Teen plans to leave uni 'debt free' after making £35,000 selling vintage football shirts

A teenager who started reselling vintage football shirts and made more than £35,000 has said she now aims to graduate university debt‑free.

Eleri Williams, 18, set up an online football shirt resale business from her parents' spare room during her GCSEs.

Three years later, she has now opened a shop in Cardiff and said her profits will help fund her law degree, describing the success of her side hustle as "completely overwhelming" and "a surreal experience".

According to recent data, many young people are turning to side hustles to help fund their education and day-to-day living costs.

In 2023, Eleri, then 15, started selling some of her dad's old football shirts to make some extra money.

Little did she know it would "exceed" her expectations and lead to a business that would help put her through university.

The young entrepreneur from Aberdare, Rhondda Cynon Taf, said she sold a few vintage shirts then decided take "a leap" and bought a few more shirts from the money she made.

Eleri said it eventually became a business and she made £35,000 in profit before opening the shop in one of Cardiff's arcades this week.

"The intention of the business was not to pay for my university. It was for pocket money to fund my typical teenage girl of online shopping and generally being expensive.

"I think my dad just wanted me to take a bit of initiative."

Eleri said her work had enabled her to travel the UK and meet "so many amazing fellow shirt sellers, people with so many interesting backstories".

She admits that, as first jobs go, "it hasn't gone too bad".

Eleri hopes the business will allow her to leave university "debt free" after always wanting to study law at Cardiff University and now being in a "comfortable position" to do so.

"I've finished my A-levels now and get my results hopefully in September. I know I'm financially in the position to attend the university, academically it's just up to me now."

On average, Welsh students owe £40,000 when they graduate compared to £53,000 in England.

Concerns have grown around student debt after a decision by the UK government was made to freeze the threshold at which some English graduates start repaying loans.

But the Welsh government said it would not follow suit, adding it supported a subsequent UK government move to cap interest on the loans at 6%.

Faced with rising costs, many have turned to side hustles to help keep them afloat.

A survey of 600 students found that 65% of them had a side hustle last year compared to 38% in 1980s, according to data from wealth provider Aviva.

"My side hustle turned into a successful business and a store - and putting me through university," Eleri said.

"Obviously that's not going to be the case for everyone, but it's an effective way to fund yourself."

The top motivation for having a side hustle is to cover the day-to-day cost of living expenses, according to data from comparison site Finder.

Eleri said she's trying to keep a "good balance" of managing the business in Cardiff's Royal Arcade and her education.

"I'm really lucky and I'm really grateful that I've got such a wonderful support system around me to help me manage all the aspects of my incredibly busy life," she said.

Her parents "man the shop" when she has school or exams and she's "very lucky" they have supported her decisions.

"I like to do a million things at once and push myself as much as I can. The shop will still be up and running as normal when I start university. Opening hours might have to adapt around university."

Speaking to Radio Wales Breakfast, she said her business gets shirts "from anywhere over the world".

"We get them from a variety of suppliers, but we can also get them locally sourced through people contacting us, or even through your typical resale sites," she added.

"As long as we think this shirt is suitable and we're happy with it, we're prepared to sell it."

Eleri said she had a vintage Juventus shirt of Italian star Alessandro Del Piero that went for £150 a few months ago.

She recently found the holy grail of shirts for her - the Super Furry Animals-sponsored Cardiff City shirt - a legendary piece of Welsh football and music history.

Eleri said she wouldn't put that up for sale as "they're very rare to come across".

However, her favourite shirt is the vibrant blue 2002-03 Manchester United third kit.

She added that customers can also ask the business to try and source specific vintage football shirts, which they will try their "very best" to find.