Aaron Brown – Mobile News

WeBuyAnyPhone.com launches Kidney Research UK fundraising partnership

Staff Reporter — Wed, 19 Nov 2025 16:09:51 +0000

Hampshire-based recycler WeBuyAnyPhone.com has launched a new charity partnership with Kidney Research UK, pledging to donate £10 for every device traded through a special dedicated web portal.

Customers using the new site sellyourphone.kidneyresearchuk.org can sell their Apple or Android devices as normal, while automatically generating a £10 donation for the charity. They can also opt to add a voluntary contribution when accepting their trade-in offer. Funds raised will go towards patient wellbeing initiatives and research into kidney disease.

Charity supporter Former England striker Andy Cole suffered kidney failure following a viral illness. He launched the Andy Cole Fund in 2020 to support research and patient support services.

Cole:” I’m delighted that WeBuyAnyPhone.com has chosen to support Kidney Research UK”

“Living with kidney disease has been the toughest battle I’ve ever endured. As great as a transplant is, it’s not a cure and life post-transplant can be emotionally tough. That’s why it’s so important to support patients’ wellbeing and find new ways of improving transplant treatments. I’m delighted that WeBuyAnyPhone.com has chosen to support Kidney Research UK in a way that will have a real and positive impact on patients.”

Brown: Inspired

WeBuyAnyPhone.com co-founder Aaron Brown said the partnership was inspired by meeting Cole at a fundraising event.

“Around seven million people in the UK are living with chronic kidney disease. Thar’s equivalent to 10 per cent of the population. This new partnership will help fund vital research and make a real difference to patients’ lives.”

WeBuyAnyPhone.com says the process for customers is unchanged: devices are traded securely via the portal. The company won the Mobile News Awards 2025 trophy for

WeBuyAnyPhone partners with TopCashback to offer £25 more on every approved device trade-in deal

Staff Reporter — Tue, 27 Aug 2024 14:15:22 +0000

Cashback site TopCashback has partnered with WeBuyAnyPhone.com to give TopCashback users an extra £25 back when they recycle their phones through its new ‘Sell Your Phone’ service.

WeBuyAnyPhone.com will power the ‘Sell Your Phone’ service hosted on TopCashback.co.uk, which offers cashback rates to over 15 million members. TopCashback members can trade in their current or former mobile phones for cashback and see the value of the device paid into their TopCashback account, with an added £25 cashback on each phone traded in.

The process involves three steps to cashback: get a quote from the Sell Your Phone site, send off the device, and receive the trade-in value and bonus cashback once the condition of the phone has been checked and approved.

A aron Brown, Co-Founder of WeBuyAnyPhone.com, said: “Our partnership with TopCashback aligns with our mission to ensure every device has a second life while giving consumers maximum value when they trade in their devices. Our daily price-checked deals, combined with TopCashback’s additional £25, make this service the best way for consumers to get the maximum value for their trade-in.”

Brown: maximum value for trade-ins

Adam Bullock, UK Director of TopCashback, said: “This new proposition aligns perfectly with TopCashback’s reputation as one of the most generous cashback sites while supporting our environmentally conscious goals. By partnering with WeBuyAnyPhone.com, we believe this is the best way to combine guaranteed recycling with added cashback on top of the device value.”

WeBuyAnyPhone.com gifts £10,000 worth of mobile phones to Ukraine

Staff Reporter — Wed, 29 Jun 2022 09:38:15 +0000

The phones will go to the Ukrainian Association of Women in Law Enforcement to help search and rescue efforts and for counselling

Volunteers supporting those in Ukraine have delivered £10,000 worth of mobile phones delivered by tech recycling specialist WeBuyAnyPhone.com.

A package of 100 brand new Alcatel devices were also included in a van load of aid due to their long battery life, which saw them being delivered to Poland by Hampshire-based volunteers.

Managing director at Portsmouth-based L&S Waste Management, Mick Balch, led the delivery and has completed several since the war began in February.

Graeme Warnell and his wife Aga, who live in Krakow, are some other volunteers who have been housing refugees and donating to the cause.

Graeme said: “Mobile phones are crucial to coordinating the effort and they needed simple phones with long battery life to keep the lines of communication open.

