Kieran Nagle’s career in flat-pack furniture started at 15, when an IKEA delivery arrived early and his parents were on holiday.
He picked up some tools and built his own bedroom furniture.
Nearly three decades later, he makes up to £50,000 a year doing the same thing for other people.
The 44-year-old from West Drayton left a corporate finance job in 2007 after his mother suggested he turn a lifelong hobby into a business.
He has not sat in front of an office computer since.
From rat race to flat-pack
Nagle runs his own company, We Build Your Flat Packs, and supplements it with work through online marketplace Airtasker, where he earns between £2,500 and £3,000 a month.
Combined, his annual income sits between £40,000 and £50,000.
“I was seeking more fulfilling and rewarding work that better aligned with my interests,” he told CreatorZine.
“I discovered my knack for building things as a teenager. My interest in DIY and furniture assembly continued into adulthood and eventually became the foundation of my business.”
He found Airtasker during the Covid pandemic after seeing a TV advert during a quiet spell for his handyman work.
In-person jobs had dried up and he needed another income stream. The platform stuck. It recently recognised him as a national winner at its annual awards.
Holidays, celebrities and no commute
The money has changed what is possible. Nagle says Airtasker income funded a trip to Vietnam that would not have been affordable before.
Some of his more memorable jobs have involved working for celebrities, though he does not name them.
What he values most is the schedule. No rush-hour trains, no asking permission to take time off, no repetitive days in front of a screen.
“Having a different situation to manage every day keeps me stimulated,” he said. “Being able to work around the mad rush makes the day a lot more stress-free.”
The trade-offs are real
Nagle does not pretend self-employment is without risk. Covid shut down his ability to enter people’s homes entirely, and the income instability that comes with running your own operation is something he has had to accept.
“It has worked out well for me, but the biggest challenges I have faced are the lack of stability that comes with being self-employed,” he said.
“A prime example is during Covid where I was unable to enter people’s homes. It was a scary time and that’s the downside.”
He maintains the positives outweigh the problems. “The best part about running my own business is the freedom it gives you. You can pick your hours, which on a personal level is such a huge bonus.”
Why it matters
The “I quit my corporate job” story is a staple of creator and lifestyle content, but Nagle’s version is more grounded than most. He is not selling a course or a coaching programme. He is building wardrobes.
The income is solid rather than spectacular, the lifestyle upgrade is about flexibility rather than luxury, and the origin story is a teenager assembling his own furniture because no one else was home.
For anyone considering a similar move, the honesty about instability and the Covid shutdown is as useful as the headline number.
Fifty thousand a year assembling flat-pack furniture in London is a good living.
It is also one that disappears the moment people stop letting you through their front door.
Nagle is not planning a return to finance. The train, the desk and the commute are, by his account, permanently in the past.
