Being sharemilkers on a farm in rural Otago is a far cry from running a gift and homeware shop in Wellington - but Tim and Lorraine Johnson have successfully made the transition from city to country life.
Mr and Mrs Johnson will represent Otago in the 2011 New Zealand Sharemilker/Equity Farmer of the Year contest in Queenstown on May 14.
The couple, who are 50% sharemilkers in a 352-cow herd for Dairy Holdings near Heriot, decided to enter the competition to take them out of their comfort zone, Mrs Johnson said.
Others in the area who had entered in the past suggested it was a great thing to do, as it provided motivation, gave direction and made the entrants analyse their own businesses.
Mrs Johnson agreed it had definitely been worthwhile. It had made the couple look at their business more closely.
They never expected to win the Otago final and thought they would be entering again next year. It was a "really lovely surprise" to win and they planned to "give it all" for the national final.
In hindsight, they had possibly not backed themselves enough, but they did not have many years' experience back in the industry, she said.
The 12 finalists competing for the New Zealand Sharemilker/Equity Farmer of the Year title provide a mix of farming enterprises, scale and experience.
Three judges will visit each finalist on their farm for two hours, gaining insight into how they use their skills and available resources to manage and grow their farm business. An interview will also be held in Queenstown.
After studying for a year at Telford Rural Polytechnic, Mr Johnson worked for three seasons on a dairy farm up north but became disillusioned and did not see a direct career path.
He did his OE and eventually ended up working for a sales and importing company in Auckland.
Mrs Johnson, who grew up on a sheep farm near Clinton, met her husband after living and working in various cities, including overseas. The couple opened a gift and homeware shop in Wellington, which they ran for eight years.
At the beginning of 2007, the building was sold. It was going to be renovated and they were going to have to move out of the site for at least a year.
They decided it was time to do something else and Mr Johnson was keen to give farming another go. After some discussion and debate, they decided to do it and initially moved to Riversdale for a second-in-command position.
Now in their second season on the Heriot property, they were finding it was a much different lifestyle for themselves and their children, aged 11 and 9.
They enjoyed living in a "great" community.
It was a three-year contract and they would then have to decide what to do next.
In an "ideal world", they would like to move into a bigger 50:50 sharemillking position or equity partnership, and it would be "quite nice to own a little bit of land", Mrs Johnson said.
Joining Mr and Mrs Johnson at a gala dinner in Queenstown, attended by 600 people, will be Otago farm manager of the year Scott Levings, of Roxburgh, and Otago dairy trainee of the year Brendan Morrison, a fifth-generation farmer on his family's farm at Inch Clutha.
All three winners will be competing for the respective New Zealand titles and a prize pool of more than $130,000.
The finalists
Finalists in the New Zealand Sharemilker/Equity Farmer of the Year are:
Northland: Murray Jamieson, equity farmer, 1100 cows.
Auckland/Hauraki: Jeffery and Bronwyn Ward, 25% sharemilker, 300 cows.
Waikato: Jason and Lisa Suisted, 50% sharemilker, 430 cows.
Bay of Plenty: Scott and Charlotte Jones, 22% sharemilker, 500 cows.
Central Plateau: Nick and Bec Simmonds, 50% sharemilker, 700 cows.
Taranaki: Aaron and Kate Murdoch, 50% sharemilker, 320 cows.
Manawatu/Rangitikei/Horowhenua: Richard and Christine Sinclair, 25% sharemilker, 400 cows.
Hawkes Bay/Wairarapa: Richard and Joanna Greaves, 50% sharemilker, 880 cows.
West Coast/Top of the South: Caleb and Claire Ford, 19% sharemilker, 600 cows.
Canterbury/North Otago: Rob and Debbie Mackle, 50% sharemilker, 550 cows.
Otago: Tim and Lorraine Johnson, 50% sharemilker, 352 cows.
Southland: Lindsey and Clare McClintock, 50% sharemilker, 300 cows.