Alex Gaines, 42, from North Carolina, was at Los Angeles airport two decades ago when he did a good deed to help a stranger.
A Frenchman, who spoke little English, had lost his wallet, containing his ticket and money.
He had missed his flight and been struggling to get help for two days. He needed $100 to transfer his flight. Alex gave him the money.
The pair kept in touch and several years later the man, Georges, invited Alex to Paris, covering his flight and hotel, to repay his kindness.
“I’d never left the country as an adult, never thought about France and that trip changed everything for me,” said Alex.
Alex Gaines with his wifeAlex Gaines
He decided to do his MBA in Nice, persuading his wife to come with him, in 2013.
After his studies, he took his wife, a keen surfer, to Biarritz, in south-west France, one of the country’s top surf destinations.
“We loved it,” said Alex. “When we came to Biarritz we looked at each other and said: ‘We don’t want to go back.’
“It’s a wealthy area but it’s a bit more humble. We had the mountains, the ocean, gastronomy, security and safety, and that’s all you are looking for, in my view, for quality of life.”
He also appreciated the Basque culture and the pride people take in their heritage.
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Having decided they wanted to move to Biarritz, Alex was faced with the challenge of finding work.
“It's not easy, to say the least, but my wife and I were determined so we knew the sacrifices we needed to make.”
Firstly, he threw himself into networking, eventually meeting a Frenchman with a local start-up he wanted to expand internationally.
He offered Alex the chance to grow the company in the US, with no pay but the promise of a salaried position and visa in France if he built revenue.
It was a risk – Alex would be working for free to get his visa. But it paid off.
“He kept his word and brought me back to France in 2017. I stayed with that business for three-and-a-half years.”
Today, Alex is a partner and director of real estate company Prestant.
Alex and his wife decided to move to Biarritz after discovering the town's surfing cultureAlex Gaines
He advises other newcomers looking for work to find their niche.
“You have to find where you can best serve the local labour market and you have to position yourself as a unique proposition…. an addition rather than a risk.”
Has he noticed any big differences between France and the US?
“There is a bit more humanity in the way things operate – for example, healthcare, social safety nets. I made my American dream in France because the French government helped me with so much.”
It was by claiming chômage (unemployment benefit) in France that Alex was able to get into real estate.
“That was my bridge from a salaried position to an independent position – that doesn’t exist in the US.”
Alex Gaines
Today, Alex helps buyers find properties in Biarritz, Paris and Bordeaux, working with mainly French, but also international, clients.
He advises other Americans thinking of making the move to really know their reasons for doing it.
“I wanted to build my own life in France around quality of life, independence and adventure and those are very strong rewards for me that allowed me to overcome the challenges – uncertainty, language problems, visa problems.”
And what of Georges, who first brought him to France?
They have now been friends for over 20 years and Alex is godfather to Georges’ child.
You could say Alex’s life in France was built on his one act of kindness.
“Those small things, they change the direction of your life and you’ll never know it.”
