Dublin boy sets up online business collecting and selling vintage football shirts

0

A Dublin man has used his love of football to create a small online business, Calcio Culture Club, which celebrates the history, culture and art of the game by curating and selling a collection of vintage jerseys.

Niall Foster, from Hollystown in Dublin 15, said he loved football shirts growing up and rarely took them off. As a Newcastle and Shelbourne supporter, he revealed he had fond memories attached to the old shirts worn by those teams.

Niall first started looking for cheap vintage football shirts with the extra time given to him during the lockdown.

He told Dublin Live: “Over the past three or four years there has been a real appetite for vintage buying, particularly when it comes to football shirts.

“That’s where the initial idea of ​​selling instead of just collecting them came from. Brexit kicked in and kind of pushed the idea.

“While not practical, it has created an opportunity for Irish businesses to grow and thrive in this market.”



Niall’s small business aims to celebrate football culture

“I have personally bought from other Irish sellers and think it’s great to see this market take off here and give people more choice and value. The vintage jersey pop-up fairs that take place every few months in Dublin is well worth the trip,” he added.

Niall started selling jerseys through Depop in early 2021 and soon after a friend suggested creating an Instagram page and selling them there, which Niall eventually did to get around the high fees charged to sellers by Depop and donate a percentage to charity instead.

He revealed: “I have been in contact with a sports-based charity that is doing brilliant work with marginalized communities.”

Niall recently launched his website, a platform he uses to not only sell vintage jerseys, but also to post sports blog posts and share art.

Niall’s passion for football culture is more than evident. He explains that he wants his company to embody “a real club culture where others can promote their work too”.

He said: “In the future it would be great to get into other things like vintage memorabilia and durable products like reusable bags and accessories made from old jerseys, but at the moment it’s going downhill. is really about diversifying the teams and the stock of jerseys.

“A friend of mine had drawn some brilliant football related artwork during the lockdown which I was able to showcase to him on the website. I also have a friend who is an aspiring sports journalist and gave me some of his published work to put up on the Instagram page.”

He goes on to talk about his love for reconnecting people with the memories and stories behind the jerseys.

He said: “They’re like their own little piece of history and whether it’s a team, a player or even just a quirky design or sponsor, it’s great to to see such enthusiasm and interest in them growing lately.”



selection of colorful vintage football shirts on white background
Niall Foster sources vintage football shirts from around the world

Describing the process of selecting the bottoms jerseys, Niall revealed that he managed to make convenient connections when it came to sourcing the jerseys and had to “converse with sellers in different languages ​​using Google Translate”.

Sometimes he goes out of his way to find specific jerseys and other times he comes across them randomly.

“Usually they’re chosen based on a certain time or a player, or because of the design, something that I personally appreciate a lot about them,” he said.

“If we can source timeless and enduring vintage classics, I think people will feel less of the need to buy a new shirt or jacket every year.

“One thing we strive to do is check everything we buy to make sure we only sell authentic jerseys.”

To get the latest news straight to your inbox, sign up for our free newsletter

Share.

Comments are closed.