When he graduated, Alan Radbourne set himself the challenge of turning £1 into a year’s salary. Now – just over 18 months on – he has published a book about his experience and what he learnt along the way about business, finance and himself.

His adventure began on 1 June 2013. Finding a pound on the pavement got him thinking – how could he best capitalise on his luck and make it grow?

The One Pound Challenge was born, and began with a major investment – in a bottle of washing up liquid.

Working full time, Alan turned his hand to a number of ventures – cleaning and garden maintenance, carpentry and set design, wood carving, car valeting and trading, and homemade preserves.

Each venture drew on the proceeds of the task before, and by the end of the year Alan was amazed to have generated an income of around £38,000 and gross profit of a little over £20,000.

Alan – who is now pursuing a PhD in Geography at Loughborough – says of his adventure: “My One Pound Challenge was really profitable – not least financially. I’ve learnt so much about setting up and managing a thriving business.

“I’m hoping that my book will inspire readers to take that first step towards launching their own business. I think the biggest hurdles are to be brave enough to take the plunge, and realising that it doesn’t take a huge cash investment to get your business off the ground.”

Certainly, the self-published book is generating plenty of interest – already selling approaching 1,000 copies across electronic and paperback editions which has seen it amongst the top 10 business biographies for two weeks.

What’s more, his inspiring adventure is amongst the eight finalists of Startacus’ Start-up of the Year competition. The winner – decided by public vote which closes on Monday 26 January – receives a package of support ideal to help a start-up fly.

Alan has also been in demand as a speaker at a number of events including Fail Forward and Dream Nation conventions. Later this month, he will be addressing the NACUE Student Enterprise Conference in Liverpool where he hopes to inspire other enterprising students to take up the challenge and follow their dreams.