Interview by Janet Murray
The Guardian, Tuesday 2 June 2009

I grew up in South Africa, where I built up a successful catering business with a million-pound turnover. I employed 44 staff, who worked in a variety of settings, including country clubs, golf clubs and wedding venues.
But living in Johannesburg wasn’t easy. We lived on a six-acre agricultural smallholding and security was always an issue. With two young children to think of, my wife and I had talked about leaving South Africa many times, but had decided to stay and try to contribute to a better society. When nine armed gunmen stormed our house four years ago, we were forced to reconsider. They tried to break in twice that night.
Despite the seriousness of the attack, the incident wasn’t followed up by the police, who lost the records. Having lost all confidence in the police, we decided to leave Johannesburg. Luckily, my wife was born in Scotland and had a British passport, as did my children, so we were able to move to the UK.
We sold the business and moved here in January 2005. We had friends in Cornwall so we stayed there for a while. The idea was to buy a tearoom or delicatessen, but we couldn’t find a suitable business. We’ve ended up with a kebab and pizza shop in Dawlish, Devon, which is profitable, but not our ideal business, so we’re trying to sell and start another catering firm.
Although I didn’t do formal catering qualifications in South Africa, we had a good reputation built up through word of mouth. Starting from scratch in the UK, I realised I might need to offer reassurance to new customers, so I decided to take a catering course at Exeter College.
I started last June and have enjoyed it immensely. The tutors are committed to getting you all-round experience and providing opportunities, through service at the college’s in-house restaurant, to get me the practical chefing experience I can’t get in a pizza and kebab shop.
Meanwhile, my girls, now 12 and 15, are settling into life in the UK. Living above a shop, they miss the space they had in South Africa, but they don’t miss being frightened. They still sleep with mobile phones under their pillows, though. Some habits are difficult to shake.
Above all, we value our safety. Back in Johannesburg, my dad still sleeps with a gun under his pillow. I love being able to travel back from college on the train at night and not wake up several times a night worried about intruders. I wouldn’t want to go back to that life.
• Mark Palos is doing an NVQ level 3 in professional kitchen cookery at Exeter College