An unemployed man is auctioning advertising space on his eye in a bid to stand out amongst an increasing crowd of jobseekers.
An unemployed man from Fulham is auctioning advertising space on his eye, in an innovative bid to stand out amongst an increasing crowd of jobseekers.
Mahmood Choudry, 29, based near Stamford Bridge in Fulham, is auctioning advertising space on a contact lens he will wear on his eye for a month on the public auction site ebay.
He has been unemployed for the last six years and is currently on a government work scheme, though he would like to work in IT or administration.
“Through this auction, I want to show everyone that the way forward in getting a job is being creative – using your gifts and ability to turn a problem into a solution,” he said.
Mr Choudry is one of 2.67 million currently unemployed people in the UK, a figure that is now at a seven year high.
His initiative follows in the footsteps of Ian Usher, a man from Darlington who auctioned his entire life on ebay in 2008, including his house, car, job and friends following a split with his wife.
The winning bidder will be able to advertise their brand on a contact lens that Mr Choudry will wear across one pupil or iris – for both eyes the winner will have to pay double their bid.
“First of all I considered having an ad actually tattooed onto my eye but, in the end, I’ve gone for a contact lens approach,” he said.
Mr Choudry has opted for half the total proceeds of the auction to go to international charity Sightsavers, which works in developing countries to prevent blindness and restore sight.
Sue Adams, Director of Fundraising and Marketing at Sightsavers, said: “We’re grateful to the many people who take it upon themselves to do all sorts of things to raise money for Sightsavers. This is one of the most unusual ideas we’ve come across, so we’ll watch with interest to see how it progresses.”
Mr Choudry will not accept advertisements for gambling, adult material, drugs, pornography, alcohol, political or racist causes, or anything that may cause offence.
Mr Choudry’s auction will end on the 7th of March at 3.49pm, and bids can be made on his Ebay page http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Buy-Advertising-Space-My-Eye-/230752954443?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item35b9f2a84b.
