James Moore, founder of the pre-owned technology and goods retailer Mintro, has built an eight-store business turning over around £5 million a year, starting from a Saturday job at a BrightHouse furniture shop in Hyde when he was 18.
Moore, now 38 and a father of two, grew up in North Reddish, Stockport, where he dreamed of becoming a professional footballer. He played for his school at Stockport County's Edgeley Park and represented Stockport schoolboys. However, by his late teens, he realised he would need to "get into the world of work."
His retail career began with that Saturday job at BrightHouse, where he was promoted to manager and later ran a store in London. He told the Manchester Evening News: "I won a number of accolades and realised I wasn't too bad at this retail game. I was capable of speaking to the CEO in the same way as an entry-level member of staff."
From Football Dreams to Retail Reality
Alongside his business career, Moore played football for several non-league sides, most notably Bury FC, where he played in front of thousands at Gigg Lane. He also had spells at Glossop North End, Atherton Collieries, Cheadle Town, Abbey Hey and Trafford FC.
After becoming homesick in London, he returned to Greater Manchester at age 21, where a friend of his dad's helped him get a job at the Cash Generator store on Oldham Street in the Northern Quarter. He went on to run the brand's shops in Hyde and Wythenshawe before being headhunted to run a branch in Harpurhey.
At age 30, Moore found himself unemployed after that relationship ended. However, in 2017, a franchisee offered him the chance to take on a Cash Generator shop in Rochdale that would otherwise likely have closed down, at just "stock costs." He described this as his "foot in the door" to start building his own business.
Building the Mintro Brand
Moore said he "panicked" when the Covid pandemic saw stores shut, but it turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as it allowed him to access finance to grow the business. He took on another store at Salford Precinct and opened new ones on Princes Street in Stockport, Newport Street in Bolton, and in Huddersfield and Bradford in West Yorkshire. He also has stores on Piccadilly in central Manchester and in Blackpool.
In September, he decided to "go in a different direction" and brought the stores into his own Mintro brand. They have since announced a sponsorship deal with Stockport County FC. "It was quite a poignant one, as I'd gone from scoring goals at Edgeley Park as a kid to sponsoring them," he said.
Mintro stores are not pawn shops, as there are no loans and no interest accrues. Instead, they buy items outright for a cash price agreed with the customer. Customers have the option to buy items back within 28 days, plus a storage fee of 15-35 percent, before they can be sold to other customers.
Addressing the Pre-Owned Market
Moore said the "pre-owned market" is "tarnished a bit" and "has a lot of negativity around it" but insisted they offer a vital service for people in a variety of situations and that they "always offered a fair price." He said: "Everyone has bought and sold on eBay, everyone has bought and sold on Vinted, it's the same thing really."
He said they offered a two-year guarantee on products and said they "worked closely with the police" and had stringent processes to prevent the sale of stolen goods to them.
Moore, who lives in Lytham in Lancashire and has two daughters aged 15 and seven, said he did not want to "stand still" and has plans to expand further, with his dream to make Mintro a nationwide household name. "I'm definitely proud, but there is still a lot more in the tank, and a bigger business to be built," he said.
