Here follows a lesson in advanced determination, by Shahram Baherzadeh, Managing Director at Essex-based Loop Voice & Data.
When starting out, most would-be business owners are likely to give up if faced with obstacles the size of mountains. But Bagherzadeh's story is one of robust persistence, so much so that no barrier proved insurmountable. Bagherzadeh started his company in 2000 with no sales experience, no telecoms experience, zero finance knowhow, no management experience and the bank wouldn't lend him any money. Having found a home in comms after leaving the hospitality industry he worked from a box room for three years. "I realised there was great potential in telecoms and started Wireless Telecommunications as a sole trader," he said. "I knew that I could offer better customer service. In 2003 Wireless Telecommunications became a limited company and in 2009 we adopted Loop Voice & Data as a trading name."
Bagherzadeh arrived in the UK in 1987 and studied English as a foreign language at Mid-Warwickshire College. He then passed a BETC first diploma in 1990 and worked in a number of restaurants around the UK. "My previous experience in hospitality ingrained a culture of customer service and hard work," he added. "Our biggest opportunity is customer service which is lacking in this market. But what we deliver is high."
His decision to enter the comms industry went against the advice of close friends who thought he had 'lost his marbles'. "Everyone I knew thought I had gone mad and tried to convince me otherwise," noted Bagherzadeh. "The journey has been painful, but I've proven that hard work and belief in yourself, no matter what, will pay off. Nobody can stop learning, either about work or in life, because every day there is something new."
Wireless Telecommunications' turnover for the first three years was circa £12k per annum. A move to bigger offices and the addition of an admin role helped to push revenues up to £30k. "I then employed one sales person and turnover increased to £155k," said Bagherzadeh. "By 2006 our turnover grew to £460k with three employees. Three years later we moved to a larger office and now have nine staff with revenues of £1.4 million and over 600 clients. The 10 year plan is to grow our indirect agents and to position Loop Voice & Data as the main telecoms company in Essex."
Bagherzadeh's work experience in hospitality is paying dividends, with Loop Voice & Data's customer churn registering at less than 1.6 per cent per annum. "We continually ask our clients about their needs and requirements to make sure we understand them and deliver what they need," he added. "I'm a great believer in 'people buy from people', and if your clients believe in you and trust you, then it is much easier to introduce them to new technology. Our priorities are to keep clients happy, stay abreast of the market and increase turnover. The challenge is maintaining high margins in the process."
Bagherzadeh's strict policy of product and service revision ensures the company is aligned with the evolving requirements of its target customers. This strategy has also defined a strong portfolio underpinned by relationships with key partners such as Pragma (LG), Trust (Mitel), TalkTalk Business, Gamma, Vodafone, Openreach, BT Wholesale and Virtual1. "A big change of direction for the company was moving from traditional telephony to the world of VoIP," noted Bagherzadeh. "I didn't want to stay behind technology advancements as customer demand increased."
The imperative to keep up with the pace of change and maximise margins is one of the reasons behind a narrowing of Bagherzadeh's product range in 2009. "We began to refocus and be known for what we specialised in," he explained. "The adoption of SIP and cloud telephony is growing at a fast rate due to lower data connectivity prices and greater regional availability. More of our clients are asking about SIP and hosted services, so we always review our products every three years to stay aligned with these market trends. End users are getting more and more clever, playing resellers against each other to get the best deals. VARs therefore need to develop what they are good at and be known for their specialisms." •