A teenager in Cheshire has made his first £1,000 profit after setting up a trainer business with birthday money from his parents. Youssef Elattar runs Joe Sneakers - where he buys rare and limited-edition trainers by entering online raffles and sells them for profit.
The 17-year-old saw his vision come to life after his parents chose to help him start out, gifting him £2,000 for his 16th birthday. The teen, who runs the side hustle alongside his education at Wilmslow High Sixth Form, immediately invested the cash into stock and in building his online presence.
Youssef's entrepreneurship comes from his mum, Heba Elshourbagy, who also runs her own business, Hebe Life, in Green Lane. He runs Joe Sneakers from a desk at her vitamins and supplements shop, where he buys and stocks the in-demand trainers, which are not available commercially in most stores, Cheshire Live reports.
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Since starting up, he has comfortably cleared a 1,000 profit and is now looking to grow his business. "He's always had a passion for business since he was young," his mum said of Youssef, who was born in Egypt and moved to Cheshire with his family as a child.
"I know there are a lot of social media pages that are into the same type of business and it's a big market. When we found out he had a huge passion for this, we decided to invest in him and help him start his business. That's why we supported him with the first bit of cash."
The young entrepreneur has created his own branded hoodies and can regularly be seen walking round the town centre with a cart full of his trainers. Heba said: "We are local in Wilmslow and he mainly operates his business online and through his relationships at school.
"However, we have an office in the town centre where he stores his trainers and he has his own desk there where he operates his business. Sometimes his friends come along to see the business or order shoes.
"He takes his trolley and all the shoes on it and walks around the town centre with his jumpers carrying his Instagram handle. It's not just to sell the shoes, but to promote them.
"People have started stopping him and looking at the shoes and he's started to get a lot more social media followers too." Youssef has grown up in a 'business family' - Heba says his dad is CEO of an international oil and gas company.
She says she is 'proud' of her 'hard-working' son. She said: "In one year, he's made £1,000 and is doing really well. I'm really proud of him. I had Youssef when I was quite young at the age of 22.
"Seeing him become the man he is now fills me with pride. He's very persistent and hard-working and he has a big passion for success and life.
"He always wants to learn new things and whenever something comes up in his mind, he just goes for it." Youssef is aiming to study a film course at university after he finishes his studies at Wilmslow High Sixth Form.
The youngster has also started modelling for stores in the town and wants to pursue a career in acting. Alongside running Joe Sneakers, he has modelled for Oliver's Barber in Wilmslow and signed a modelling agency agreement with MMA in Manchester.
Heba said: "He's also started his modelling career and started modelling for local stores and joined an agency. He's into acting, photography and anything that is innovative.
"He would like to pursue acting and he thinks film making will provide him with all the necessary skills."
