I went from being £10k in debt to a millionaire at 30 who parties with Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi – here’s how I did it
TWO weeks ago Peter Johnson had an out-of-body experience as he opened his bank account to discover he had finally made £1million.
It was a far cry from his life less than five years ago when he struggled to make ends meet and was £10,000 in debt.
The 30-year-old’s lifelong dream for his sports memorabilia business Firma Stella, which he started from his bedroom aged nine, to make £1million had finally come true.
Describing the life-affirming moment, he told The Sun: “I logged into my bank and I just stood there in complete silence for 20 minutes and my whole body was tingling.
“That was the greatest day of my life. I was numb and then I was full of energy. At that point I remembered all the pain along the way.
“All the struggles that I had been through, and to actually achieve a million pounds in the bank – it was such an incredible feeling.”
Now Peter, who left school at 18 to pursue his passion, enjoys the finer things in life and rubs shoulders with some of the world’s elite sport stars including Lionel Messi, Mo Salah and Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Worcester-born entrepreneur has also stayed in some of the most exclusive hotels in the world – including Montage Beverly Hills, where his room cost £1,000 a night.
Peter’s enjoyed luxury holidays at destinations like Rio de Janeiro, Dubai and San Diego and is now able to travel luxuriously in business class.
He says: “Flying business class is something I love doing. It’s so relaxing and I’m able to come up with great ideas – it’s well worth the money.”
Although he is becoming accustomed to life as a millionaire, Peter insists he hasn’t forgotten his roots and won’t let his success go to his head.
He explains: “When I saw the million pounds, I went around to my mum’s house and I offered her the option to help her retire.
“That was the biggest thing I was able to offer her off the back of this. She hasn’t accepted my proposal yet but maybe she will in time.”
Peter has always been entrepreneurial and had the idea of selling sports memorabilia when he collected his first autograph from former Australian cricket captain Steve Waugh aged nine.
He recalls: “I actually went down to Worcestershire County Cricket Club to collect signatures. After that, I travelled up and down the country on my own to get more.”
After picking up and selling a couple more on eBay, he realised he could make a decent living out of it and adopted it as his main job.
But Peter says he lacked consistency and focus, which contributed to him racking up debts of £10,000.
“I worked very minimal hours at the job and it all concerned travelling and I wasn’t really too focused,” he says.
“When the debt piled up I decided to head back to the UK – I came back with literally nothing. I was in that debt for a few years and it was constantly on my mind.
“I was always thinking about money, and that’s not a good place to be in. I remember there were times I was depressed, anxious, and lonely.”
At his lowest point, Peter began to surround himself with a smaller group of people and read books about focusing the mind on positive thoughts.
It was at that moment in October 2018 that he wrote down a bold prediction that he would become a millionaire by January 2022.
With a new lease of life and a few more autographs under his belt, Peter decided to commit to his goals.
He explains: “I worked my butt off and would often wake up at 4am and work all the way through till 10pm – basically all the hours I could to get me out of the hole.”
Calculated risks
Many of his signatures, like Ronaldo’s, involved him taking calculated risks or trusting his instincts.
He explains: “Ronaldo was flying into Manchester United so I found out what flight he was on, drove to the airport, followed the coach to his hotel and booked a room there.
“I found out he was staying on the 15th floor so I stayed on the 10th floor. I then ended up in the same lift as him and asked him to sign some stuff and got a photograph.”
Getting Messi’s autograph was more difficult as he had to fly all the way into Seville, where Messi was playing for Real Madrid.
He waited at the airport security gate to get items signed.
Peter established Firma Stella in 2019 and has built it to a point where he has 30 people working for the business, and plans to hire 10 additional workers this year.
He’s also partnered with some of the world’s biggest athletes such as English cricket captain Ben Stokes and Colombian football star James Rodriguez.
Peter, who travels the world to give inspirational talks now has two goals on his mind – to take the business to America and become a billionaire in 10 years.
“The universe has a way of presenting opportunities once you’ve got a goal set up,” he says.
“We are going to America and we are going to be the number one sports memorabilia company in the world.”
Despite his success, Peter is keen not to come across as flashy – and has traded his £45,000 Porsche for a £5,000 Volkswagen.
“I had a Porsche GTS and it was white and flashy,” he says.
“The engine was so loud when you turn it on and it brought me a lot of attention whenever I drove around.
“I realised I bought it for the whole ego thing and to show the world how much money I have and how successful I am so I sold it.
“Now I have a £5,000 Volkswagen that has broken down twice in the last year, but honestly, I love it way more than the Porsche. My dog Leo comes and jumps in the car – it’s great.”
With his business now on track, Peter, who is single, hopes the right woman for him is right around the corner.
“I’m single, on the market, and my type is dark hair”, he says.
“I want to be married at 35 and I want to have kids – a boy and a girl by the time I’m 40.”
Tips on how to start your own business
Dragons’ Den Theo Paphitis shared his tips for anyone wanting to start their own business.
He said:
- One of the biggest barriers aspiring entrepreneurs and business owners face is a lack of confidence. You must believe in your idea — even more than that, be the one boring your friends to death about it.
- Never be afraid to make decisions. Once you have an idea, it’s the confidence to make decisions that is crucial to starting and maintaining a business.
- If you don’t take calculated risks, you’re standing still. If a decision turns out to be wrong, identify it quickly and deal with it if you can. Failing that, find someone else who can.
- It’s OK not to get it right the first time. My experience of making bad decisions is what helped develop my confidence, making me who I am today.
- Never underestimate the power of social media, and remember the internet has levelled the playing field for small businesses.
- Don’t forget to dream. A machine can’t do that!