Flip flop recycle business helped by start up loan

Terence Chung said the relatively low-interest loan "makes a world of difference"

A man whose business makes new shoes out of discarded flip-flops has been made an ambassador for a government loan scheme for start-ups.

Terence Chung, from Fareham, Hampshire, and his friend got £10,000 from the British Business Bank two years ago for their company Nuoceans.

They recycle broken or waste flip-flops collected in South East Asia and South America and use the plastic for the soles of new sandals, made in Spain.

Mr Chung said that would have been "impossible" without the loan as "banks don't want to risk lending to companies with no track record".

Mr Chung and his friends who studied biology and ecology realised there was an issue with waste flip-flops when they were travelling in Thailand after university.

"Sometimes they are made cheaply and break, some are just discarded and some are left on beaches," he said.

The business model sees the old plastic flip-flops chopped up into small pieces and then flattened at high temperature into plastic sheets, which are then used in cork sandals.

The cork is also recycled.

They are sold primarily in Europe but the company has a UK stockist in Brighton and an online shop.

The colourful section of the sole on the Nuoceans sandal is made from chopped up old flip-flops

The initial business loan was used to fund the creation and production of the first line of sandals, which sold out quickly.

The business has been given another £10,000 to pay for the next round of stock and increase its marketing.

Mr Chung has now been selected to be a south-east ambassador for 2025 to raise awareness of the loan scheme and said he particularly wanted to see more younger people apply.

"You can have a great idea, but it costs a lot to get that off the ground at the start and this relatively low-interest loan, which you can pay back over a long period of time is incredible," he said.

"It makes a world of difference."

The scheme was initially launched 10 years ago for those under 30 but there is now no age restriction.