It all started when the pair began selling handbags to their friends and family in 2017, when John was 15 and Gabriel was 16. “We used to save our stipend money, buy one bag, sell it, earn a profit, and repeat,” Gabriel said.

Realising that what they were doing could actually be transformed into a tangible business, the pair started investing more time and money into what was just a seedling of an idea.

“After investing our stipend money into the designer items and reselling them, we started to think of how we could grow the business,” he continued. It was then that they decided to launch their website and Instagram page for their brainchild ‘Gab and Jon’, a luxury reseller that sells brand new designer items.

What followed was a meticulously planned launch in the middle of Covid, while everyone was cooped up at home, eyeballs glued to their computer screens.

“We then did a campaign with popular influencer Sarah Zerafa, a strategy which helped us get more customers,” Gabriel explained.

When asked what made him want to launch a luxury reseller, John admitted that initially, the biggest driving factor for him was “whenever someone remarked that they couldn’t find a particular item in Malta” and he would be able to get it for them, John added.

On the other hand, Gabriel said that he “loved the fact that well-made products can evoke memories and can be passed to generations, making it somewhat of a family heirloom.”

John grew up watching his father handle multiple businesses, and he always wanted to do the same. “I always wanted to be my own boss,” John said.

John’s meticulous nature and his eye for opportunity are counterbalanced by Gabriel’s eye for beauty and detail.

Gabriel, similarly inspired by his father who is an artist, is currently en route to becoming a fashion designer, having studied Fashion Design at MCAST, interned for a Paris design house, and will soon be making his way to London. John is currently studying law at the University of Malta.

Although the pair is traversing distinct journeys, they constantly find themselves converging onto the same trajectory, being pulled together by their common interest: selling fashion.

They explained how the fact that their work is remote, given that their company is based online, they are able to juggle their different studies and their company.

When asked what their proudest moment throughout their business endeavour, the pair answered quite differently.

John said that his proudest moment was creating the website and the image. “It was very difficult to come up with a name and a logo, but once it was done, I can say that’s my proudest moment,” he remarked.

Gabriel replied “my proudest moment of our journey has to be the first thing we ever sold which was an artisanal tweed jacket. I remember feeling proud because I felt that we were going to be taken seriously”.

However, when asked where they would want to see Gab and Jon in the next 10 years or so, both of them had a similar answer, that they would have a “brick and mortar shop” where they would be able to physically interact with their customers.

The pair also mentioned that in the future, they want to brand Gabriel as a designer and make his clothes available to the public. Last summer, Gabriel put his first-ever clothing pieces into the world for his MCAST thesis.

Both of them agreed that turning their passions into a profitable business was the best decision they could have made, and while they did face hurdles, be it because they started out at a very young age and were perhaps underestimated at times, or because of their studies on the side, “it was all worth it”, they said.

“We just took the plunge and dived headfirst. We were always best friends, but didn’t know if we were going to be good business partners. It was when problems started presenting themselves that we realised how compatible we are,” John said.

“The satisfaction you get from doing something on your own is unmatched,” he continued. Gabriel added that if the duo could turn their separate yet interlinked passions into a concrete business, “anyone can do it.”

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