Declan Walsh was doing iPhone and Samsung repairs from his bedroom in Salford — a 90-second job listing on Gumtree, a tin of spare parts on his desk, and word-of-mouth from his university mates. On good weekends, he made £600. On average weekends, £250. No receipts. No system. No warranty.
His day job: IT contractor at a Manchester media company, earning £38,000 per year. Good money — but he did the maths. His bedroom repair "hobby" was generating £2,400 per month at maximum capacity, doing repairs in his spare time on a cramped desk. What would a proper shop generate with proper hours?
The Jump
In 2025, Declan signed a lease on a small shop unit in the Northern Quarter — Manchester's creative and tech district — and signed up for RepairCoreX on the free plan before opening.
"I knew the repair work," he says. "I needed the business system. RepairCoreX gave me job tracking, invoicing, inventory management, and customer notifications. I went from a bedroom operation to a proper business overnight."
Day One
First customer: a student with a shattered iPhone 14 screen. Declan photographed the device, created a job ticket in RepairCoreX, completed the repair, and sent an automated SMS. The student came to collect, paid £135, and asked: "Do you do Samsung as well?"
By the end of week one: £2,800 in revenue.
What Changed with the Professional System
Declan's average repair price increased by 35% once he opened a proper shop with a professional system. Customers who would never have paid £135 for a bedroom repair paid it in a proper shop because they trusted the documentation, the warranty, and the professional environment.
"When people see a digital job ticket on their phone and a professional invoice, they feel safe paying professional prices. That's the whole game."
Month by Month
Declan earns £12,000–£14,000 monthly net. His IT contracting days are gone.
"Manchester has millions of smartphones and very few properly professional repair shops," he says. "The professional gap is real. If you have skill and a system, you can own that gap."
The UK's right-to-repair law is on your side. RepairCoreX is the system. Start building today.