“I’ve been self-employed for 45 or 46 years,” he said.

White spent many years building highways on the West Coast and owned his own highway construction company. In 1980 White sold the company to his employees and returned to eastern Washington, where he devoted his energies to the apple orchards he owned there.

Sue, a stay-at-home mom, managed the books for the apple orchard business, while keeping a handle on the couple’s four children.

White sold the apple orchard in 1996 and the couple settled into retirement in Gig Harbor. But retired life didn’t suit them for long.

“We got very bored with retirement,” said White. “We started looking for something we could do together.”

So the search for a new business opportunity began. The Whites looked into a number of options, from buying an existing business to opening a new franchise. As consumers of HoneyBaked Ham products, they knew the brand, and when the opportunity presented itself to open a Kitsap location, they took it. In May 2004 the couple opened the first Kitsap County HoneyBaked Ham, which offers ham sales, catering and a charming eat-in café.

For White, a retail food establishment was not his first choice. But Sue was a strong proponent of the idea and, given her natural affinity for the business, White agreed to pursue it.

“My wife is 13 years younger than I am,” he said. “I wanted her to have something to continue. I wanted her to have something that was hers.”

The key to the White’s success could be described as a “divide and conquer” strategy, each overseeing the aspects of the business that best suits their skills. White handles the commercial side of the business, from marketing and advertising to catering. Sue runs the café.

“She’s very good,” said White. “It suits her.”

Wearing the dual hats of business partners and husband and wife hasn’t been much of a challenge for the Whites, who were used to spending a lot of time together, from the years when White owned the apple orchard.

“We had to learn to get along a long time ago,” he said. But, he continued, this new venture “does have different challenges. I’ve never worked with business partners before. It requires a teamwork effort and attitude.”

It’s a challenge that White was ready to take on, and one at which he feels they’ve been successful.

“I wanted to do something I’ve never done,” he said. “We both work very hard at it.”

“We work well together, I think,” agreed his wife, Sue. “I respect what he does well, which is take care of the money.”

One of the most positive aspects of being in business with your spouse, White said, is the fact that you trust your business partner implicitly.

“You know that things will be done correctly,” he said.

The couple is certainly setting an example within the HoneyBaked Ham franchise. In May the Whites’ store was chosen as “Best Franchise Store of the Year,” beating out around 100 other HoneyBaked Ham stores nationwide. More recently, a secret shopper report gave the two-year-old store almost a perfect score, easily the highest score of any HoneyBaked Ham location.

Future expansion in Gig Harbor is an option they are looking into, but that next step is some way off, said White. For now the couple plans to continue to focus their energy on building the business to ensure its longevity. Overall, the two-year-old business is doing well, but there are still some fluctuations, as with any relatively new venture.