Sometimes the beginnings of a booming industry emerge well below the radar—the niche wireless repair industry is no exception.
Wireless repair entered the marketplace around 2009-10, not long after Apple released the first iPhone on June 29, 2007. Since then, this industry has ridden the wave as smart-phones quickly became the must-buy gadget for the young and the professional.
2010 to 2014 were the boom years for wireless repair as anyone with a technical background, and entrepreneurial spirit could jump in and open their repair shop or kiosk. These business owners started their repair business with minimal start up and marketing investment and found near immediate business success from customers looking to repair damage and accidents.
However, are these boom times meant to last? What’s the future of wireless repair over the next five to 10 years? As the basic smart-phone repair is reduced, several new product and service opportunities appear to be an easy and profitable transition for wireless repair professionals.
Before we answer where the wireless repair industry is going, let’s first establish the flow of it today.
The device repair industry as a whole generated over $4 billion in revenue in 2014…$1.4 billion in the United States alone. The demand for phone repair stores grew largely because of the negative impact felt by consumers without a smart-phone became much higher.
As smart-phones and tablets flooded the market in the last decade, they became a primary factor for growth in the wireless repair industry. However, perhaps more important, the cost and fragility of these devices impacted the rise in repair services.
With price tags between $400-$1200, every drop or fall of a phone or tablet results in immediate business for repair shop owners from customers looking to avoid paying for a full replacement.
Wireless Dealer Magazine, owner of WirelessRepairEXPO.com and producer of the Wireless Repair EXPO found that phone repair services retailers commonly provide the following:
Top 3 Phone Repairs 2014-2023
62% broken or damaged screens
31% accidental water damage
7% of repairs resulted from data/flashing or faulty keys/buttons
This chart matters because 97% of smart-phone repair revenue hinges largely on two repairs: Broken screens and water damage
