New mobile phone company Meteor searching for shops nationwide

The new mobile phone operator, Meteor, is actively searching out retail sites. It's a difficult time for any would-be retailer but it is all the more so for a company such as Meteor, which has to establish itself in all major towns and cities and be as highly visible on the street as its competitors Digifone and Eircell.

The company launched its service last month and has six retail outlets - two in Dublin city centre and one each in Tallaght, Dun Laoghaire, Galway shopping centre and Patrick Street, Cork. The two Dublin branches are in prime locations - one is on Henry Street and the other is beside the Shelbourne Hotel on St Stephen's Green. Meteor considers the Henry Street store its flagship. The stores range in size from 300 sq ft to 1,000 sq ft.

"We're hoping to sign up the seventh site this week, and the eighth one should be on stream soon after that," according to Conor Carmody, sales and distribution director of Meteor.

Getting retail right is vital for the success of the launch of the company. A strong on-street presence helps establish the brand in consumers' minds and gives Meteor the opportunity to develop their brand's personality through the stores' layout and signage. It also backs up the company's extensive advertising campaign in establishing a corporate identity which is something that the newcomer has to develop very fast if it is to compete in any meaningful way. "It's a difficult arena to play in," says Mr Carmody, "but establishing a strong retail presence is critical."

Meteor's competition are significant players on the retail scene. Eircell has a total of 311 outlets. It owns 100 outlets outright, including the 30 branches of Let's Talk Phones, and has percentage interests in the remaining 211 outlets which include, for example, the Person 2 Person chain. After four years in the market, Digifone has 19 Digifone centres, which Esat owns outright. It also has leasehold interests in 18 stores which are operated by dealers such as O'Hagan and Cellular World. The Digifone network is also available through 310 independent dealers.

Meteor intends to own all its own outlets and has no plans to buy any existing chains. It was up against an unusual problem when it started searching for units.

The six shops certainly look impressively different. Douglas Wallace Architects was brought in to design the units. "The brand is youthful," says Mr Carmody, "so when we were looking for designers we went with a company that has extensive fashion retail experience". The shops are paperless and touch-screen technology guides consumers through the Meteor offering. "The idea behind the shops is that they don't just sell the network, they also service the customers, who can pay their bills there, top up their phones or whatever," he says, "and as the shops are paperless there are no out of date posters or tatty finishes, it's all very sleek."

Meteor hasn't set a final figure on the number of outlets it needs but intends that the retail roll-out will continue for the next two and a half years.