Two friends from Stockport have turned a university side hustle into a thriving shoe-cleaning business, counting international footballers and TV stars among their clients. Harry Wilde and Alessio Sivori, both now 24, run Crep Cleanser, which has grown from cleaning trainers in their parents' basements to a slick operation with three drop-off zones and two delivery drivers.
From Sweets to Sneakers
Harry was known at school for selling sweets and drinks to his peers. When his best friend Alessio suggested a 'side hustle' on Harry's 19th birthday, it made perfect sense. They first tried selling trainers, but Harry admitted, "There were a lot of people selling shoes. We didn't really know what we were doing."
After noticing how many fellow university students wore grubby white trainers, the pair shifted their business plan. Harry and Alessio met at Aquinas College as 16-year-olds and went to different universities, but it was in their second year that they came up with the idea for Crep Cleanser.
Footballers and TV Stars
The business boomed after a mystery WhatsApp message from Stoke City midfielder Ben Pearson, who became the first footballer client in 2023. Since then, players including Phil Foden, Antoine Semenyo, Nico O'Reilly, Kyle Walker, Taylor Harwood-Bellis, Joleon Lescott, Phil Bardsley, and Tijani Reijnders have used their services.
Alessio explained why footballers choose to clean rather than replace: "If you bring in 10 pairs of £1,000 shoes, you're not just gonna spend £10,000 to get new pairs again." Customers pay £30 for standard brands, £45 for luxury designers, or £80 for the 'elite package'. The pair have also cleaned blood from Tommy Fury's trainers and added new paint to heels belonging to former Love Island star Olivia Attwood.
Growing the Brand
The business grew further after teaming up with business partner Lewis Arden, who runs Clean Inc dry cleaners in Bramhall and Heaton Moor. Since 2024, they have used both as bases, plus a drop-off at Reeds Alterations in the Trafford Centre, with two drivers running collections across Manchester and Cheshire.
Harry noted the demand is increasing: "A lot of people are paying hundreds, if not thousands of pounds for trainers now, so it's definitely a business that is getting more and more demand." The pair hosted a stall at the VIP section of this year's Parklife Festival, calling it a 'full circle moment' as they attended the festival together as teenagers.
Looking ahead, they want to franchise the brand and become 'one of the biggest luxury shoe cleaners'. Harry's advice for budding entrepreneurs: "Be consistent and turn up every day. There will be harder times, but it's about sticking to the plan and keeping the end goal in your head each and every day you work."
