'This year we had a record entry and the quality of submissions was extremely high.' NIGEL SERGENT, Editorial Director, Comms Dealer.

On the 24th April Welcomm were announced a one of the short-listed finalist for the Reseller Sales Team of the Year (£2.5m-£7.5m turnover) category, so we will  then thrilled to be acknowleged at the awards ceremony as Highly Commended in this category:

RESELLER SALES TEAM OF THE YEAR (£2.5-£7.5m turnover)
Highly commended: Welcomm.

The article reads as follows:

Latest move represents Welcomm’s sixth acquisition in the past four years

Welcomm Communications has bought fellow O2 Centre of Excellence rival partner Davison Communications for an undisclosed fee.

Market Harborough-based Welcomm completed the acquisition earlier this month. It is its sixth acquisition in the past four years.

The deal sees Welcomm boost its customer base to 5,500 – and its total number of connections above 40,000.

Welcomm has taken on Davison’s Northampton office and all its staff. Davison’s managing director Georgie Gardiner will become Welcomm operations director, with sales director Lucy Armstrong being appointed into a senior sales role.

Founder and chairman Kevin Davison is retiring after 30 years in the industry, including 25 running Davison Communications.

Welcomm chairman and founder Chris Stanton said: “Davison fits our acquisition strategy due to the quality and stability of their base and business. As a financially stable business, Welcomm will be able to provide these customers with consistency in the service they are offered.”

Davison added: “Davison Communications and Welcomm have run their business along the same lines of customer service and loyalty. We started our businesses at the same time in the old days of Securicor cellular services. We have both been loyal to the O2 network all the way through.

“We believe that selling to Welcomm is a great fit for the expansion of their business, and we are confident they will give the same customer service we have done for 25 years. Linda and I have had some fantastic times in the mobile industry but now feel it is time to spend more time looking after our properties in the UK and abroad. We wish Welcomm every success in the future.”

Our customers have already began to see the benefits of replacing their traditional phone systems with IP Voice solutions, but we expect this demand to take a sharp increase in 2013. This demand will contribute towards a growth in our unified services revenue, which we believe could make up 40% of our total revenue by the end of 2013.

With widespread availability of 4G, we will also see the next generation of mobile apps, with advancements in augmented reality and NFC technology. Our lives will revolve even more around our mobile devices, allowing us to make purchases and store ticket information.

Competition within the smartphone market could also see a shift in 2013 with Windows challenging iOS and Android’s dominant market share. We have already seen an increase in demand in the Nokia Lumia range, which we predict will continue to grow with the introduction of Window’s new cloud services.

Adam narrowly lost out to his rival Egghead in the sports questions round, but Chris beat his component in his category and went on to join his fellow Bottlekicker team mate in the final, but unfortunately the Eggheads went on to win.

Published 3rd December, 2012.

O2 Center of Excellence (CoE) partner Welcomm has expanded its office space to accomodate its growing UC team.

The Market Harborough-based firm has taken a third site in The Point Business Park where 14 staff, including 4 specialist engineers and sales and support staff working in its UC team, will be based.

In the last year, the O2 partner has doubled the size of its team working on services outside mobile including VoIP and hosted telephony solutions.

The CoE partners connects mobile and landline through O2 but currently, as the network doesn't offer UC services through resellers, it works with other providers including BT and Gamma on these services.

Welcomm chairman Chris Stanton said: "O2 have expanded their unified portfolio and we will adopt these services as and when they become commercially available. We are working closely with O2 to position ourselves to capitalise on the opportunities that the fixed and ICT markets will give us to drive additional revenue streams, making our customers more dependant upon us as their one-stop shop for all fixed and mobile services".

If you've got a 2G phone, you won't be able to use it for calls, texts, email, or internet. The O2 3G network will be working as normal.

The postcodes and areas that will be affected are:

AL1 2RJ, AL1 3UN, AL1 4GL, AL1 5RW, AL1 5UG, AL10 0XR, AL10 8YE, AL10 9JG, AL10 9QU, AL10 9TW, AL2 1BX, AL2 1DG, AL2 2NT, AL2 3UB, AL3 5TL, AL3 6LN, AL4 0NY, AL4 9RA, AL9 5JX, AL9 5SD, AL9 6NE, AL9 7TU, EN5 4R EN6 1HR, EN6 1UL, EN6 2PB, EN6 3AX, EN6 3NA, EN6 3NE, EN6 5QS.

If you’ve got any questions, please call us on 01858 410010. 

