Billy Houston Rags to Riches

"A colorful journey involving exotic locations and larger than life personalities." Kathy Denver, The International Review of Books

At fourteen years of age, Billy Houston arrived in Santa Monica, California and embraced the land of opportunity with both hands. This is his story.

From clandestine raffles with his schoolmates, to creating two of the most dynamic franchise businesses in history, Billy's tale is one of triumphs and tribulations, interspersed with the wit and wisdom of a natural-born entrepreneur.

Inspired by true events, Billy Houston Rags to Riches will take you on a journey unlike any you've read before - rooted firmly in reality, but with the twists and turns of a fast-paced financial thriller.

I was born and raised in Melbourne, Australia before moving to Noosa, Queensland, Australia where I have lived for the past twenty-seven years. I commenced university in Melbourne but after a horrific car accident, then being tied up at gunpoint by a man wielding a sawn-off shot gun decided there was more to life than finishing my university degree. I spent a few years travelling, doing odd jobs and I guess like many young people at the time, searching for the meaning of life. At age twenty-seven, I finally returned to university in Melbourne to complete my degree and commence a career in the accounting profession. When I was thirty-five, I opened an accounting firm in Noosa, Australia. I was the sole employee and started the firm with three clients. Fifteen years later, my accounting firm was listed by BRW magazine as one of the Top 100 accounting firms in Australia by revenue and one of the Top 10 fastest-growing accounting firms in Australia. Whilst running the accounting firm, I established a surf clothing company with clothing retailers in Australia, New Zealand, Japan and the United States of America stocking my clothing label. After operating for three years, with the global financial crisis upon us, I closed this business at considerable cost to me and other investors. I commenced one of Australia's first franchised insurance businesses for Insurance Advisors. This business then morphed into becoming an Australian Financial Services Licensee. With a lot of hard work, this business grew substantially over a six-year period to include over 300 licensed advisors and accountants throughout Australia. The business won many national awards and was acknowledged as one of Australia's leading independently owned financial services licensees. In growing this business, I spent a lot of time living in hotel rooms, Monday to Friday, whilst travelling across Australia, recruiting new advisors and accountants. In June 2017, as the largest shareholder, the business was sold for twenty million Australian dollars to a company listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. In October 2017 I officially retired from corporate life. I'm known in business circles as an entrepreneur. Most of my business ideas have come to me on my daily walks, when home, along Noosa main beach. I find the feel of sand under my feet along with the sound of the ocean aids my creative thought process. I've always had an imagination, I'm full of ideas, and decided to write my first novel. The story line for this book came from my daily walks along the beaches of Noosa, Australia and Koh Samui and Phuket, Thailand. Most of this book was written whilst I was living in beach bungalows on the island of Koh Samui. It is a story of persistence, failure, greed, corruption, lies and egos intermixed with mystery, success and laughter. Believe me, I've worked extremely hard over the last twenty-four years building the businesses I've mentioned. I never bought clients, and never paid for existing goodwill. All my businesses have been start-ups and commenced with only me and one or two other employees. Like the main character in my first novel, Billy Houston, I'm a workaholic and my personal relationships have suffered as a result. I've endured a lot of stress and worry over the years in building those businesses, but I've also had a lot of fun and laughs, and met some great people. Unlike the main character in my book, I never went to school in America and have never set up any form of business in America. I now spend half my life in Noosa and the other half in Thailand. A relaxed, stress-free, idyllic lifestyle. I've now commenced writing my second novel which is being written whilst I'm living in a house on the beach in an idyllic, small Thailand beach community. Feel free to connect with me at www.gregholman.com.au