Scaling by duplication

After the arrangement with my Fulham rag merchant had been working satisfactorily for a few months, I began to realise that most of the rags were coming from the merchant's local West London area. I then asked my friend about other areas and he gave me the addresses of other rag merchants who covered different areas.

With the Fulham arrangement as a working example, it wasn't difficult to convince other rag merchants to try out the deal. It wasn't long before I had supplies from several rag sorting warehouses all over the London area. Pretty soon, I was getting in more stock than I could sell, so, I opened another sales outlet. The success of this sales expansion then brought into mind the possibility of covering the whole country.

Within a year, I'd made arrangements with practically every major rag merchant in England: effectively filtering most of the 1920's and 1930's garments that were discarded in the country every week, down to my warehouse in London. This massive and regular supply enabled me to open a large store in the then fashionable Carnaby Street and also wholesale garments to other stores all over Europe.

A chance observation, an unlikely coincidence, a few conceptual models and a substantial business had been created out of apparently nothing. This is the essence of entrepreneurial activity.