Son wants to skip college and join our distribution business after Inter

silver_badminton_57322 Sept 2026

Our son is in second year Inter. For the last few months he has been coming with me to the warehouse on Saturdays, and now he says he doesn't want to do a degree at all. He wants to join the business full time after his exams and learn it properly. Part of me is pleased. He's good with the staff and he picks things up quickly. But I started this business without a degree because I had no option, and I always wanted my children to have the choice. My partner thinks a commerce degree is non-negotiable. Our daughter is watching all of this with great interest. I don't want to push him into three years of college he resents, and I don't want him to lose options at 17 either. How did other business families handle this?

5 comments

silver_piano_7982 Sept 2026
Before deciding, I would look closely at what his Saturdays involve. Is he doing the invoicing, the stock counts and the difficult customer calls, or mostly the parts he enjoys? If he has seen the dull side and still wants it, that tells you a lot more than enthusiasm at 17.
rose_veranda_33232 Sept 2026
what about one year in the business first and the college decision after that. colleges will still be there at 18. worth putting on the table before it becomes a yes/no fight
lagoon_veranda_25992 Sept 2026
half my school batch from business families did bcom by correspondence and were in the shop by 18. most are fine. a couple regret missing college, for the friends more than the degree
indigo_drum_73162 Sept 2026
Is he asking for no degree, or no full-time college? Those are two separate discussions, and your partner may be fine with the second.
pebble_piano_23133 Sept 2026
This one is close to home for me. My brother wanted to join our father's business at that age. They agreed on a written plan for one year: what he would handle, what he would earn, and what would happen if it didn't work. They sat down again at the end of the year and decided the next step together. Having it on paper made both sides calmer ❤️