The founder of upcycling company Green Doors has stories to tell about how dyslexia and ADHD have proven invaluable in battling a wasteful industry

Joseph Holman’s sustainable door and window business Green Doors is an multi award-winning company that turns over close to £2M, which started with a door he found in a skip. The business now produces revenues of close to £2m and has over 20 employees.

Last year the business saved over 3000 items destined for landfill and currently has thousands of doors and windows for sale in its (25,000) square foot warehouse.

Holman is on a mission to provide every door with a second life and to stop uPVC going to landfill. But Holman’s journey was never clearcut.

Diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia at the age of seven, Holman struggled at school.

“Looking back, all my childhood I assumed I wouldn’t get anywhere due to my disabilities.

“I was diagnosed with Dyslexia and ADHD when I was seven years old and struggled throughout school, being given extra time in exams and attending special lessons.

“I later realised that, mentally, this didn’t give me a good start. It was programmed into me that I was considered not as intelligent as others and I always doubted myself on decisions I made.”

In spite of these early struggles, Holman now attributes his business success to his neurodiversity.

“My dyslexia and ADHD have given me the ability to see the bigger picture, think differently and take risks,” he said. “From an early age, I would spot opportunities where others wouldn’t.

“In year seven, I was selling sweets and chocolate bars to my classmates and had days where I made £20-£30 profit.

“Later, I would sell items for people in my town and was known as ‘The eBay King’, taking a percentage cut of the sale. Soaps to statues, baths to bikes, you name it, I had sold it and had a story to go with it.”

Over time, Holman’s buying and selling successes grew and by the age of 16 he had saved up around £20,000 from all of his side hustles.

But it was while walking past a skip in 2014 that Holman was inspired to set up Green Doors.

“Walking past a skip, I noticed a set of modern, white uPVC French doors. I dug them out, loaded them onto my mate’s plumbing van, cleaned them up and advertised them on eBay. They sold the next day for hundreds of pounds.”

Holman spent days scouring skips for more doors but soon found a “mountain of doors and windows destined for landfill” outside a store. He bought the lot from the owner.

With this stock secured, Holman founded his company with a plan to disrupt a wasteful industry.

“All my childhood I thought I won’t be successful due to my disabilities, but I realised these are what got me to where I am today.

“These days, I’m not motivated by money, instead I’m determined to change the behaviour of the construction industry.

“Last year, we rescued over 3,000 items and turned over nearly two million, all from zero investment. Yes, Green Doors literally grew out of a skip and it’s because I was able to see value where others couldn’t.

“Without these ‘superpowers’, as Sir Richard Branson would say, I wouldn’t have had the ability to dream, see the bigger picture and confidence to take risks. It’s my neurodiversity that’s been the secret to my success.”

Dyslexia Awareness Week runs from October 7th to 13th and this year’s theme is “What’s Your Story?”

Meanwhile, ADHD Awareness Month runs throughout October. The 2024 ADHD Awareness Month theme is “Awareness is Key!”