It all started in an Indian restaurant
How RPS Telecom expanded from a three man operation to Wales' leading ITSP
Starting small, growing strong
RPS began in 2005 when our founders noticed there was a gap in the market to deliver high quality telecom solutions. Fuelled by wanting to change the telecoms world, the company has since grown to become Wales’ leading ITSP (Internet Telephony Service Provider).
Director, Ron Griffiths talks us through how it began…
“We were a group of three people passionate about telecoms and customer service, taking a punt at trying to see if we could create a business, all starting from an Indian restaurant in the centre of Cardiff.”
With no investment, but simply a passion to build a telecoms company to rival some of the bigger companies, our founders Ron Griffiths, Steve Thomas and Paul Davies set out to do just that.
“We could have borrowed or raised investment, hired highly successful business savvy people and built the size of our business much quicker than we have but where’s the sense of fun and achievement in that!”
“In 2006 we built our first system in my garage, using my home broadband and running a customer based in Penarth – quickly followed by a system deployed in a motorbike franchise in Swansea.”
What changed?
“A £5,000 investment took RPS into a Data Centre in London where we ran around four customers and 12 users. After a number of issues, we moved the system to a more stable location in Leeds in 2007.”
“Eventually we saw our partnership with Zen Internet become our gold standard solution. We built our new network in 2010 in their Rochdale data centre where we have enhanced our solution several times to the high-resilient network we have today; running 1000s of end users and customers.”
“Monetary growth was never a true focus for us; it was all about building an organisation of motivated people who cared for each other and cared for our clients, this has ensured a sustainable long-term business.”
In 2018, RPS received a nationwide Award from ITSPA (Internet Telephony Service Providers Association) for Highly Commended ITSP under the £2m Turnover category. A significant milestone for the team and a testament to the high standard solutions that we provide.
What does the future look like for RPS Telecom?
“The strategy is to move up the value chain from simple telephone solutions to solutions that enhance our customers’ businesses into complex call centre/contact centre solutions. With the emergence of home working and the role Microsoft Teams has to play in today’s world; it opens even further doors for our future.”
“We set out to build a company with a heart; a company that wanted to commit to building individuals and see them grow in capability and stature as the company grew. I feel an enormous sense of pride and success in seeing our team succeed and grow together, with their individual achievements, not only in their field but in their business acumen as well.”
