Welsh mum speaks about beating her addiction and how she now makes £10K a monthBy Olivia Stringer and Owen Hughes Business correspondent
08:50, 10 Mar 2026
Rachel Grady, 41, gambling addict who racked up £40,000 worth of debt is now debt free, and making £10,000 a month from selling vintage clothing
A mum who spent money for her kids on her gambling and shopping addiction cleared her £40,000 debt in one year by selling second hand clothes – and now makes £10k a month.
Rachel Grady, 41, began gambling her money away in 2020 after suffering a bout of depression, as she realised the habit was the only thing that made her feel better.
After trying it once out of curiosity, she soon became addicted to the “buzz” it gave her, and within a few months, she was visiting online sites every day.
Before she knew it, she had lost £15,000 to online gambling sites and spent a further £25,000 on five credit cards on a shopping habit but hid it all from her husband.
She would even refuse to buy things for her kids – instead spending the money on her addiction – before she had a breakdown in 2023 and revealed all to a friend.
Realising she is a “bit of Del Boy”, Rachel started selling second hand clothes, and was soon able to begin paying off small amounts of debt.
In 2024, she joined Tilt, a live-selling site, and began making £10,000 a month, allowing her to become a full-time reseller, and pay off £40,000 of debt – in just one year.
The pre-loved clothing business owner, from Merthyr Tydfil, Wales, said: “I was in a pretty dark place for quite a few years.
“The only thing that made me happy at the time was spending money I didn’t have.
“I would gamble on mobile apps. I tried it once out of curiosity and before I knew it, I was visiting gambling sites daily. It became part of my routine.
“Looking back, it happened much quicker than I understood at the time. Within a few months it had shifted from occasional use to something I felt compelled to do. I won a few times at gambling, so then I just carried on, but I ended up losing about £15,000, it was an addiction.
“I was also constantly buying clothes and anything I could get my hands on. I had five credit cards and two loans and ended up £40,000 in debt.
“In 2023 I had a nervous breakdown, my friend was telling me how great her life is, and I just broke down and said I’m in massive amounts of debt and can’t pay for anything for my kids.
“It was a massive strain on my relationship with my husband. I kept borrowing money off him but I was too ashamed to tell him how much debt I was in. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox
“The kids would ask for things, and I’d say no but then I’d spend money on things I didn’t need. It was so selfish.
“I realised I’ve always been good at selling things, I’m a bit of Del Boy, so I started buying bundles of clothes off eBay, and then reselling them for profit. It started off slow, I was making around £2k a month, and I paid off my smallest amount of debt.
Rachel Grady, 41, gambling addict who racked up £40,000 worth of debt is now debt free, and making £10,000 a month from selling vintage clothing
“Then I joined the live selling platform Tilt, I was making £10k a month, it was crazy. I paid off my last bit of debt in October 2025, one year after I started Tilt.
“My attitude to money has now changed completely. I’m so frugal, and only buy things if I really need them, and I’ve put measures in place to stop myself from being able to access gambling sites.”
After a bout of depression Rachel began gambling in 2020.
She visited an online site once, out of curiosity, and had a few lucky winnings, which spurred her on.
However, any money she won just went back into gambling, and within a few months she was visiting gambling sites every day.
Rachel hid her gambling from her husband by doing it on her phone late at night, and by pretending everything was fine, when she was in fact losing thousands.
“Addiction thrives in secrecy, and I became very good at masking what I was going through,” she said.
Rachel ended up losing £15,000 over a five-year period to gambling.
As well as gambling, Rachel was a shopaholic, and at the peak of her spending addiction had five credit cards, two loans, and £40,000 worth of debt.
In 2023, during a trip away with family and friends, Rachel broke down, after confiding that she was struggling to pay for things for her kids, 14 and 21.
She came to the realisation that she had to do something about her spending and sat down to write down everything she owed, but still kept her debt secret from her husband.
She then came up with a plan to pay off her debt and realised that she had always been good at selling things, so decided to buy bundles of clothes on the cheap from eBay and resell them on Vinted.
The venture quickly became a success, and Rachel was soon making £2,000 a month, and was able to successfully pay off her smallest amount of debt.
Then in October 2024, Rachel joined Tilt, a reselling platform where sellers can host live auctions of their products.
She had huge amount of success, and by January, was making £1,000 an auction, and £10,000 a month.
Rachel Grady, 41, gambling addict who racked up £40,000 worth of debt is now debt free, and making £10,000 a month from selling vintage clothing
Rachel is now a full-time reseller and has a vintage clothes business called Rachel’s Vintage Moonstone.
She paid off the last of her £40,000 of debt, in October 2025, one year after she joined the site, and finally told her husband about her debt, after she had paid it off.
“He was really shocked when he found out, but he’d noticed such a difference in me in that year, and I’d paid if off, so he took it quite well”, she said.
Rachel is now extremely frugal, and only buys things if she really needs them.
She has also put measures in place to block herself from accessing gambling sites, allowing her to become free from her addiction.
She shares her story on @rachel_vintagemoonstone
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