The company announced its launch of French operations, a new partnership with Anywhere Sim and other projects.
In a press release Redeem said that it was “delighted to announce a number of strongly positive developments for the business” ahead of the team’s visit to Barcelona for Mobile World Congress later this month. The company recycles mobile phones by buying them from users and selling pre-owned devices online at Envirofone Shop, using its database “of mobile handset values to support viable handset leasing offers”, and plans to build on “on its strong understanding of what makes consumers bring their handsets back to the point of sale for trade-in, whether that be in-store or online”.
Redeem has also partnered with Anywhere Sim, and will be selling the multi-network roaming sim cards from March to consumers from its Envirofone Shop, and customers will be able to “make and receive calls on any UK network, providing the most comprehensive mobile coverage available”. The company are in the process of establishing an office in France, and will launch a French version of the Envirofone website, as well as building a strong base for business growth in France and Central Europe.
Using its database of pre-owned phone values means that Redeem can predict the future value of mobile handsets, and this data will be used to “support handset leasing propositions and is in discussions with Mobile Network Operators (MNOs), manufacturers and corporate customers”. Following the launch of the iPhone 7 in September, Redeem said that it has seen a 15 percent rise in the numbers of mobiles traded in compared to 2015. and that over €30 million ($31 million) had been paid to customers mostly in exchange for pre-owned iPhones.
Customers can now buy phones from Envirofone Shop as well as selling them, with the shop showing growth and thriving, and over £158 million ($196 million/€185 million) was returned via Envirofone “to more than four million customers in Europe for their pre-owned mobile phones and tablets”.
Paul Adams, CEO of Redeem Group, said: “We’re moving into an exciting new phase as a company. The pre-owned handset market is growing rapidly, and Redeem is at the forefront of that. We’re helping MNOs with their handset take-back programme in ever-more nuanced ways – for instance designing and running marketing campaigns, setting up the relevant websites and digital platforms, and creating new diagnostic technologies for use in-store or elsewhere.
“ Also, our detailed, up-to-date bank of handset price data makes us perfectly positioned to support the handset leasing offers which the market is expecting. We’ve recently undertaken a strategic refresh. Our thinking is that our understanding of consumers is a real strength – we know what makes consumers bring their used mobile back to a point of sale for trade-in, whether that’s in-store or online. We’re going to build on that strength.”