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John Berglund

A Beach Less Traveled Hardcover – September 1, 2012

by John Berglund (Author)

19 ratings

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The remarkable story of a happily married couple who abandoned the corporate rat race to open a perfumery and create their own custom lines of fragrances in the French Caribbean

What originated in a family vacation on the beach eventually became an unlikely but thriving business--a perfumery on the French-Dutch island of Saint Martin. Though he chose a career in law, John Berglund's passion lay in the chemistry sets of his youth and his lifelong fascination with perfume. Berglund eventually built a full-fledged lab in the basement of his home in Atlanta, where he spent countless hours of free time experimenting with new concoctions. He began to dream of opening a perfumery in a tranquil island paradise and ultimately set out to make it happen--no matter what.

Berglund's account of his Caribbean adventure is a fun-filled, factual tale of conflicts, contrasts, and celebrations. As he and his wife, Cyndi, embed themselves in the eccentric French-side community of Grand Case, they learn incredible lessons about business, success, and themselves. Their story may just inspire others, too, to follow in their footsteps, trading business casual attire for a pair of shorts and flip-flops.

Print length

272 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Emerald Book Company
Publication date

September 1, 2012
Dimensions

6 x 1 x 9 inches
ISBN-10

1937110311
ISBN-13

978-1937110314
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"My wife and I met the Berglunds when we visited their perfumery on Saint Martin and we were amazed by their adventurous energy and passion. A Beach Less Traveled sizzles with the same enthusiasm--the driving force behind their incredible business venture in the tropics."
- Tito Francona, Major League Baseball Player, 1956-1970

"A Beach Less Traveled is a paean to the good life, joie de vivre, and savoir faire. Lie down, relax, feel the sun, smell the sea, sip a 'ti punch, and discover a much slower and simpler way to life. It's an island life, mon, and you're going to love it..."
-Mark Greenside, author of I'll Never Be French (No Matter What I Do)

"A Beach Less Traveled takes the reader through every challenge, every victory, and every touching encounter with the people of a 37-square mile island. A must-read for anyone seeking to make a Caribbean island their home, but also instructive from a business point of view."
-Lisa Burnett, The Daily Herald, Saint Martin, NA

"A fascinating story, made even better by Berglund's talent for balancing pure joy and real sacrifice as he relates his wonderful true adventure. The ultimate how-to book for dreamers."
- Jim Goodwin, Stars & Strikes

About the Author

John Berglund has had a varied and successful career, starting as a chief county prosecuting attorney at age twenty-four, after which he became a lobbyist and trade association executive. Throughout his career one relatively unknown commonality remained: Berglund's avocation for chemistry and the creation of chemical compounds, which he put to use when he relocated to Saint Martin and opened his perfumery, Tijon.

Berglund's soul mate and business partner is his wife of over thirty years, Cyndi, who brings her vivacious personality and talent for jewelry design and customer service to Tijon. Cyndi, a former physical education teacher, award winning bed-and-breakfast operator, retail manager, and corporate employee, has been John's primary assistant in his formulations and first responder to many smell tests.

In between these endeavors, Cyndi and John raised the couple's two children, Rachelle and T.J., both now adults living in San Diego.

Product details

Publisher : Emerald Book Company (September 1, 2012)
Language : English
Hardcover : 272 pages
ISBN-10 : 1937110311
ISBN-13 : 978-1937110314
Item Weight : 1.15 pounds
Dimensions : 6 x 1 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #2,467,881 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #15,137 in Traveler & Explorer Biographies
- #78,063 in Memoirs (Books)

Customer Reviews:
19 ratings

Customer reviews

5 star		65%
4 star		9%
3 star		4%
2 star		9%
1 star		13%

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Top reviews from the United States

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CW8175

AHHHH .. ISLAND LIFE ..

Reviewed in the United States on March 31, 2017

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What an amazing/realistic read about following your dream .. LOVED how the author captured it all .. the good, bad, frustrations, highs, lows .. the trade offs of living a simpler existence .. the patience/perseverance to make a new way of living a reality .. wonderful narrative/style .. lots of humor .. "everything is everything mon" .. BRAVO to a life well lived .. for sharing your experience with fellow SXM lovers and the world !!

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Mimi

Read the book...Go there when you can!

Reviewed in the United States on August 22, 2016

Verified Purchase

Have not had a chance to read this yet BUT it means a lot to me because one of the excursions i took on a Norwegian cruise last November was to
The Perfumery at St. Marrten. What a wonderful experience being in John's laboratory with hundreds of fragrant oils ...and making my own scent which was then bottled for me to bring home! Each "formula" is kept on file should anyone want to order more! Great place to visit and a great book to read about how John Berglund is "livin' the dream".

Helpful

gecko

Good Read!!

Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2012

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This book is a true story about a couple's move from the USA to St Martin and becoming Ex-Pats. My wife and I did much the same thing and lived on the island for almost 7 years. I enjoyed reading about someone's experiences that paralleled ours. It gave insight to the fact that just because you live in a vacation spot it is not a full time vacation. It was well written and funny at times.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Rick at Skiboater

If you ever dreamed of chucking it all

Reviewed in the United States on May 25, 2013

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I'm a typical wage slave that goes on Caribbean vacations whenever my wife and I can find the time. Every so often, I dream of taking our savings, finding a small place to live with a lower life style but also lower stress and aggravation. So, I saw this book and decided I had to read it. It is about someone who made the choice I hve dreamed of...and I had to see how it ended up. However, the author went one step further and actually realized a dream of opening a perfume shop selling his own fragrances.