B2B dealer Welcomm Commuications is hosting a number of business seminars designed to promote the benefits of social networking for businesses.

The Market Harborough-based firm, an O2 Centre of Excellence (CoE) partner, held its first event at the end of September to discuss how O2's Priority Moments Local can help them to boost marketing and trade.

O2 extended its location-based marketing service Priority Moments for smaller businesses in July, having previously worked with corporate firms such as Odeon, WHSmith and Pizza Express.

The local version enables small businesses to have their company name as well as any special offers they wish to include displayed on the application.

The event was in partnership with O2 and the operator's social media strategy expert, Jo Dodds, appeared as a guest speaker.

Welcomm managing director Aidan Piper said the event was inspired by an O2 social media seminar he had attended. He said he wanted to pass this experience on to his customers.

Piper said: 'As a communications provider we saw the value in being able to share this knowledge and expertise with our customers, enabling them to communicate more efficiently with their customers.

'O2 has recently rolled out several projects that support and promote local businesses such as Priority Moments Local, and as an O2 Centre of Excellence partner this is something we are also passionate about.

'By being able to share the benefits of these services along with our complementary social media seminars we will provide our customers with the extra tools and advice they need to promtoe their services and target new audiences.'

Welcomm chairman Chris Stanton, who described the event as a 'great success' added: 'Not only did we receive some very positive feedback from our customers, it also helped to demonstrate the close working relationship we share with O2 and how we are able to join forces to provide a valuable service such as this to benefit our customers.'

Welcomm will hold a second event this month, which will be held at the Hereford and Worcester Chamber of Commerce.  

This was the first year that Welcomm entered The Tigers Event Corporate 7s tournament, with a team made up of their customers and O2 colleagues. With many large Leicestershire-based companies like the Hilton Group, PWC, Jaguar Landrover, HSBC also attending, Welcomm did well to make it through to the final on their first year. They were knocked out by sportswear company G Force who then went on to win the tournament. But it was Welcomm’s player Leo Donnelly who was selected as the player of the tournament, by a panel of rugby International greats that attended on the day including Brian Moore, Rory Underwood, Peter Wheeler, Matt Poole and Harry Ellis. 

Welcomm’s Chairman Chris Stanton and player Leo Donnelly were then lucky enough to receive this trophy in front of a packed crowd of 24,500 at Welford Road this sat at the Tigers V Quins game.

Learn about Social Media

A Seminar focusing on the benefits of social media such as LinkedIn is taking place in Harborough next week.

Town firm Welcomm Communications is hosting the free event in conjunction with O2 on Tuesday, September 25.

The seminar, at Welcomm's offices at The Point business park, off Rockingham Road, Harborough, will offer customers more information on how to get the most out of social media in business with O2 social media guru Jo Dodds.

It is part of several different projects Welcomm is working on in conjunction with O2 to help smaller businesses.

Emily Murray, Welcomm's marketing manager, said:

'We know a lot of smaller businesses are beginning to realise the potential but by not participating in social media they will miss out, and they are nerveous about how to get started.'

There will be a morning session from 9am -12 and an afternoon slot from 1-4pm. For more details, email emily.murray@welcomm.co.uk or phone 07841 214784

Harborough Mail article, Friday 7th September 2012.

Fitness challenge aids Royal Marines

Mum of Marine running for Help for Heros.
A mum has vowed to get across the finish line of a half marathon she is running for Help for Heros even if she has to crawl across it.

Amanda Allen (52), of Marston Trussell will be attempting to run the Lake Vyrnwy Half Marathon on Sunday.

Her son Tom is serving with 40 Commando Royal Marines in Afghanistan.

Mrs Allen said “I hope that Tom will never need the help that Help for Heros provides but there are so many service men and women who do need it, I felt I had to do something.”

Some of Tom’s comrades have needed the kids of assistance Help for Heros provides. Mrs Allen said she signed up for the half-marathon after a night out when she was complaining to a friend she couldn’t get fit. The friend had taken up running and persuaded Mrs Allen to do so as well.

She said “I send my admission in and I have been training since March and I have had some injuries, had to have some surgery, but I’m well up for it.”

Mrs Allen said the Lake Vyrnwy Half Marathon is not commercial and the course she will be running is very pretty, albeit more hilly than she had thought. Her husband Graham will be cheering her on at the finish line and Mrs Allen joked may have to have a stretcher or strong drink waiting for her.

“I’m very determined. I’m going to do it because I will cross that finish line even if I do so on all fours.”

To sponsor her visit www.justgiving.com/amanda-allen2or phone 07808 774645.