Meet the founder whose home clearance venture ‘snowballed’ to opening a pre-loved furniture store
Meet the founder whose home clearance venture “snowballed” into something much bigger, with a pre-loved furniture store now open in Northampton.
Moo’s Emporium in Cecil Road sells secondhand furniture and decor, and founder Zac Payne is proud of the anti-landfill ethos they have developed.
The wide range of items have all been saved from going to landfill and Zac is confident that visitors will find gems among the "anything and everything” they have to offer.
Anything they do not utilise is donated to charity Spencer Contact, which passes on household items to people in need and has been doing so for more than two decades.
Moo’s Emporium opened in Cecil Road in September 2025 and had been located within Vintage Retreat for four to six months before then.
Zac was so busy that he needed more space and as his friend Steve Culverhouse of Oak Wood Antiques knew the landlord of the building he is now in, it all worked out in his favour.
Zac has also been operating removals business Moo Removals & Clearances for the past four years. As this continued to grow, it made sense to introduce a store to the offering.
The founder admits he fell into this career after he began eBay reselling at around the age of 22. After getting a van and establishing business contacts, Zac now has one part-time and one full-time employee.
“It snowballed into what it is now and I never intended for this,” he said. “I always had an interest in buying and selling, but this isn’t something I planned.”
Zac believes it is the range of items they offer that sets Moo’s Emporium apart from other businesses, as well as the fact they save as much as they can from going to landfill as part of their ethos.
The business has been praised by people who have bought their first homes and kitted them out with items from Moo’s Emporium for great prices.
“It’s difficult for small businesses but we’ve got fingers in lots of different pies,” said Zac. “You can’t solely rely on one thing and we have the two businesses together, as well as online sales through Vinted. It’s a lot of work but helps to pay the bills.”
Zac hopes to continue growing the businesses and improving the footfall in the shop throughout 2026 – as he believes nothing compares to the experience of shopping in-person, having a chat and getting to know a new business.