Tec Rehab is a Flagstaff-based business started by Seth and Kande Jacobson. They do repairs on Smartphones, iPads and ipods, among other things. In addition to helping customers who might otherwise have to drive to Phoenix for service, the Jacobson’s are a couple who bring playfulness and professionalism to the clients they serve. While taking time to thoroughly repair items, the Jacobson’s also work to return items as quickly as possible, keeping Northern Arizonan’s connected through their gadgets.
Flagstaff Business News interviewed the team in their home-based office in Timberline.
Seth, describe your business. — Tec Rehab is a local Smart Phone, iPad & iPod repair service ran by my wife Kande and I. I am the techie and she is the talkie, aka marketing coordinator and personal relations. We can repair or replace many things on a phone such as : Broken glass, cracked LCD’s, charging ports, headphone jacks, battery’s and buttons.
Kande, why did you decide to open Tec Rehab in Flagstaff?-–Seth needed repair done to his phone and there was no one here in Flagstaff that did that. Seth and I have been happily working together since we got married in 1994 and we plan to continue that tradition. People joke, “it is the Seth and Kande show, you guys have to work together”. Seth has always had the techie knack and enjoys working with tech gadgets so, when we saw many community members had need of repair for their Smart Phones, iPads and iPods; that is when decided that we would start a business like Tec Rehab. Seth gets all of the ongoing training necessary that makes him qualified to perform all of the repairs that could go wrong with these types of devices. Seth is able to rebuild certain devices from the mother board up. Yes, I am proud of him; can you tell? We realized that most people thought they would have to drive to the Phoenix area and wait all day or send their device off for repair, which would take many days or weeks to get it back. We learned that when they get their device back it would not be their original unit; it would be a used refurbished one with all of their data missing. Also, we knew that for people to replace them out of contract would be very expensive. For instance, most smart phones purchased new, range from $350.00 up to $700.00 and iPads range from $500.00 to $830.00. Tec Rehab gives people a solution that can save them a quite a bit of money because, Tec Rehab can replace multiple broken parts such as, screens, LCDs, charging ports, head phone jacks, cameras and lenses, speakers, buttons and more for well under the cost of new ones and the deductible for most insurance as well.
Seth, what is your business philosophy?–Kande and I will provide outstanding customer service, with honesty and integrity. Giving our clients confidence that their device and privacy are safe. Kande and I believe it is of upmost importance that we provide a top quality local service that saves people money and provides quick same day service; getting their device back in their hands as soon as possible. Also, to inform our community of sustainable options involving their devices and to continue our education in the ever changing technology world.
How do you see your business evolving in 5 years? Kande and I are excited to open in a commercial location in town soon; offering pick up and delivery service and free classes on how to more effectively use their devices.
You describe Tec Rehab as a green business. Please elaborate.— We encourage our community to repair the damage instead of throwing them away to purchase new ones. Electronic refuse threatens water, soil and air. They contain heavy metals such as lead and mercury etc…that can leach into and poison our groundwater & soil if disposed of improperly. If they get incinerated it can release this into the air as well.
Here are some interesting facts about e-waste: “Consumers bought almost 900 million mobile phones in 2006 and over a billion in 2007, UNEP estimates. A big percentage of those devices are just thrown in the trash, or given to local collectors who extract precious metals from them in environmentally hazardous ways. The study predicts that by 2020, the amount of e-waste from dumped mobiles in China will be about seven times larger than it was in 2007, and in India 18 times higher. At present, India alone produces about 1,700 tons of e-waste from mobiles, Columbia about 1,200 tons, and Kenya another 150 tons.The United States is the big winner when it comes to e-waste: 3 million tons a year, followed by China’s 2.3 million. “This report gives new urgency to establishing ambitious, formal and regulated processes for collecting and managing e-waste via the setting up of large, efficient facilities in China,” declared UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner. Everywhere else too, he added.”
Seth and I feel it is necessary in this business to help with the growing issue of e-waste therefore, we are happy to accept and responsibly recycle the used units and parts that are unable to have further use, keeping them from improper disposal.
What are some of your other business interests in Flagstaff?? We also own another “Green” company called ForeverLawn of Northern AZ, it’s a synthetic turf company here in Flagstaff. We started in 2004 and have installed hundreds of projects. That helps people to save literally thousands of gallons of water right here in Flagstaff. We are are a dealer for ForeverLawn which is a national company and the only grass company that is branded by Dupont. Our premiere products are ForeverLawn by Dupont.
Kande, in closing, is there anything else you would like to add? Seth and I Love life and to laugh a lot. That is probably how we have been able to work together successfully for so many years; you can’t always be so serious, ya know. 🙂 We love the Flagstaff community; our downtown is second to none. We also enjoy participating in the many outdoor activities the Flagstaff area has to offer. That is why we want to be involved in businesses that help our community toward a more ecologically sensible sustainable future.
www.Tecrehab.com (928) 600-6768