“We’re very grateful to WeBuyAnyPhone.com for providing these devices, which will help people on the ground directly in a way that will make a huge difference.”

WeBuyAnyPhone.com co founder Aaron Brown added: “All of us at WeBuyAnyPhone.com have been shocked and appalled to see the suffering in Ukraine, but also in awe of those who are helping on the front line and by delivering aid to those who need it.

“Sometimes it’s difficult to know how to help, but when we heard about the need for mobile phones, we saw a way that we could have an immediate impact.

“We’re pleased to see that these devices are now going to be put to good use, and grateful to Mick and all the volunteers involved for getting them where they were needed most.”

Coping with COVID: how the channel is handling the crisis

Staff Reporter — Wed, 22 Apr 2020 11:00:05 +0000

It’s the biggest business crisis of the last 100 years. So how is the industry reacting to the disaster?

Since the mobile telecoms industry was born in 1985 it has dealt with many ups and downs and had good years and bad. Yet there has never been anything like the complete and total overnight collapse of an entire economy.

So how is the mobile channel dealing with this trauma? Encouragingly we found a can- do attitude of ‘what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger’ with companies regarding the coronavirus crisis as a challenge, but not one that could not be surmounted with some initiative and lateral thinking.

Many point to the positive aspects of how mobile connectivity and data have changed the working landscape forever and that a new age of connected and mobile services could be the result of the unprecedented lockdown.

Reaction

WeFix CEO Aaron Brown

“Challenges have been few. We increased stock levels pre- lockdown, and Samsung has maintained its customarily robust supply chain. WeFix customer service moved to home-working immediately the problem arose. Our Dev team has devised an upgrade to the WeFix platform, whereby WeFix now offers online Samsung in-warranty repairs, including the ability to self-diagnose and make a ‘we come to you’ booking. It’s a first for the industry and Samsung. WeFix service is configured to be minimum-touch with
an emphasis on cleanliness, consequently it was fairly easy to implement additional safety measures to protect customers and staff.”

Ingram Micro senior commercial director Michael Farrah

“We have increased safety and social distancing measures within our operations and logistics centre, but we remain fully operational. We are continuing to deliver on our customers requirements, with daily updates. We are ensuring key workers including the NHS are receiving vital technology products as well as the ongoing provision
of services and products to our partners to enable businesses to continue in a work from home environment.”

Compare and Recycle managing director Matthew Moreton

“We’re continuing to operate as a comparison platform; however some merchants have unfortunately suspended their recycling and refurb operations. There has also been a lower number of trade-ins as you might expect given the circumstances. Having said this, we have also received an influx of enquiries from businesses that are operational and seeking to diversify the channels in which they operate. In response to this, we are speeding up the onboarding process so that these businesses can adapt. We are continuing to find solutions for our merchants, and we are proud to be working alongside them during this trying period.”

TMT First founder Adam Whitehouse

“Business is running as well as can be expected. Thankfully the couriers are still running, Samsung are getting parts to us and our staff are real troopers- always pulling together to help one another and our valued customers in the most innovative ways – whilst doing what we can to support our local and wider NHS Trusts wherever we can. We are focusing some of our efforts on how we can use our industry experience and technical skills to help those in more need than us. Lifelines4LovedOnes.co.uk is an example of one of our initiatives we have rolled out in the past few days, to help keep precious lines of communication open for those patients that are in NHS hospitals, feeling isolated and most vulnerable. I hope others are doing what they can, but I also understand that there are businesses out there fighting for their companies to stay alive too. I wish them the best during these awful times.”

AO Mobile retail managing director David Lawson

“Customers are rapidly moving online as are stores closed and they are at home away from their friends and family. Isolation has reinforced the importance of connectivity, whether that’s home working, keeping in touch or entertaining the kids. In the first week of lockdown, we a 105 per cent increase in over 65’s buying mobile online for the first time. Doro phones sales were up 260 per cent. To continue providing this essential service for we moved our contact centre to home working over five days and introduced new measures so that we could deliver promptly, safely and securely.”

