Recently, the channel gossip has been turning its attention to GigaBritain (the new wholesale brand of the Telcom Group, recently announced as the UK’s fastest business internet provider.
So, being the ultra gossip I am, I put my investigative hat securely in place and started browsing online (LinkedIn) to see if I had any shared connections.
Enter Will Goodall.
This perfectly bearded chap was my in! I’ve known Will for years, so I picked up the phone to see if any good gossip was to be had. Will began to tell me about all the amazing things GigaBritain is up to (in his best salesperson voice) (that’s sarcasm, many of you know Will, but for those that don’t, know he’s quite the opposite of “salesy”) and then I realised he’s onto an absolute winner.
A few things he mentioned stood out. One in particular was The Telcom Group acquisition of Luminet.
Now that. That got my attention.
A few weeks passed, and I continued my digging behind the scenes (putting my ear deep into the channel grapevine) and I was hearing more positive murmurs. So, of course, with my increased need to always be in the “know” with anything Telco/Broadband related, I put in another call to the big-bearded-beauty that is Will Goodall and would you believe it, the next day I received an invite to their recent GigaBritain partner event in Soho to find out more about the acquisition and what the brand had been up to.
To be completely honest, they’ve been doing a lot! And the Launch of GigaBritain was the starting point.
After I left the event (at a sensible hour) (although I did rather unprofessionally have a liquid lunch pre-event) (so basically, I was heavily lubricated), I began my walk back to my “reasonably priced” (hell-hole) hotel and realised these guys actually had something pretty unique to bring to the channel.
For starters, creating a separate brand to support partners is absolutely key, and they’ve spared no expense or resource in putting that action into motion. That’s how GigaBritain was born. It’s a brand built to support partners, headed by an all-time Channel vet – Will Goodall.
The channel has a mix of traditional-based resellers and MSPs. When it comes to pushing connectivity, there is no doubt the “good old days” have changed. No longer will a reseller rely on a couple of “larger all-rounder” wholesalers to take care of all of their “on-net” and “off-net” ethernet services. Resellers are now more attuned to obtaining direct relationships with “connectivity” first wholesalers.
[Break for a short lesson on “off-net” & “on-net”]
On-net: Carrier’s own infrastructure, i.e., Telcom Group’s own fibre & wireless infrastructure across their six hypercities.
Off-net: The carrier has to use another carrier’s network infrastructure, i.e., Telcom Group has to have a close relationship with another national carrier to “rent” some of their fibre infrastructure (the final mile), to reach to the end premises. The end customer still sits within the Telcom network, its just the transit travels the final mile on a partnered carrier.
[Back to article]
GigaBritain is one of the few ethernet-focused wholesalers that not only provides wholesale ethernet at the “right price” but also has the incredibly rare USP of being able to offer a “Up to 10GB Wireless Ethernet” option (hence the smart Luminet acquisition). Their roof top wireless “point to point” network is a game changer for any hard-to-reach locations in major cities. (Having been in the industry for 14+ years, I can assure you, London has lots of no-go ethernet locations). They boast a 10 day lead time for installation, which for any city, is just unheard of.
Better yet, companies requiring the uptime guarantee that ethernet provides will often retain the wireless product as a backup: Enter “Always On”. Cabled Ethernet: Primary. Wireless Ethernet Secondary. With each connection routing through separate paths and data centres, this blend of wired & wireless, gives the reseller a unique USP to retain those loyal customers (or win, of course, win new business).
Let’s not forget the added margin booster. You know as well as I do, clients based in London, who require that level of uptime guarantee, are willing to pay the monies to make it happen.
So, with that in mind, what if I also told you…
GigaBritain has its own in-house engineers, meaning you, as the reseller, have minimal “install” time frames for on-net connections. Ten days for wireless, twenty days for ethernet. Plus, GigaBritain can speak directly to their engineers and not have to jump through sixty-seven different support lines to get a basic update.
GigaBritain is returning the “personable” partner in the channel. This is what really caught my eye. You may have noticed, but as time progresses and acquisitions take place, our reliable “all product” wholesalers can often “forget” about their partners. The personal touch, the onsite visits, the always-on-the-phone, the “marketing support,” it all seems to be reducing in the larger market. Gigabritain is bringing that personal channel presence back!
Having a human on the phone who understands the “pressure” you’re under to get a connection in.
Having someone you can bounce ideas around on how you’re going to push a campaign.
Gaining expertise from others in a similar space.
These are the exact areas GigaBritain is honing in its focus. Creating a community for partners.
Of course, the “right priced” wholesale costs are attractive, and their unique wireless product is priceless, but it’s that third point that gains the most excitement from me.
I’ve always pushed for positivity in the Channel and have always been outspoken about resellers and partners working together, sharing ideas, and discussing successes and failures. It gives business owners the edge or sometimes the confidence that their ideas are on the right track, or the upper hand to know that a “campaign” may not be successful because it’s been tried before. Chewing the fat with other business owners is a massive “upper hand” that many resellers miss out on. Gigabritain is bringing that back!
Look, GigaBritain isn’t slowing down. They’ve got huge amounts of infrastructure in what they call their “Hypercities” (more to come on that) in (London, Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, and Liverpool, and most recently Cardiff) and they’re continuing to extend each network at a rapid pace! Don’t fret, they can connect nationally too (off-net). Their relationships with the larger national carriers are watertight (meaning you’ve still got plenty of meat on the bones when marking up).
I’m looking forward to bringing our audience a deeper dive into this outfit (starting with a Podcast which we recorded last week!), so watch this space.
