New firm launches same-day callout service for fixing smartphones

iMend.com is the first company to provide a UK-wide mobile phone repair callout service, with technicians on stand-by to mend iPhones, iPads and Samsung mobiles.

But, rather than sitting in a workshop waiting for the broken phones to arrive, iMend's repair technicians go out to customers at work or home to fix their phone.

The average repair bill comes in between £40 and £70, says iMend, compared to a work by a manufacturer or network shop that can be around £150. The company says its low overheads enables it to keep repairs at a lower price.

The company employs a core staff of 15 at its Burntwood headquarters, with a network of more than 80 mobile repair technicians across the country ready to respond to calls.

Founder Keir McConomy is a local tech entrepreneur with 10 years' experience in digital business. After building a multi-million pound mobile phone recycling business, he identified a gap in the market for a new service.

Mr McConomy explained: "The current options available for phone repair often lead to a fair bit of inconvenience and involve going out to a shop to repair, leaving your phone behind with worries about data security. Trust, convenience and speed are all very important to customers."

iMend's aim is to provide 'a smarter way' he said.

"We send a repair technician out to customers' offices, homes, or any location they choose to fix the phone securely in front of them, saving them the hassle of having to go out to a shop. We commonly expect a call out service for things like tyres, windscreens and IT services, so why not smartphones?"

Repairs are booked online via imend.com and the company says most are carried out on the same day.

Cracked screens top the list of faults repair technicians are called out to, with broken buttons, water damage and many other issues also dealt with. Thousands of repairs have been carried out across the country since the company launched in August this year. Although it currently works on iPhones, iPads and Samsung smartphones, the company has plans to expand to handle other makes.

John McNally, iMend's head of repairs, earned his stripes fixing phones for the Ministry of Defence. He said: "We only hire the best technicians, and each one has to go through rigorous technical checks. Plus we also give a 12-month warranty to provide total peace of mind."

iMend.com is part of a growing network of innovative start-ups in the West Midlands, with the region revealed last year as the area with the highest number of start-up enterprises, outside of London.