I Need A Mobile managing director Kasim Javed

“Our European clients, who represent 80 per cent of our revenue, immediately stopped buying as their shops were closed due to lockdown. Luckily our strong retail channels online had the opposite effect. Our website sales significantly increased helping to temper the loss of the wholesale business. The success of our online presence has led us to restructure our workflow to process a greater number of retail orders. The lesson we can share is to never rely on one sales avenue, but rather adopt omni- channel sale and marketing techniques to continue selling in turbulent times. We learned this lesson during Brexit which resulted in a decline of our wholesale revenue. Since then we have focused
on building a powerful online brand for refurbished smartphones. This has allowed us to smoothly navigate, so far, during Covid-19.”

Uplands Mobile managing director Paul Hooper

“We’ve seen a lot in the last 40 years, but nothing like this. More than ever we need to adapt and to evolve. This evolution faces supply chain challenges, in terms of sourcing stock and ensuring deliveries. Our teams are resourceful and determined. Ensuring the objective is achieved, whilst ensuring safety to all parties. As the impact of this unfolds, the business winners will be those that adopt the right mindset, and have the intuition and agility to act now. We need to look at every bit of business we could or should be writing and address it now, simply postponing is not good enough. Our mindset is to look after and support our valued business customers and still hunt for opportunities. In these worrying times, sometimes those opportunities are difficult to see, but they are there.”

Daisy Group SMB marketing director Julien Parven

“Our main aim is to ensure continuation of service. We can’t predict stock constraint issues but haven’t been too affected so far, and we continue to fully serve our partners. Our primary focus is providing remote working solutions and delivering excellent customer care to enable our partners and their customers to continue to operate. We’re working to mobilise workforces with MiFi products and offering 30 day rolling contracts to help minimise the financial exposure for our partners.So that we can protect both ours and our partners businesses, we’re applying caution and being vigilant about the orders and requests we are receiving to give us a solid platform to move forward post COVID-19.”

Nice Network head of sales Geoff Burns

“As many of our clients adjust to remote working the requirement for providers like ourselves has increased. We have been able to quickly make adjustments to our own set-up to provide continuity of service to customers. That has been essential to meet growing demand for remote comms, ensuring we can support customers to our usual high standard. During challenging times, relationships are crucial. We have seen some of the relationships we shared with suppliers compromised by profiteering. Others have been strengthened by incredible examples of them going above and beyond to support us effectively. We will emerge from this having established better, stronger partnerships with our partners and customers.”

Exertis sales director for mobile Mark Weston

“In these challenging times, it is crucial that we adjust and adapt to the “NEW Normal”. Exertis plays a key part in the supply chain, providing resellers with I.T and communications devices to support not only the NHS and other key workers but also the vast mobilisation of office-based workers to home working across the country. I’m immensely proud of our warehouse teams working non-stop to ensure products are received from our vendors and then shipped to our resellers and even direct to end user sites in some cases. Exertis is taking every conceivable precaution to protect both our partners and our own employees in order to keep vital supply lines open and the economy moving. We are offering our resellers financing and leasing options to ease cash flow, our DaaS (Device as a Service) offering is now more compelling than ever and we are constantly working with our vendors to minimise impact on product supply, and with our customers to maintain service levels.”

Plan.com co founder Keith Curran

“Three weeks into national lockdown and we’re beginning to adjust to circumstances that were unthinkable only a month ago. There’s no doubt this is a difficult time for everyone. At plan.com our people are our first priority. Thanks to them and our focus on technology, we were up and running with a fully remote workforce within 24 hours, and we’ve maintained 100 per cent uptime throughout. For our Partners, our online portal has enabled us to continue working closely with them, while they use it to win new customers and support their existing base. It gives them an online solution to help manage their pipeline, team, business and customers through these challenging times. The situation is evolving quickly and it’s too early to tell what will happen next. What is clear is that the next normal will look unlike any in the years preceding coronavirus, but the need and reliance on technology and telecoms has never been greater.”

Brightstar buys a majority stake in WeFix repair firm

Staff Reporter — Mon, 20 Apr 2020 08:36:27 +0000

Samsung-partnered mobile fleet “we come to you” fleet to double from 73 to 150 mobile workshops

Brightstar has acquired a majority stake in leading ‘we come to you” repairer WeFix, which recently won the Mobile News Award ‘Service and Repair’ category.

