A budding entrepreneur will be opening his first shoe cleaning store this week.

Gabriel Aiyelabola, who grew up in Chatham, first came up with the idea while studying at university after cleaning and restoring shoes for other students.

He said: “I just learnt how to clean my own shoes and make them look fresh and my friends started giving me theirs at university.

“Before I knew it I had 20 pairs to clean at a time.

“I decided to start charging people for it because I was having a hard time at university with student finance.

“I made £4,000 while I was there which meant I could pay my rent and buy food, and it kind of just grew from there.”

The 25-year-old decided he wanted to open a shop because he started seeing a “real demand” for his services.

To help launch the store, Gabriel received support from Medway Council’s Partners for Growth scheme.

It provides grants for small-to-medium enterprise businesses that are looking to take their growth to the next stage.

Gabriel said: “I’ve always wanted to do things for the community and help it out because I grew up in Medway and there’s not really been much for young people to do.

“The way I see this shop is it’s not just a footwear cleaning store, it’s an opportunity for people to meet each other and an opportunity for us to get involved with other businesses.

“We get business in loads of different places, mostly in East London.

“We could have easily set up a shop there but I told myself I wanted to do it in Medway because there’s not a lot of opportunities for people here.”

Vanisher will be opening in Gillingham Road on Saturday, February 10 and there will be a DJ, food and games on opening day.

Prices will range from £34.99 to £79.99, and the shop will also offer hat, bag and dry cleaning services.

Gabriel said: “It’s a new venture so I’m nervous and I’m excited. I’m just ready to get the ball rolling.”