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Dr Isabella Moore believes later-life entrepreneurship can offer purpose, improved mental wellbeing – and benefit the wider economy.
10 September 2026 | 6 minute read
For Dr Isabella Moore, business ownership in one’s mid- and later life is an overlooked answer to some of the biggest questions facing an ageing society: how do people stay purposeful, remain economically active and continue to feel relevant as they grow older?
Now 78, Dr Moore has an impressive track record: she has a CBE for services to commerce, honorary doctorates from Sheffield Hallam and Aston universities and was the first female president of the British Chambers of Commerce.
She speaks with authority on “olderpreneurship” because she’s lived it herself. She set up a language services company in her 30s and later sold it to an American owner. Then, at 60, she found herself in business again when she and her daughter bought it back. That sparked a new question: what does entrepreneurship look like as you approach retirement age, and why aren’t more people talking about it?
Your third quarter is the chapter where your focus moves from striving to choosing – when you have the resources, the perspective and the experience to make the choices that matter to you.
By the time she had turned 60, Dr Moore’s life was already changing in ways that would feel familiar to many people in their third quarter. She needed to spend time in Warsaw, keeping an eye on her elderly mother. As she re-learned how to run the business, she was also committed to supporting her daughter, who by this time had children of her own. Adjusting to life after her husband retired was another shift to navigate. He was ready to slow down; Dr Moore wasn’t. “You have a bit of an identity crisis,” she says. “You think, well, what am I going to do for the rest of my life?”
That feeling was sharpened by the social signals that can come with ageing. Dr Moore recalls going to networking events and realising she was the oldest person in the room. Walking into meetings with much younger clients made her wonder whether other older entrepreneurs were facing the same questions around confidence and identity.
A conversation with a professor at Aston Business School shifted that curiosity in a new direction. He suggested Dr Moore get a PhD in later-life entrepreneurship. She completed her doctorate in her early 70s, focusing on why people want to start businesses in their older years, how social attitudes shape those decisions and what resources or barriers affect their chances of success.
Dr Moore’s research was based on interviews with men and women in three groups: people already running businesses they had started later in life, people only beginning to think about it and people who would never even consider entrepreneurship. That gave her a rich picture of what motivates people, what frightens them and what turns an idea into a real business.
What emerged was that later-life entrepreneurship is rarely driven by one thing alone – usually, it’s a blend of practical need, ambition, confidence, health, identity and the desire to do something on one’s own terms.
Dr Moore found that for many women, starting a business in the third quarter is partly driven by financial necessity – they’re less likely to have the same pension security as their male peers. For many men, by contrast, the issue is less about income and more about identity. After decades in corporate roles, they often feel as though work has shaped their sense of self, their routines and their place in the world. Once that structure disappears, some feel adrift.1
But while later-life enterprise can be rewarding, it’s not without obstacles. One of the biggest, Dr Moore found, is lack of confidence. Many of the people she interviewed had years of experience, strong networks and valuable skills, yet still doubted their ability to learn, adapt and succeed.
Then there’s ageism. Sometimes it stems from society, sometimes from institutions, and sometimes from family and friends. Dr Moore describes people being met with disbelief when they say they want to start a business in their late 50s, 60s or beyond. Support programmes may technically be open to all but can still feel designed for younger founders.
Access to financing can be a challenge too. Many later-life businesses are deliberately small, often run from home and built carefully to keep costs low. But even when older founders do seek funding, they can feel like they’re fighting assumptions about age. Dr Moore points out that, while it makes sense intellectually that lenders would consider the whole person – their experience, assets, paid-off home, pension and long track record – many don’t do that.
For Dr Moore, it’s vital to recognise the inherent strengths of older entrepreneurs. She calls it “age capital:” the skills, resilience, adaptability and judgement built up over a lifetime. Many have weathered setbacks, coped with family upheaval, adapted to change and learned how to ride out uncertainty.
Those findings led her to create two initiatives: The Olderpreneur Alliance, which lobbies government and raises awareness of the needs of older founders, and the Later Creator programme, which offers practical support to people exploring a business idea after age 50.
According to Dr Moore, the case goes well beyond individual fulfilment. Older entrepreneurs can strengthen local economies, create jobs, pay taxes and reduce pressure on the welfare system.2 Equally important, she believes, is that they’re likely to enjoy better mental wellbeing when they feel connected, useful and purposeful. “You feel relevant,” she says.
She has no plans to slow down. Alongside this work, she’s a church warden, runs fundraising campaigns and continues to travel to present academic papers. “I enjoy it,” she says. “It’s what keeps me going.” At 78, she is making the argument in theory and in practice: that the third quarter of life can still be a time of energy, contribution and new ideas.
Your third quarter is the chapter where experience becomes your greatest asset, and the right financial foundations can turn new ideas into something real. If you’re thinking about what’s next, talk to us. We can help you structure a plan that supports your ambitions while managing risks, so you can pursue purpose without sacrificing financial stability.
Sources:
1. “Olderpreneurship Research & Advocacy.” The Olderpreneur Alliance, 8 March 2024, www.olderpreneuralliance.com/research-advocacy/.
2. “The Missing Entrepreneurs 2023 | OECD.” OECD, www.oecd.org/en/publications/the-missing-entrepreneurs-2023_230efc78-en.html.
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