So, this book tells his journey of carefully shedding his corporate life and building a new life on the fastasic island of St. Martin. The journey is at once liberating and also a madding struggle against a third world bureacracy. Becoming a legal resident and opening a business on St. Martin (the French side) is not for the feint of heart. My wife and I had the pleasure of meeting the author and his wife at his parfume business on the island. It made the realization of his dream so real for me. I thoroghly enjoyed the book but recognize the book is about the author's journey but also a how-to for anyone who wants to travel the same road.

Helpful

Zack Gilmore

Excellent vacation for the mind!

Reviewed in the United States on April 23, 2016

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Purchase d the book before a recent trip to St. Martin. Kept me in an island state of mind! The visit to Tijon was perfect! But I would have liked the longer class.

Helpful

CJ& RJ

John is a very talented writer and brings you back to this beautiful island with his great storytelling of how he got ...

Reviewed in the United States on July 6, 2015

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Fabulous book about the island of St Martin. John is a very talented writer and brings you back to this beautiful island with his great storytelling of how he got to live and work in Paradise!

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jud

A little bit of heaven

Reviewed in the United States on June 14, 2016

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Love the book very much.they really endured a lot of struggles starting there business but it was all worth it.I have been to stmaarteenlo many times and . Have enjoyed it so much and have met many people.I have many fond memories made there.so reading the book was so enjoyable.

Helpful

paul apaliski

Dreams can come true

Reviewed in the United States on August 16, 2015

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....and sometimes, you just have to continue to live the dream. It doesn't come easy, but as John Berglund has written, live in the now, savour the friends and surroundings, give to others, share the dream.

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Colin Edwards

Great title, great cover. Pity about the content

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 29, 2013

Verified Purchase

If Mr Berglund had hired a ghost writer or even a professional editor, this could have been a good book. It might even have been a great book. At the moment it is neither.

There are several problems. On Page 140 the author states, 'I've always enjoyed lecturing'. That is very, very obvious and the volume is not one, but four lectures mashed together.

The first lecture is about life on the Caribbean island St.Martin. It is threaded through the pages almost as if he really wanted to write a guide book to the place. As his writing is so laboured I would have appreciated a sketch map, a line drawing or even a few photographs to compensate for his lack of descriptive ability.

The second lecture is about the history of perfume. Thanks, but I wanted to read about the journey promised on the dust jacket, 'From corporate chaos to flip-flop perfumer'. There was no chaos as the author had a good job that clearly paid well [We sold a strip of land that we owned. This is hardly rags to riches stuff!]

The third lecture is the one that had potential. Instead of telling us the story of how and why they diversified from perfume into bikinis, sun-loungers, soap and suntan lotions he explains the word 'siesta' but decides that every reader knows what a 'perfume organ' is. No. It is not your nose. He has one but where did it come from, what did it cost, how did it get there? I can only assume that the Tijon perfume brand didn't sell well which is why they diversified into being a general gift shop with a museum and lecture sessions thrown in. No costs, profits or successes are recorded.

The final lecture is about running a business and is best skipped if you can untangle it from the rest. Helpfully, about half way through the book he does start to use sub-heads instead of blocks of narrative. By half way I was ready to puke if I read once more about how fantastic his wife Cyndi was. Yeah man. We all love our wives too but don't keep on about it to the point of nausea.

The dust cover photo and title are good. They may well be the best parts of the whole book. But even here, there is a fail. The dust cover has a strange sticky texture that is reminiscent of old fashioned oilskin tablecloths that used to be found in traditional English tea-rooms. A tactile experience maybe, but not in a good way.

I recommend that you do not buy this book but, use the money to get your favourite perfume or aftershave instead. Even so, there IS a good book struggling to escape from this turgid morass of 260 pages, unfortunately it remains locked in. And all for the sake of a good editor.

Stacie

I wish I had!

Reviewed in Canada on April 20, 2014

Verified Purchase

I read this book from many perspectives:
a) from the perspective of a person who loves St Martin and Grand Case
b) from the perspective of a dreamer who is now looking back and saying 'I wish I had...'
c) from the perspective of a person who has had the extreme pleasure of meeting John & Cyndi, attending classes and shopping at Tijon and staying at their lovely villa.
On all accounts, I found this book fun, interesting, informative and inspiring. John & Cyndi are truly living my island dream! For us dreamers, it says stay true and you can live your dream...for those who are more down to earth it says life is not all about work and money, find your dream and set sail...

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A Beach Less Traveled Hardcover – September 1, 2012

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Editorial Reviews

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Top reviews from the United States

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Top reviews from other countries

Buy new:

$22.95

FREE delivery: Saturday, March 13 on orders over $25.00 shipped by Amazon.

Ships from: Amazon.com

Sold by: Amazon.com

Buy used:

$8.07