Sink or swim: Former Youth Olympics swimming star-turned-budding Lancashire entrepreneur with global dreams

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Sink or swim is very much the mantra by which Martin Handley lives his life. A former champion youth-level swimmer and self-described ‘scrap-chap’ turned budding entrepreneur with truly global dreams, the Lancastrian businessman is convinced he’s onto a medal-worthy winner.

“I’m an all-or-nothing guy,” says Martin. “I either put everything into something, or I don’t focus my energy on it at all. Swimming gave me the discipline and, while I’m not the most organised guy, it taught me persistence and instilled in me a desire to succeed and keep going no matter what.

Still dedicated to swimming, Martin nevertheless began to find the pool an increasingly lonely place as he watched friends head off to university or join the Army. Still doing well at school, he was also unsure as to what kind of career awaited him and so started to look for work - something flexible around which he would continue to train in the pool.

“I wanted to do my very best in the job, so I started exploring the potential for digital marketing for scrap and found a gap in the market,” Martin says, describing where the germ of an idea for his own business came from. “I toyed with the idea of starting my own business for God knows how long before I actually did it.”

“We’ve learned from a lot of mistakes and growing pains very quickly and we’ve worked hard,” he adds. “But, if I’d have known then what I know now about running a business, I’d have never have done it, but I’m glad I did! It’s good I went in blind! We’ve done well to grow organically and roll with the punches, even if we’ve had a few black eyes.”

“For the past 18 months, I’ve also been going to hypnotherapy, which has completely changed my life with regards to getting the mental health support I’ve needed,” he adds. “It’s helped me so much and I’ve got so much pride in the company. Then again, I probably don’t take the time to really look back and appreciate how far we’ve come.

 

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