Bar owner downshifts for quality lifestyle

The days when Courtenay Werleman left the house at dawn before his two children awoke, not to return until late evening when they were preparing for bed, are well and truly behind him.

The entrepreneur's lifestyle has taken a rapid turn since he sold his business consulting company in Sydney and moved to Bali in September last year.

He has gone from toiling 14 hours a day to working just a few nights a week and having his days free to spend with his wife and children.

'We don't miss the pressure-cooker stress of Sydney at all. Our quality of life has improved so much and we are now able to spend lots of time with the kids,' the sports and surf enthusiast said.

The Werlemans are among an increasing number of foreign entrepreneurs who moved to Bali to set up a business, sharing a desire to escape the daily grind of urban life for a more balanced lifestyle.

He had been to Bali several times on surfing trips, and brought his wife, Belinda, a former mortgage broker, to the island for their honeymoon. But the decision to make Bali their home was impulsive, he said.

'We had never spoken about moving to Bali, but I just woke up one Sunday morning last July and said to Belinda: 'How about living in Bali?'

'We didn't have time to stop and think whether we were doing the right thing.'

He said Lava Lounge, the bar they opened last October, would never make them millionaires, but that was never their intention.

'The investment was certainly not play money. If we lose it all, that's going to hurt a lot,' Mr Werleman said. 'But it pays our rent, our children's education, our entertainment, car and living costs. That's all we ever wanted.

'It was a quality-of-life decision, and we could never move back to Sydney now. We love the easy-going lifestyle here.'