'Selling old Lego went so well, I quit insurance'

Lee Evans said the demand for his old clothes had really surprised him

"I don't think I could ever go back to a standard job now."

Lee Evans from Cannock, Staffordshire, was working in insurance when he had a life-changing clear-out at home. It came during the first Covid lockdown. He gathered unwanted possessions and began selling them on eBay, including his old clothes and his children's Lego.

It went down a storm and he noticed a growing demand for vintage items. Within two months, he quit his insurance job after a decade in the sector - partly in response to sales of retro goods, but also with an eye on the challenge of setting up a business.

A market stall in Birmingham soon followed. By 2024 he had two shops and business Nan Summers Vintage was under way.

"It just kept going and going, we kept selling more," Mr Evans said of the early days of the venture.

"Then lockdown ended and I was able to meet suppliers, hunt for clothes and that's where more passion came in.

"It made me start thinking 'I can do this, I can resell' and it seemed quite easy, that was how it was born."

Before that, he explained, he had rarely ever bought anything second hand.

"To come from selling our old clothes on eBay to having two shops feels a bit surreal," he said.

"I haven't had a day off for about three months, it's full on but I don't think I could ever go back to a standard job now."

Nan Summers Vintage has two stores in Digbeth that sell a range of items

His stores, one in Birmingham's Custard Factory and another on nearby Digbeth high street, predominantly sell clothes and vinyl records. And they have changed, Mr Evans said, both his and his family's habits.

These days, he rarely buys new clothes and has converted his family to wear secondhand too.

"There's less things going into landfill," he said of vintage reselling. "I'm trying to be as sustainable as possible."

Mr Evans said that the shop had turned into a community hub where people could "chill out" together

It sounds as if the enterprise is a passion more than a job. Mr Evans loves finding random items of clothing, including a Clark Griswold ice hockey shirt from the National Lampoon's Vacation movie series.

"You always get a bit of history out of things, you find old money in pockets and ski passes, and it's quite nice to have that conversation with people in the shop," he explained.

As well as the environment, he is also keen to help others.

The Custard Factory premises aimed, Mr Evans said, to provide a "community hub" where people could get together, and also offered free pop-up spaces for local businesses to sell their own items.

"If someone wants to do it, don't be afraid - just start with selling things around your house and have a go," he advised those inspired by his story.