ODD NEWS
HOW A GARDEN SHED LAUNCHED BRITAIN'S BIGGEST EBAY SELLER
BRIGHT SPARK: Mark Radcliffe
By Geoff Maynard
BRIGHT spark Mark Radcliffe has become Britain's first eBay millionaire, just 10 years after launching his online retail business from a garden shed.
Mark was a 21-year-old supermarket worker when he set up First2sell in 1999 with just £200 in the bank.
Now he has 36,000 customers a month, drives a Ferrari and enjoys an annual turnover of more than £3million.
Originally, Mark used the shed at his parent's semi-detached home as a stockroom, flogging a few mobile phone accessories and computer cables.
Now he sells a range of 3,700 items, employs 19 staff and operates from a 10,000sqft warehouse, making him the number one eBay trader in the UK.
But the ambitious businessman is hoping to soon move into premises three times bigger, employ 34 staff and become the world's biggest eBay trader, shifting 50,000 items a month.
Mark, 30, from Southport, Merseyside, said: "Our biggest sellers are items with a value of less than £15 - accessories for iPods and mobile phones, gadgets, and electronic toys - low-value goods with a high volume and decent profit margin.
"When I started I was very young with no commitments and no real financial backing, so I had to buy in small, cheap products that I could sell quickly.
"I started selling mobile phone accessories in 1999 from my own website. Then eBay came along and that gave me the opportunity to reach a much wider customer base.
"I'm constantly re-investing the money back into the business, so we can continue to grow.
"The recession is a factor in business. But we are seeing it as an opportunity. We keep our overheads down and aim to serve customers looking for bargains with what they want."