“The acquisition of WeFix provides a key strategic differentiator for Brightstar’s device protection business, augmenting service offering, choice, response time and convenience, while strengthening Brightstar’s customer relationships”, said Brightstar CEO Rod Millar.

WeFix CEO Aaron Brown commented, “The WeFix operation is designed exclusively to provide the very best customer service. Brightstar recognises this, as does Samsung.

“Together we’ll be able to deliver a customer experience like never before, with every aspect of in-life device support covered.

Brightstar now plans to increase WeFix’s UK fleet from 73 up to 150 mobile workshops by the end of 2020, whilst introducing the WeFix service to countries in mainland Europe and also Canada and North America by the end of 2022.

In 2018 WeFix became the only manufacturer-approved mobile repairer when it entered into an exclusive agreement with Samsung to provide in and out-of-warranty device repairs to its UK customers.

Earlier this year Samsung agreed a three-year extension to the partnership. “This agreement remains in place and we look forward to continuing our award-winning relationship,” said Brian Ford, Samsung vice-president of customer experience for UK and Ireland.

WeFix was originally founded in 2012 under the name Reviveaphone by entrepreneur Oliver Murphy, who obtained Dragons’ Den seed capital to start the business.

The company was then acquired by Darren Ridge and Aaron Brown’s business incubator Ridown Group in 2017 and subsequently re-branded as WeFix after a substantial investment in both people and processes.

Samsung and WeFix repair service breaks 95pc coverage

Staff Reporter — Wed, 18 Sep 2019 12:00:47 +0000

WeFix handles Samsung customer repairs directly

Samsung and WeFix’s ‘We Come To You’ repair service for in- warranty and out-of-warranty devices can now reach more than 95 per cent of postcodes in Great Britain and Northern Ireland, just three months after launch.

The partnership means that WeFix handles smartphone and tablet repairs requested through Samsung’s customer service.

The service distinguishes itself from those of competitors by offering a manufacturer- accredited repair service that will not void a Samsung device’s warranty, and also carries mobile workshops in

its fleet of vans to aid repairs. “WeFix doesn’t invest in custom-built workshops just for the hell of it – it’s a manufacturer stipulation,” said WeFix COO Aaron Brown.

“The tooling used to repair Samsung devices is supplied by Samsung, ensuring the very best possible standard of repair.

“WeFix technicians have direct access to Samsung’s global service provider network and deliver a 125-point device health check using Samsung’s own diagnostic tool.

Brown added: “WeFix uses only genuine Samsung parts. Samsung expects us to perform to very stringent quality standards – and quite right too.”

Onecom COO Aaron Brown departs, remains a shareholder

Staff Reporter — Tue, 17 Sep 2019 15:00:26 +0000

Onecom and Vodafone’s five-year deal will be worth up to £600 million in revenue

Onecom chief operating officer Aaron Brown has departed the company, CEO Ben Dowd has confirmed.

He followed former CEO Darren Ridge in departing from daily duties with the Hampshire-based dealer in July, though both remain shareholders and Ridge is also a non-executive director.

Brown declined to comment when Mobile News made contact.

He was Onecom COO from 2013 to 2018 and then COO of Onecom Group from November 2018 until July 2019. He is currently COO of door-to-door mobile phone repair company WeFix.

Speaking to Mobile News, Onecom CEO Ben Dowd confirmed Brown’s departure. The company has also recently restructured its executive team as a requirement of gaining a £100 million investment from private equity firm LDC, which is now Onecom’s largest shareholder.

Onecom and Vodafone signed a partnership earlier this year that will be worth up to £600 million in revenue within the next three to five years. Onecom will recruit 100 staff in the next six months to help achieve this, taking its total employees to 400. The firm also secured £30 million from HSBC in April to finance its growth plans, which include acquisitions.

“Darren has done a fantastic job along with Aaron,” said Dowd. “Darren wanted to take a step back from the business and bring someone in who can bring the growth agenda outlined. Now, 12 months on, we have a major backer to help us grow the business threefold in three to five years.

He added: “The business has been restructured and as part of that, we have gained fresh investment in the business. We will recruit 100 more staff over the next six months to support our ambitions.”

