A BAD hair day led to the creation of a booming business for a North-East entrepreneur.

When a friend styled Alex Goodacre's hair with dreadlocks and it did not go to plan, his searches for a remedy revealed there was little information on dreadlock care and even fewer products on sale in the UK. Mr Goodacre bought two pots of dreadlock wax from the US, using one for his hairstyle and the other to sell online.

The pot sold in less than three minutes and prompted Alex to launch his online business - www.alteredstatesuk.com, which sells hair products and lifestyle products, and offers a hairstyling service. The website has proved such a big hit that Mr Goodacre has left his job in a call centre to focus full time on the business.

With sales on the increase and orders being received from the UK and across Europe, the business looks likely to grow.

Mr Goodacre worked with Business Link North-East on his business plan and his website.

"Initially, the website specialised purely in dreadlock haircare and then I expanded to offer hats, juggling equipment and associated lifestyle products," he said.

"Business Link has been a great support for me, from guiding me through the loopholes of setting up the business to boosting my confidence in my business idea and going it alone."

Chris Pay, from Business Link, said: "Due to the popularity of his business, Alex is now in a position to concentrate full time on developing it and is learning how to improve all the time.