Abica - raised their profile and established the business as one to watch
Formed following a 2006 merger, where the existing partners bought shares in Freedom Mobiles, Abica has established itself as a leading full-service telecoms provider.
The company
Abica provides SMEs with a full range of telecoms services, backed up with award-winning customer service and support. They have developed a range of innovative, cost-effective products and solutions.
The challenge
Following the merger in 2006, the main challenge for Abica was to extend their product range beyond just mobile phones for business to complete telecoms solutions, including mobile, landline, and broadband. “Scottish Enterprise has really been able to help in certain key areas,” says John Chisholm, SE Account Manager, “as the team at Abica is already very motivated and extremely capable. Our role has been in acting as a sounding board for new ideas and products and supporting new projects as they are launched.”
One of the company’s immediate actions was to increase visibility, particularly in the west of Scotland. He adds. “They wanted to use this as a platform to move into other areas in the UK and there has definitely been a huge increase in enquiries as a result of that.”
The solution
SE supported the development and implementation of a regional awareness campaign piloted in Glasgow, which is being rolled-out UK-wide in 2011. The project allowed us to raise our profile and establish the business as one to watch.
In order to compensate for the current revenue pressures in commercial markets, Abica is making two concerted moves into the consumer sector to generate additional revenue streams. One is the launch of the first Scotland-based 118 directory enquiry service ‘118224 – don’t pay more’; and the other is FixMyi.co.uk, a rapid repair service for iPhones. Throughout this process SE has been on hand for advice and input into business planning.
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“This is an exciting stage in our development,” adds David Munro. “We’re getting a number of new products off the ground and continuing to grow our offering while keeping our focus on excellent customer service.
“Additionally, we have been selected by BT as the only Scottish partner to trial a new FTTC super-fast broadband service.”
The impact
“This is a difficult market, particularly at the moment, but Abica has a unique model,” says John. “It is based very much on high-quality customer service, with the directors looking for Abica to be recognised by customers as the best in the UK.”
Staff at the company’s headquarters in Govan has grown to 14 in the past year, with turnover currently £1.5 million. An important focus over the coming months will be the design and implementation of a new distribution model that will create multiple revenue generation nodes.
John Chisholm, SE Account Manager
“Our mantra is that SE support enables bigger, better, faster projects, and Abica is a great example of this. The projects the company has been involved with have helped it to grow, and grow fast, with lots of positive opportunities for the future.”
David Munro, Joint Managing Director, Abica
“Working with John is brilliant, he is so invested in our business and gives great feedback on ideas we have and projects we want to launch. Scottish Enterprise support and funding has definitely helped us grow Abica more quickly.”