Young Fortnite fan from Mansfield Woodhouse goes viral with market stall
A Mansfield Woodhouse youngster has gone viral on social media after setting up his own market stall to help pay for his Fortnite gameplay.
Entrepreneurial Ethan Bowring is a huge fan of the game and, after discovering how much his beloved V-Bucks were costing his parents each year, he decided to find a way to fund his favourite hobby.
The eight-year-old’s father Cal Sheriff suggested he sold fruit and vegetables to pay his way and the enterprising schoolboy quickly began planning how he would do it.
And after a £20 donation from his grandfather, an excited Ethan bought his first stock and set up an old toy market stall on his parents’ drive – making a respectable £50 on his first day.
Proud Cal said: “Ethan, like most other kids, is a bit obsessed with Fortnite and asked one day how much he spends on V-Bucks.
"When we totted it up, he was shocked and asked how he could help out.
"I suggested a fruit and vegetable stall and he went with it – he was really excited.
"He made £50 on his first stall, then used that money to buy his next lot of stock, and made £150 on his second week – he was absolutely buzzing.”
After posting his son’s achievements on Facebook, Cal was inundated with messages of support and offers of help.
Morrisons supermarket in Mansfield Woodhouse donated a large bag of produce and a farmer also came forward to offer organic cabbages and free-range eggs for Ethan to sell.
Tigerlily Rose, who makes personalised gifts, also spotted Ethan’s new business venture online and created him a logo and personalised uniform to give him a more professional appearance.
"We couldn’t believe how much attention he got,” he said.
"What started as a little idea to get him off his computer for a couple of hours as turned into something fantastic for him.
"He’s coming out of his shell, his maths is improving and he now spends all day on a Saturday buying, unpacking, pricing and selling his goods instead of sat in front of his game – it’s gone a bit crazy.”