Boy, 8, sets up stall to save for house deposit

Archie sells items he buys at car boot sales or from other traders

"If you get to like 18 or 20, and you haven't started saving any money, it takes a while to get there so I wanted to start early."

Archie is just eight years old, but he is already planning for his future and saving money for a deposit on his first house.

But he is not just putting his pocket money aside, the entrepreneurial schoolboy set up a market stall selling jewellery, fidget toys, sweets and other items a year ago.

His efforts have paid off and Archie, from Market Harborough in Leicestershire, said he had already saved £3,000 towards his future.

Property prices in the area are growing faster than in neighbouring districts in the East Midlands.

Provisional data from the Office for National Statistics shows the average house price in Harborough in April 2025 was £355,000, while the average for first-time buyers in the area stood at £286,000.

Archie's mum Jodie said: "He was always driven by wanting a shop and then interested in looking for premises and locations so he could live above it.

"Whenever he saw empty shops in town he wanted to know how much they're worth."

She said his passion for trading began when they were on a holiday.

"He collected loads of stones and shells and then washed them, lined them up meticulously on a tray outside the house and made £6.50," she explained.

"After that, he wanted to be somewhere busier and went on and on and on.

"He pestered and pestered and pestered and set about it happening."

Archie said he sold things "quite cheap"

Archie buys old and new stock at car boot sales or from other traders to sell on his stall at Harborough Indoor Market in Northampton Road, run by the council.

Like other traders, he has to pay rent for his stall and have market traders' insurance, which was taken out by Jodie.

About once a month, Archie gets to the market hall for about 06:00, and sets up alongside other stallholders, carefully arranging his stock in colour co-ordinated rows.

"I absolutely love trading and the other traders like having me there too," he said.

"They come and talk to me and some of them come and buy things from me too."

Andy Friess and his wife Katrina run a nearby stall called PictureMyPast, which aims to help people trace their ancestors.

Mr Friess said: "As soon as I met Archie, I could see he was a livewire.

"He was insistent that mum and dad didn't help him arrange his stock. He's a little superstar."

He added: "I advised him about the height of his displays and about clear pricing.

"I even advised him about how to present himself so you look like you mean business.

"His mum would say 'listen to the advice, because it won't always be free'."

Jodie said: "He's so organised, he knows how much he's bought things for and how much he's selling for."

Archie's dad Lee added: "They like having him there, it's like the next generation.

"There are very few young people, so getting them in this young to carry it on, it's all good and good for the town."