Turning Trash into Treasure From a young eBay seller to a sustainable business owner, discover how Joseph Holman, CEO and founder of Luton-based upcycling company Green Doors, transformed waste into a thriving enterprise. His journey reveals the power of innovation, resilience, and a commitment to the environment in building a successful startup.

What inspired you to start your business?

I first started selling on my dad's eBay account at the age of 12 and made around £2,000 profit in just 6 weeks. From then on, I was hooked. Before I was 20, I had made £250,000 from items I had found or bought and then sold, gaining me tons of experience in different categories.

After selling festival tickets and mobiles aged 16 I had thought about setting up a company around one of these, but StubHub changed the marketplace and I had to be careful when purchasing mobiles due to the amount that were stolen or blacklisted. So, selling remained a hobby and I followed my parents' advice and undertook a plumbing apprenticeship.

The decision to move into the construction industry could not have been more appropriate for me, as I was immediately struck by the amount of waste that surrounded every job that I went on. So many valuable resources were simply being discarded into skips. During renovations, we were replacing perfectly functioning boilers and bathrooms costing thousands of pounds and all was destined for landfill. I couldn't help but try to 'rehome' them.

I started off by stripping down functional boiler parts after seeing that there was a good market for these items. I purchased other items from fellow engineers for a little beer money, although I didn't inform them that my little side hustle was generating £3,000- £4,000+ a month, far in excess of my £700 monthly apprenticeship wage.

One day, while working on a plumbing job, I spotted a set of white uPVC French doors sticking out of a skip. The builder was really pleased to have more space in his skip after I offered to take them. I took them home, cleaned them up that evening and advertised them on eBay that same night. The next day, they sold locally for hundreds of pounds and I delivered them to the customer.

For the next few weeks, I scoured the streets and building sites for more doors and windows, handing out my contact details as I went. It seemed that the amount of stock was almost unlimited, but it wasn't until a few weeks later when I noticed a mountain of pre-owned doors and windows destined for landfill at a local company. That's when I had my eureka moment of starting Green Doors.

What are the key factors that contribute to successfully scaling a sustainable startup?

Any business, given appropriate resources, can become successful. Trying to start a business without any finances is far more challenging, especially when it has sustainability as a core value.

Back in 2014, I had no similar businesses to learn from as nobody was selling second-hand windows and doors, so it was a steep learning curve. I was fortunate to be able to use my parents' back garden as my storage unit and their spare room as my office, which helped me keep my overheads at a minimum.

I tried to bring investors on board after a few years, but the focus always appeared to be on pure profit and the company's vision to reduce waste in the industry was always secondary to potential investors. In order to survive, I realised the company needed to be profitable and that the more money we generated, the more doors and windows we could provide an extended life to. I believe having a strong team behind you is key. Green Doors is fortunate in having staff who share my vision and are happy to put environmental benefits above personal profits.

Related: Why B Corp Certification is a Game Changer for Sustainable Businesses

- How did you secure your initial funding?

Green Doors has grown out of a skip and has not taken any investment to date. We have bootstrapped from day one, reinvesting the profits from the free items pulled out of skips and from building sites. We are a successful and profitable business but could do so much more with an ethical investment. We are now looking for funding, but we are being very careful to ensure we bring the right people on board. We are seeking altruistic investors who are just as passionate about making a positive impact on the world as we are.

- How do you handle failure or setbacks?

At the beginning, I found that juggling all aspects of the business was very stressful and tiring. I wasn't able to cope well with stress due to the volume of tasks I had to undertake on a daily basis. During the really stressful days, I would drink alcohol in the evenings, as having a hangover the next day felt better and prevented another stressful day.

I was fortunate in managing to persuade friends and family to join me on my journey and, whilst this helped, we had to increase stock to cover salaries. It became apparent in the early days that we needed proper systems in place to help run and streamline our process. Thankfully, our investment in inventory systems has improved our operations and is starting to pay off.

- What advice would you give to someone starting their own sustainable business?

Always prioritise your finances and strive to be as efficient as possible. Ideally, reinvest profits in infrastructure rather than being tempted to take large pay cheques. If possible, reduce rental costs to a minimum. Our personal experience of renting a warehouse has been a negative and a costly one. I would strongly recommend getting a solicitor to review your lease as some landlords are ruthless and could cost you your business.

Don't overstretch by taking on premises or staff just because you hit a busy period, it's better to be efficient with dedicated staff. At any stage of your business, make sure you take time out to reevaluate your operations and departments. Seek advice from your employees on how to improve things. Believe in yourself, and don't listen to others who lack experience in your field. Just because others can't see your vision doesn't mean your business won't succeed.

- Share your tips for achieving success...

There is always an element of risk when starting a business but, if you are prepared to work harder than anyone else, you can make it work. Think outside the box and don't copy others or you'll always be one step behind. Get those who you trust working closely with you. Make sure you have a routine and keep fit and healthy so it's a lot easier to follow.