Boomers shift gears
By Jennifer Keats Curtis
Originally published July 2007

     “You name it; we frame it, even dog hair,” cheerfully states Joyce Hough, who co-owns FastFrame of Annapolis with her husband David.
     The custom frame shop is a far cry from the pair’s past life when Joyce, 60, spent her days working as a public school food service director and David, 59, a chemist, made dyes and pigments for a specialty chemical plant.
     Framing dog hair also wasn’t part of the couple’s plan for retirement.
     When David’s company downsized after September 11, 2001, he wasn’t ready to retire nor would the Houghs’ savings permit him to do so.
      “We once had a nice nest egg, but when I retired, we had begun taking money out [of a retirement account] and then when the stock market went down, we really took a bath,” said Joyce. “Not only didn’t we want to retire, we could no longer afford to do so.”
     Like many baby boomers — those born between 1946 and 1964 — the Houghs still wanted and needed to be part of the workforce.
     It’s no longer viable financially or emotionally for people to retire in their early 60s, said John Challenger, CEO of outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc.
     “Boomers are not retiring; they are moving into the next phase and finding a new balance in personal and work life that lasts, for some, through their mid-70s,” he said.
     The fact is, older workers like the Houghs, are no longer a novelty. Recent statistics indicate that baby boomers can’t — and won’t — retire.
     There are 78 million baby boomers in the United States. And the Houghs’ are among the 1.4 million boomers who live in Maryland.
     In 2000, just under 13 percent of the workforce was 55 or older, but by 2012, that number will rise to nearly 20 percent, said AARP Maryland State Director Joseph DeMattos Jr.
     According to AARP data, 69 percent of boomers don’t ever plan on retiring. They want to work at least part-time. Of that percentage, 10 percent expect to start their own business and about 5 percent will go into an entirely unrelated field, said DeMattos.
     For many boomers, putting off retirement is a necessity.
     While DeMattos notes that boomers have extraordinary earning potential and have earned well, “as a nation, we haven’t done well in savings or retirement savings and some can afford to retire but not maintain their current quality of life, so they opt not to.”
     Health care costs are also a major consideration. In addition, 401(K)s won’t provide for retirement and pensions [like the boomers’ parents enjoyed] are no longer there, noted Challenger.
     But finding a job as a boomer isn’t always easy. David Hough found that out the hard way.
     Like millions of other jobseekers, the MBA-educated chemist began a traditional search, sending out resumes, answering ads and following up with phone calls. In his case, it proved fruitless.
     “I went more than a year without a job before taking something completely out of my field,” said David. “The worst was at a call center where I was making $8.50 an hour. It was horrible.”
     David researched other work options. The couple considered their hobbies — including woodworking for him and designing for her — and happened upon a company that sells franchises. Based in part on their education and likes, the company gave them three suggestions, one of which was the framing shop.
     The Houghs sold their home and two of their three cars and plopped down a large part of their retirement savings to purchase the franchise in April 2006. To be near their son in Anne Arundel County, the pair relocated to Annapolis.
     “The storefront is a big investment and then health insurance, at our age, is another huge chunk,” said Joyce. “But we spent a lot of time researching this and we have decided we can make it work.”
     According to Challenger, the number of self-employed people over 55 jumped 29 percent between 2000 and 2006 from nearly 2.1 million to 2.7 million. 
     And while owning a business is significantly more risky than simply becoming an employee, boomers — like the Houghs — enjoy the autonomy.
     “Many are reaching the point in their lives where the kids are paid for; they are free from mid-life obligations; they have more time and energy than they had in the past; and, at least some have been through that realization that the identification that they had as they started their careers in major companies has disappeared and they want more,” said Challenger.
     Executive Coach Alicia Rodriguez agrees.
      “Most older adults who are coming to me are in a generative phase in their lives. They have ‘been there, done that’ and are interested in using their experience in service of the community,” said Rodriguez, president of Sophia Associates Inc. “That may mean starting a new business and often, it is directed in some way to giving back.”
     Today, FastFrame is open eight hours a day, six days a week so the Houghs’ minimum work week is 50 hours.
     However, they are enjoying owning their own business.
     “We don’t have much free time but I’m content,” said Joyce. “My hope is that someday, we’ll really retire.”  <
   

  Jennifer Keats Curtis is a contributing writer in Arnold, Md.