Wolf&Grayson EditorialWhen essential services disappear from small towns, entire communities suffer. The loss forces residents to travel long distances for basic needs, drains local wealth, and disproportionately impacts elderly populations. Michelle Nohotima has found a solution to this growing problem by strategically acquiring and revitalizing businesses that would otherwise close. Her approach not only preserves vital services but transforms struggling operations into thriving enterprises that better serve their communities.
Keeping Money and Services Close to Home
For Michelle, maintaining local services addresses several crucial community needs. “Services in your community mean the money stays in the community and helps foster wealth,” she explains. “People don’t have to travel distances to access those services, and especially in our community where they’re an older generation, a lot can’t drive.” The problem extends beyond convenience—it affects quality of life for many residents. Michelle points out that even she dislikes traveling more than 40 minutes for services. “I would imagine that people older than me, more mature than me, wouldn’t want to either. It’s vital to keep services in the communities as best we can.”
Many local service businesses face closure not because they’re failing, but because aging owners lack succession plans. “In our community, we have a lot of older business people who don’t necessarily have the skills to upgrade their businesses and keep them viable,” Michelle notes. “We have found that people in the past have just shut down the businesses instead of trying to sell them.” This pattern creates both a community problem and a business opportunity. Michelle explains that many owners’ children don’t want to take over the family business. “There is a high percentage that just shut down instead of people coming along and seeing the viability of those businesses.”
Finding Potential Where Others See Decline
Michelle’s approach involves looking beyond current performance to see hidden potential. “Some people look at it and think they’re not making a lot of money, but they don’t look at the other side of things—what can you put in there that will make money? How can you scale? How can you increase the revenue?” When asked why others miss these opportunities, Michelle’s answer is refreshingly straightforward: “I think it’s just being brave enough to do it. You need a great support team around you and really just look for the little bits in that business that you can improve. Even if you can improve a little bit, it’s going to make more money.”
Michelle’s transformation of a local news agency demonstrates her approach in action. In just three months, she increased profits substantially—$2,000 in the first month, $3,000 in the second, and $3,500 in the third. Her strategy focused on introducing new revenue streams that served unmet community needs. “We put in a lot of giftware, provided laminating and printing services because we found a lot of people in the community don’t have computers,” she explains. “We’ve set up a customer email address so those older people that don’t have emails can get things sent there and we print it out for them.”
Michelle also approached local businesses to establish accounts for stationery purchases. “We found that they don’t go to Port Macquarie anymore. They come to us and buy their stationery.” She complements these core services with seasonal merchandise for holidays like Valentine’s Day and Easter.
Focus on “Boring” Businesses with Extraordinary Potential
Michelle’s advice for others looking to follow a similar path is to reconsider what makes a business attractive. “Look for those businesses that don’t necessarily seem interesting. It’s often the boring ones that you can scale the best,” she advises. “They don’t have to be making a lot of money now to be an interesting business. You just have to see the potential in them.” Beyond profitability, Michelle emphasizes the community impact: “They employ local people. So, it’s a win.”
With several successful acquisitions under her belt—including a news agency, travel agency, and most recently a security company—Michelle shows no signs of slowing down. When asked about future plans, she laughs, “Next time you speak to me, we’ll probably have a transport company by then. It’s not going to end—not for a while.”
Connect with Michelle Nohotima on LinkedIn to follow her journey of revitalizing rural businesses and gain insights into her unique approach to community-focused entrepreneurship.
