A LIVERPOOL man who went from being unemployed to a green entrepreneur is celebrating a successful year of expansion.

Ray Bowen, from Aigburth, launched Merseyside recycling firm Green Deeds in 2010, after a year without a job.

Over the past year, the firm has tripled its customer base and now diverts over two tonnes of recyclable materials each week away from landfill sites.

Mr Bowen, 26, launched the business with support and advice from leading Merseyside business start-up organisation ELECT.

The organisation showed Mr Bowen how to put a business plan together, provided marketing advice, and developed his financial forecasting skills.

He said: “The support provided by my business coach, Tony Boyle, was invaluable. The hardest part of a new challenge is always the beginning, but his advice really got the ball rolling.”

Green Deeds provides office recycling services to businesses in Merseyside through their innovative and easy-to-use office systems.

The firm has recently expanded into other areas of the UK, and now covers Cheshire and North Wales.

From its southern site, which was established six months after the initial start-up, Green Deeds trades in Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Milton Keynes.

Mr Bowen added: “After gaining a degree in coaching science from John Moores University, I decided to pursue my passion for the environment and recycling specifically.

“It was a big step to go from unemployment to running a business but ELECT gave me the confidence to do it.

“I have established a lot of contacts from around the UK, and through my market research felt comfortable that our company would be well received in the south of England.

“This has been a great year for us, with our customer base more than tripling in size. This has been mainly due to the benefits recycling in the workplace can provide.”