagas

Sophie added: “What I really love is when our friends and family and customers stay here at the farm it’s such a culture shock and they say it’s tranquil and almost like a retreat.

“It’s not a resort in Spain or Turkey, it really is peaceful. You’re in the countryside and it’s completely different to anywhere we’ve ever been before.

“One of the factors in that decision-making process was could we live with the regret of not trying to do it and we knew that we couldn’t.

“Especially now just over three years on, I couldn’t imagine us not having done this.”