Guy Schanschieff: I discovered gold in nappies

Ex-accountant Guy Schanschieff set up a nappy laundry service in 1992. Now his company, Bambino Mio, turns over £3m and has 42 distributors in 60 countries worldwide.

When Guy Schanschieff, 44, set up a nappy laundry service in 1992, he thought he would be the first in Britain. "But it turned out there were quite a few," says the Northamptonshire-born businessman, who came across the idea for the business on his travels across India and Australia. Worse, when he tried to sell the service at antenatal classes, "you might as well have stepped off a space ship. People thought you were mad." To succeed, he would need to change tack, fast.

The son of an accountant, Schanschieff delivered clean nappies and collected the dirty ones every week for five years in his Bedford Rascal van. But "even at its peak, we had just 300 customers paying £7 or £8 a week". So when a former customer set up her own business selling reusable nappies, but then changed her mind, Schanschieff moved quickly. He bought the business, Bambino Mio, and was up and running by 1997.

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Jody Clarke

Jody studied at the University of Limerick and was a senior writer for MoneyWeek. Jody is experienced in interviewing, for example digging into the lives of an ex-M15 agent and quirky business owners who have made millions. Jody’s other areas of expertise include advice on funds, stocks and house prices.