“I had literally no money, and I was worried about university,” he says. “I just brainstormed this kind of crazy, get-rich-quick scheme that then took on a life of its own.”
In four months’ time, word of the page had gone viral and it sold out. Tew had achieved success, fame — and his first million. And he dropped out of university that December.
Advertisers ranged from The Times to Beer.com and online casinos. Tew says he wasn’t targeting any advertisers in particular, really just “anyone who wanted to buy pixels”.