In just 10 years, he turned an idea into a multi-million selling success story. And now he's doing it all over again.

Rob Knight launched Ecoegg in 2009. The device, designed to wash your clothes while saving on detergent and being kind to sensitive skin, proved a huge hit.

By the time he sold the firm in 2018, it employed 50 staff, had sold three million units and was on sale around the world with a turnover of some £5 million. When it was sold on shopping channel QVC it sold a staggering 23,000 units in one day.

But after receiving an offer for the firm – which was hit by disaster in 2016 when its Maidstone HQ burned down – and keen for a fresh challenge, he left four years ago.

On the holiday he took to the States to relax after "the weeks and months of stress leading up to the sale" he hatched upon his latest business idea.

While out shopping, he spotted the Hygiene Hero – "an improvement on a kitchen sponge" – and while proving a hit in the US was unknown in the UK.

By the time he'd got back to his Maidstone home, he'd ordered a consignment from the manufacturers and started selling them online.

It would be the first product line for his next – and current – business venture, Must Have Ideas.

Today it sells more than 100 different items all built around the premise of being "innovative problem-solving solutions" for issues around the house.

Want the "last toilet brush you'll ever need" or the "eco-friendly alternative to the kitchen roll"? Then Must Have Ideas may already be bookmarked on your browser.

Today, based on the Arc Logistics Park in Snodland, it employs more than 80 staff and is on track this year for turnover of £30m.

Owned and run by Rob, his wife Amy (they finally tied the knot six weeks before we speak after the pandemic forced the ceremony to be cancelled five times) and his best-mate Chris Finch, it is proving a big hit.

"Our sweet spot are things you've not seen before for common household problems," he explains.

"So whether that's around cleaning, storage, utensils and accessories, we travel the world looking for really interesting products that might be commonplace in other countries but we haven't seen in the UK.

"Then we source them and bring them to a UK audience.

"In many ways we're very similar to JML. It concentrates on selling on TV and in-store – we are purely online.

"So there is some product cross-over that we both sell.

"At Ecoegg we provided retailers like Lakeland and people like that, and it was really hard work. Even just things like payment terms. If they agree to pay in 120 days, then managing cash flow is a real challenge.

"One of the things we were really keen to do with Must Have Ideas was to go direct to the consumer. We can offer really good pricing as there's no middle man margin on top."

Not bad for a man who started his professional career trying to break into the hugely competitive world of radio.

Having grown up in Orpington, he left the University of Kent and started working for Capital Radio in London before switching to stations around the country, primarily as a programme director, and presenting shows which included stints at both Invicta FM and kmfm.

But then fate intervened.

He explains: "My girlfriend at the time had really sensitive skin and couldn't find a laundry detergent that worked for her. So we looked into all the options.

"We discovered various types of wash balls and started testing them. But none of them worked – they didn't irritate her skin but they didn't wash the clothes either.

"We thought wouldn't it be great if there was a solution.

"So we worked with some chemists who developed one, and that's how the Ecoegg started."

What started as an operation run from their Maidstone home, quickly escalated.

"I really enjoyed doing that," says Rob. "But after 10 years, I felt I'd taken it as far as I could with my skill-set and we had an offer so we sold in the summer of 2018.

"I was travelling with my now wife in the US. We'd just completed the deal and went on holiday after all the stressful weeks and months leading up to the sale.

"We discovered this product in the States – an improvement on the standard kitchen sponge – looked at it and thought it would sell really well.

"So we thought we'd bring it back and see if there was any interest.

"One thing led to another and here we are."

"We pay Mark Zuckerberg a lot of money every day."

Once again, sales started at his home ("at one stage our spare room was packed with Hygiene Heroes"), before its success prompted a rethink.

As it added lines to its offering, it took out premises on the Medway City Estate before, last July, taking on a sizeable newly-built unit in Snodland.

Today it is a purely online operation, with all its marketing channelled through social media.

"We pay Mark Zuckerberg [co-founder and boss of Facebook] a lot of money every day," he admits, to have his ads served up in people's feeds.

While the firm is now flourishing, it has not been without its tough times.

He explains: "We've had our struggles like everyone else over the last couple of years due to the pandemic.

"Initially it was really good for us as we were an online business, we didn't have to stop trading. We had some record sales during the first lockdown but then the whole supply chain problems hit and that's been really tough to navigate – being able to get stock on time and the cost of importing.

"Container costs went from paying $4,000 one day to $24,000. It was insane. They've come down a lot since then, but they've not come down to what they once were.

"We're on track to do £30m in revenue this year. That's great, but there's increased costs left, right and centre – inflationary costs – which are hitting the bottom line.

"We'll have to see how profitability turns out this year, but certainly sales are very strong. We're also lucky enough to have a lot of repeat custom. More than 50% of our sales are from those who have bought from us before."

And his ambition for expansion remains strong.

"Our primary route to growth is finding more products people want," he explains.

"We've served over two million customers now.

"We've also considered expanding overseas, which is probably a project for early 2023. We're potentially looking at France and Germany as big European markets.

"We're shortly going to launch on Amazon – we had viewed it as our nemesis – but you can't get away from the fact it can deliver really significant sales volume."