Southampton café owner Ricky Little is selling his local business and hoping to hit the big time as a professional flyweight boxer.

Ricky, who has owned and managed The Bridgeway Café since 2016, started his catering career in 2013 running a burger van. He now is selling the café with business broker Hilton Smythe to pursue his dream career.

Ricky, 26, has been a keen boxer since he was a child, and started competing professionally two years ago. Since then, his career has gone from strength to strength, including a match against British super-flyweight champion, Charlie Edwards at The O2 in London.

He now needs to train three times a day, so is unable to dedicate his time to running The Bridgeway Café. He has put the business on the market, hoping that Hilton Smythe will find the perfect new owners for the business he has built up.

John Scroggins, National Valuations Manager for Hilton Smythe, said: “I was so interested in Ricky’s story, as it’s great to see this young man following his dream. I’m sure the people of Southampton will be sad to see him hang up his apron, but they’ll be proud to cheer him on in his upcoming matches.

“Ricky has done a fantastic job building up The Bridgeway Café as a business, and it will be a great investment for anyone looking to run their own café. It is in a central location and is well-loved by locals. I would say it’s an absolute knockout.”

Ricky Little said: “I’ve always wanted to be a professional boxer, and it’s a dream come true to have my career take off as well as it has. My goal is to be a British champion, and doing that takes time and dedication, so I need to give it my all.

“I’m sad to be selling The Bridgeway Café, because it’s been my life for the past two year, but Hilton Smythe is being incredibly supportive in finding a new owner. With the team organising the sale, I can focus on training and, more importantly, winning.”