Sportsman quits GB hockey team and sets up company to help Britain’s renters instead all thanks to a broken thumb

A GB hockey player who gave up his “dream” sport is now working in his own business helping Britain’s renters, all thanks to a broken thumb.

Josh Pavis, 26, a business owner from Nottingham, was picked to play for the GB hockey team aged just 20 in 2019 after “years” of training and dedication.

However, after a crushing thumb injury on the eve of his debut, he quit the sport to start a business, realising he was only playing hockey to please those around him.

Within 18 months, he said his business, which sold plumbing equipment, had turned over more than £8 million, but after disagreements with his co-founder and brother, Oli, 25, they sold it to ensure they remained best friends.

He then founded a successful marketing agency, but said he felt that he was “just making the rich richer”, leaving him unfulfilled.

“I feel like I’ve found my calling with this business and I hope it can make a positive impact on people’s lives, which I didn’t feel my hockey career would,” Josh told PA Real Life.

“The thumb injury was really the nail in the coffin and pushed me to take that jump to something else.

“I find the same thrill and competitiveness that I had playing sport in building a business.

Josh grew up in Nottingham and always excelled in sports.

He said he “wanted to be a cricketer” and was headed to the trial for the ECB David English Bunbury Festival in 2015 for the best under-15 players in the country.

However, when the event was rained off, Josh, who had his hockey kit in the car, said he decided to pursue England hockey instead, playing for the under-16 and under-18 teams.

In 2019, Josh said he was selected to play for the men’s GB hockey team, aged just 20, and he flew to Australia to tour with the side.

However, he said misfortune struck again.

In training the day before his debut on tour in Australia in 2019 for the Pro League, he said he went to tackle a teammate and got his thumb caught in the collision.

It smashed into his teammate’s stick and broke in three places, and the injury meant Josh was out for six months.

“I couldn’t believe that I’d have to miss out for something so small as a broken thumb,” he said.

“Everything I’d worked so hard for had become reality… but it wasn’t enough,” he said.

“I realised I wasn’t actually chasing my dream but just a version of me that everyone else thought I should be.”

Although tempted by the prospect of playing for England at the following year’s Olympics, he decided to quit in August 2019 to start his own business with his brother, Oli.

Josh said he had always been entrepreneurial and his first business drew on those skills to sell bathroom fittings and plumbing goods – items his father and grandfather sold in a small store in Nottingham.

After too many disagreements with his brother, however, they decided to sell the business in 2021 to ensure their relationship did not deteriorate.

Josh set up a marketing agency instead and, although the business did well, he found something was still missing.

“It sounds cliche, but I felt like I was just helping the rich get richer… I was looking for something more fulfilling,” he said.

At the time, in August 2023, Josh was looking for a flat to rent in London, but he described the process as a “nightmare”.

“One time we secured a place and paid the holding deposit. Then, an hour later, the agent told us they’d been offered £100 more per month so they were withdrawing the offer.”

Eventually after a month of “exhausting” searching, Josh said he decided to offer £200 over the asking price for a £1,450 a month flat to rent, which finally secured a place.

Inspired by his own experience, Josh set up his own business, named Rently, in November 2023, which aims to make renters’ “biggest monthly expense count for more”.

Josh said Rently will give renters points for every pound of rent they pay, which could be used for everyday things like coffees, restaurants, hotels and he hopes airmiles too.

According to Rightmove, the average asking rent reached a new high in October 2025 – with London at £2,736 per month and the national average at £1,385 per month.

Private renters in England can also expect to spend 36.3% of their income on rent, according to the ONS’s most recent statistics.

He also said the business has “evolved quite a bit” in recent months.

“We’re hopefully in a good place, not only for renters but also landlords and estate agents.

“If you can deliver ultimately a better experience to your tenants, they’re naturally going to be staying at your property for longer.”

The Renters’ Rights Act 2025, which came into law by receiving Royal Assent in October, aims to give renters greater security and stability.

It will also make it illegal for landlords and agents to discriminate against prospective tenants who are in receipt of benefits or have children.

The Government said it is looking to publish a timeline to outline plans for its implementation.

Josh is now looking to launch Rently via an app in January, and he said there are about 17,000 renters on the waitlist.

Although Josh is now pleased to no longer be renting, he is motivated to help people who are.

He said: “I hope to create something that can have an impact on people’s lives.”