Eco-Business Started For Just £20

Britisheco.com started in a dark period of founder Nick Pringles life. He had been sent to hospital by ambulance from a small office he had been working from as a freelance copywriter. A similar thing had happened when he was worked at Lastminute.com the previous year in London. He felt weak, tired, constantly anxious and very panicky. After going to a cardiologist and various tests they decided it was nervous exhaustion/anxiety. So he was put on a six-month course of Seroxat. He moved out of the office with £20 set up a one page website called britisheco.com working from a bed-sit he was living in at the time.

The idea was to sell a range of eco friendly, garden etc products online. His degree was in environmental management, so was interested in products that improved or reduced their impact on the environment. The first order came from an ad in the post office window. He then sold a few solar rechargers on eBay and slowly the business began to build. During the first year he rarely ventured out of the house as he was agoraphobic and still prone to panic attacks. The website was the only good thing happening in his life and it's success forced him to broaden his horizons.

He gradually got better and is now back 100% to his normal self. He invested in a better website - well designed, easy to use and with over 200 products including a range of garden furniture made by people with learning disabilities using reclaimed timber, compost bins, wind up torches and wildlife products.

Customers can also sign up to a renewable electricity supplier, switch to a green phone provider or opt for solar water heating. The site is approaching its 5,000th customer and continues to grow. The latest idea is green experience vouchers for whale watching or organic gardening courses. You can see the ever-increasing range for yourself at www.britisheco.com.

©Reduce, Reuse, Recycle 2005 - 2008
www.reducereuserecycle.co.uk