Onecom enacting company fitness challenge

Staff Reporter — Tue, 10 Oct 2017 12:59:38 +0000

150 employees have signed up to the “Workplace Race” scheme running from Oct 10 to Oct 27

Onecom has partnered with Fitbit enacting a company-wide fitness challenge, in a commitment to its staff’s well-being.

Staff can purchase Fitbit devices at a heavily discounted rates and Onecom will bring the cost down by contributing 50 per cent of the discounted price to every employee who wants one.

Employees across 12 offices will compete in a three-week “Workplace Race” to be the most active by racking up the largest number of steps. So far 150 employees have signed up to the scheme, launched at Onecom House today (Oct 10) in Whiteley, Hampshire to mark company’s fifteenth birthday.

The largest collective step count by October 27 will be named the champions, with individual prizes on offer for those across Onecom with the highest number of steps counted.

Onecom chief operating officer Aaron Brown said: “This Fitbit scheme is a bit of light-hearted fun, but it also underlines the benefits of working together as a team and keeping active to our overall levels of performance and productivity.”

“We’ve already seen a huge buzz across the business, along with some good-natured competitiveness, as we launch into our first Fitbit challenge.”

Onecom forges IoT deal with Vodafone worth up to Â£10 million

Staff Reporter — Tue, 12 Sep 2017 16:00:04 +0000

Deal will see UK’s largest dealer develop, launch and manage IoT services for UK businesses

Onecom has penned a five-year IoT deal with Vodafone to ramp up its aim to hit £110 million in revenue by the end of 2018.

This is according to CEO Darren Ridge who claims that the IoT deal will generate £10 million in revenue alone next year.

The agreement was signed on August 31, and will see the UK’s largest dealer develop, launch and manage IoT services for UK businesses. Vodafone currently connects 59.1 million IoT SIMs worldwide.

Prior to the deal, the Hampshire-based dealer invested £300,000 into its IoT infrastructure and recruited an industry figure in IoT, who will be revealed in two weeks.

Revenue from the agreement will not affect figures substantially for the 2017 financial year but Onecom is expecting to hit £100 million in revenue by the end of its 2017 financial year in December – 12 months ahead of its original ambitions.

Growth projections will be supported by organic growth fueled by the acquisition of Essex-based Evolve Telecom last year, which added £20 million to turnover.

Revenue increase

Ridge told Mobile News: “We expect our revenue this year to be close to £100 million, IoT won’t have a massive effect on revenue this year but next year we’re anticipating an increase in revenue of 10 per cent as a consequence of signing the IoT agreement with Vodafone.”

Onecom chief operating officer Aaron Brown added: “The deal is fantastic for us to move forward. Ultimately, for us it is the next step in technology and what we could offer the customer as a fully-managed service provider.

“We’re the largest Vodafone partner with 325,000 mobile connections and we’ve invested £300,000 into our IoT arm, both of which helped greatly in signing this deal with Vodafone.

“This agreement enables us to provide a wide portfolio of IoT services to companies on a global scale.”

Onecom staff raise over Â£2,000 for mental health charity MIND

Staff Reporter — Mon, 03 Jul 2017 09:28:00 +0000

More than 100 staff across company’s 12 regional offices take part in mile-long runs

Onecom’s staff have helped raise more than £2,000 for mental health charity MIND as part of ongoing celebrations for the company’s 15th birthday.

In total, 114 employees from across its 12 regional bases throughout the UK amassed £1,281, each running a mile-long route around the office where they are based on June 29. A further £1,000 was donated by Onecom’s management.

MIND was picked by staff in a poll as their chosen charity to support this year. The sponsored run was the first of several fundraising events planned under the newly launched Onecom Foundation, which was established last month.

Coming together

Onecom chief operating officer Aaron Brown said: “This was a great way to celebrate our birthday and have some fun while bringing people across the business together for a common cause.

“We’re pleased that we have raised a significant amount for MIND and will continue to support the charity with more fundraising activities in our offices around the country during the coming year.”

Telecoms provider Onecom, which also manages 325,000 mobile connections, has 12 regional offices located throughout the UK, including London, Cardiff, Southampton, Plymouth, Leeds, Telford, Norwich and Brighton.