Who dairies wins! Schoolboy, 14, sets up online toy firm in his family farm’s milking parlour – and is now making £6,000-a-year
- Tommy Howard ships toys all over the world from his family farm after school
- The schoolboy launched his retail business Dog In A Box on eBay last year
- He raised capital by selling eggs from the farm in Hawkchurch, Devon
It’s child’s play – set up an online toy business in an old milking parlour, and watch the profits pour in.
That’s what 14-year-old schoolboy Tommy Howard is doing as he ships toys all over the world each day from his family farm after lessons. And the teenage tycoon has seen turnover reach £15,000-a-year.
He spotted the business opportunity two years ago when his younger brother asked for a £35 Nerf gun – a toy that fires foam darts – for his birthday.
Game boy: Schoolboy Tommy Howard, 14, pictured in his milking parlour toy shop
Tommy realised he could buy a job lot second-hand for less, and a business was born. The youngster sold eggs from the farm in Hawkchurch, Devon, to raise start-up capital to finance his first batch of play guns. He then reinvested the takings on new stock.
After selling more than 1,000 of the toy guns, he launched his retail business Dog In A Box on eBay last year and branched out to offer other toys. He now stocks 1,000 products.
Tommy does all the work himself – phoning manufacturers, liaising with wholesalers and even cycling half a mile after school every day to meet the postman with deliveries. The Year Ten pupil never takes a day off, even during the school holidays, to ensure his 70 orders a week are promptly filled.
After his early success with the foam guns, Tommy ordered a range of 200 products to sell through his eBay shop and his father, engineer Charlie, 43, arranged for him to store his stock in one of the family farm’s converted milking parlours.
Tommy spotted the business opportunity two years ago when his younger brother asked for a £35 Nerf gun – a toy that fires foam darts – for his birthday (file image)
The toys flew off the shelves. ‘I began to feel like a proper business,’ Tommy said.
While his classmates were focused on starting GCSEs, Tommy was keeping an eye on customer trends. Last year he recorded a £6,000 profit, boosted by a Christmas rush for Top Trumps card games and booming sales of paddling pools during the summer heatwave.
A gamble on pools paid off. ‘I bought four and by the end of the day they were gone,’ he said. ‘I’d buy them for as low as £1.50 and sell them for around £8. I sold 300.’
Tommy is heading to a Birmingham trade show next week, hoping to expand his Dog In A Box business. And he has big plans.
He said: ‘I want to have warehouses all across the country, similar to Screwfix and Travis Perkins.’