AN ex-academy footballer who blew £100,000 on drugs, booze and gambling in one year turned his life around to forge a fashion empire.

At school, Mark Leonardo often felt lonely and depressed, which he masked with alcohol.

The 35-year-old, from Takeley, in Essex, told The Sun: “But for booze I might have been a professional footballer – I was attached to academies in Harlow and Cambridge – or a music producer.

“But I messed up, so I was a carpenter for four years, then re-trained as a highly qualified electrician.”

Mark built two electrical contracting companies from 2016, employing 13 people.

By then he was married and had started a family and things were looking up.

But underneath the surface, cracks were showing and he was buckling under the stress of life.

The crunch point came when his wife was seriously ill after giving birth to son, Luca.

It had become too much and his marriage, business and dreams fell apart in 2019 thanks to a cocktail of alcohol, drugs and gambling.

He explained: “I had been in a mess for some time.”

LIGHT BULB MOMENT

As the 2020 COVID lockdown arrived, the future looked bleak.

But by some miracle, he had a light bulb moment – to combine a lifelong passion for fashion with fitness and boxing.

Mark explained: “Lockdown was the best thing ever for me.

“It forced me to get my life back in order and cut out alcohol.”

Throwing in inspiration from his Italian and Spanish heritage – luxury fashion brand Lucavi was born.

Named after kids Luca and Sienna, whose nickname is Vee, Mark set about forging an empire.

Re-energised, his addiction demons exorcised, and with experience gained from creating two once-successful companies, he quickly wrote a business plan.

A whopping £30,000 in funding for his new brand followed and his fashion-dedicated Instagram amassed 100,000 followers.

Lucavi has staples such as T-shirts, jackets, and hoodies, but move into footwear and accessories in the future.

Mark hopes the brand “bring back some of the 80s fun” with a range bold colours largely inspired by his Italian great grandfather.

He added: “I’ve always loved Italian culture, arts, and fashion and particularly the 80s when there was a real buzz of creativity about all things Italian.”

And he reckons he can take on the Goliath fashion houses of Gucci and Versace by offering a keener price.

Mark says his clothes will have a sense of weightlessness about them “to make you feel good all day”.

Prices will start at £72 for a small logo embroidered tee, to the Diamanté tiger tee which is £95.

A small logo embroidered sweater comes in at £126, a large logo embroidered sweater £148 while the “flagship” reversible jacket will set buyers back £360.

Confident he is now on a path he knows he should have taken many years earlier, Mark is mapping out more cherished goals:

“With Lucavi established, I want to reach out to others who may be suffering as I did, so I would love to work with a mental health charity. I also want Lucavi to partner with major environmental organisations, promoting sustainability and battling climate change.”