How three Scots entrepreneurs make money from trainers

Morven MckinnonBBC Glasgow & West reporter

When Taylor McNeillie was 12 years old he sold a pair of Adidas Yeezys on eBay for three times what he bought them for.

It was a lightbulb moment. He became obsessed with buying and selling trainers.

Now 21, he is one of an increasing number of entrepreneurs capitalising on the demand for the latest sneakers.

While Taylor, from Galston in Ayrshire, flips footwear for profit, others make money from designing new shoes or cleaning up used pairs.

BBC Scotland News has spoken to three businessmen from Glasgow hoping to become trainer tycoons.

Taylor's trainer business became a lucrative side-hustle while he was at school and after, when he began an apprenticeship in aerospace engineering.

During lockdown his Instagram page blew up and he began sourcing shoes for different people.

As his followers and orders increased, he opened a pop-up shop in Glasgow's Princes Square in October 2021.

It lasted 10 weeks but it was such a huge success, he left his apprenticeship and opened a permanent shop in the mall in January 2022.

His second shop opened in October 2023 in the Silverburn shopping centre near Glasgow.

"As soon as we opened the shop it was successful from day one. And it was the first of its kind in the city so it was very, very busy," he said.

"It was almost like, in some ways like an exhibition as much as a shop, people were coming just to see them because they were fascinated by them."

Taylor says his dad has been his biggest supporter from day one, helping him with deliveries and setting up the business.

The young entrepreneur works seven days a week and says he finds days off stressful as he is constantly thinking about the business.

"The thing that’s most fulfilling for me is just making other people happy," he said.

"Just as long as I can keep putting smiles on faces and expand and do well for myself, that’s an end goal."

'My mates were my first paying customers'

Six years ago Chris Ward was looking at ways to make some extra money.

The Glaswegian already cleaned his own collection of shoes once a week before carefully putting them back in their boxes. So he started doing the same for his friends.

It started as a bit of joke - but now Box Fresh is his full time business.

"They gave me their own trainers and I was taking them away, cleaning them and getting them back to them for the next day, so they were my first paying customers, my mates," the 37-year-old said.

He created an Instagram and Facebook account to see if he would gain any interest in his work.

Chris received a message from a stranger, which gave him his first proper customer and, through word of mouth, the business snowballed.

Now a lot of his business is coming via the firm's TikTok account.

His customers include professional footballers, as well as other sports stars and TV personalities.

Although Chris started out on his own, he now has a team of staff who help clean the shoes.

"There’s no way that I could do this and still have any sort of normal job because this just consumes my whole life," he said.

"I go home at night, that’s the time that people would be relaxing, whereas that’s the time that everybody is on social media, so you need to be posting then."

The business also offers a dry cleaning service and they are looking at branching into cleaning prams and car seats.

Chris works every day - and he would move into the shop if he could.

"I think if you’re like that, it means that you care," he said.

'I'm 17 and I've had meetings with the founder of Reebok'

Amaan Waheed is just 17 but despite his youth, he already has his own business.

With the help of his dad, he set up Arcane Footwear in 2021 after patenting a magnetic spring cushion which can be used in trainers.

The cushion is described as an energy return system for runners which makes running easier and more comfortable.

But his interest in business began when he was 14 and he created a magnetic fidget toy called Stax, which sold online and in local shops.

Since coming up with the magnetic spring cushion, which offers extra comfort, he has made in-roads into the trainer industry and counts Joe Foster, the founder of Reebok, as a supporter.

"Reebok is known for innovation, and Joe was super-excited about the magnetic cushioning, seeing it as the next big thing," Amaan said.

"He supported me by leveraging his network, introducing me to industry key players. The best part was the in-depth training sessions, where Joe shared insights from a 200-page secret Reebok manual."

His shoe ideas have been presented to the likes of Reebok, Adidas, Castore and Nike.

Arcane are hoping to go in to production with their own shoes in 2024.

Now in sixth year at high school, Amaan plans to study Business Law at Glasgow University next year.

His biggest inspiration is Tesla and he wants to mirror their success as a business.

He said: “They’re known for being different and standing out and that’s what I want to be in the footwear industry. Different and modern of course."

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