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Man Who Was Paralysed In Tragic Accident Goes On To Become Millionaire

Man Who Was Paralysed In Tragic Accident Goes On To Become Millionaire

Francesco Clark was just 24 when he was involved in an accident that broke his neck

Claire Reid

Claire Reid

A man who was left paralysed from the neck down at just 24, went on to become a millionaire after setting up his own skin care company.

Francesco Clark, 40, broke his neck and severed his spinal cord after diving into a pool while on a trip to the Hamptons.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, he said: "The second I dove in the pool, I knew it was the shallow end.

Francesco with his mum.
Instagram/Clark's Botanicals

"The metal ring ladder that is normally in the deep end, the owner had put in the shallow end."

He hit his chin on the bottom of the pool so hard that he severed his spinal cord completely.

He was rushed to hospital and given a less than 20 percent chance of surviving surgery, fortunately, Francesco came through the surgery, but was faced with a long journey to recovery, including up to eight hours of physical therapy a day.

Once he returned home, Francesco found that, as well as a loss of mobility, the accident had left him unable to sweat; speaking to the Daily Mail, Francesco said that this left looking '10 years older' than he was.

So, alongside his dad and sister, who are both doctors, Francesco set about mixing up their own skincare products at home, after 'tweaking the formulas' over several months, he found that his skin began to improve.

Clark's Botanicals/Instagram

And as his skin started to get more 'luminous', his sister and then his mum started to nick the creams, so an idea that they were marketable formed.

Three years on from mixing up some natural skin care at home, and thanks to some encouragement from his old boss at Harper's Bazaar, Francesco decided to launch Clark's Botanicals.

The company is now a multi-million-dollar business and sells in the US, UK, Australia and Hong Kong. In the past year its seen a 220 percent growth and has an army of loyal fans, including celebrities. Pretty bloody impressive, eh?

Francesco added: "The point of Clark's Botanicals was something that would be life-changing for me, and empower me to do more than just stay in my hospital bed.

"We went from a brand that was only in two stores [to one that's now] all over the world. It's become so much bigger than we could have ever expected."

Featured Image Credit: Clark's Botanicals/Instagram

Topics: Business, Skin Care, Inspirational