David Goldsmith started his sports kit business five years ago in a bedroom with £500 savings.

Now Premier Sports and Leisure is the biggest supplier of football kits to clubs in Sussex.

Most football fans can spot a Manchester United or a Newcastle shirt at 100 yards but Seagulls supporter David is now an expert on team colours for most Sussex leagues.

How many people, apart from the players and their families, know Meridian and Woodingdean junior teams'

colours are maroon and sky blue or Copthorne Juniors play in black and yellow.

David knows them all. He can tell a Roffey Robin from a Isfield Junior. In fact, his knowledge of teams goes beyond Sussex into Surrey and Kent.

David, a former Tideway School, Saltdean United and Brighton Boys player, said: "I built up the business on personal service and by having a good knowledge of the sport.

If people are going to be choosing the kit for a club, they want to feel comfortable and relaxed.

"I knew from the start if I was to compete with the High Street shops and competitive prices, I would have to give a quality of service people wouldn't get elsewhere.

"I taught myself about running a business and it was a steep learning curve. Looking back, its a move I'm glad I made.

"I don't get time to play football these days and I miss it, but I put my time into the business."

He employs four people at his shop in Cowley Drive, Woodingdean, where, among the eight different ranges of football kit in every colour and size and the latest training equipment, David keeps his prize possession - a Brazil international shirt signed for him by the legendary player Pele.

"The shop has become so well known nearly every customer comes here because they have heard of our reputation for service or because they've been so impressed with us in the past they come back."