Revenge of the nerds

by Heather Hayes
Virginia Business
May 2005

Computers are great — except, of course, when they break down. In the corporate world, employees have to wait for the technical support team to show up. But at least somebody eventually shows up.

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For small and home-based businesses the problem is only just beginning, says Richard Cole, a one-time corporate turnaround specialist. These people have to get on the phone and attempt to talk through the problem or pack everything up and head to a repair center. “For a lot of these companies, they can’t replicate the problem unless they take the whole network down there, so inevitably these repair guys will say that nothing is wrong,” he says. “So you have all these people trying to conduct business but their data is stuck in some computer that they can’t access.”

For Cole, the dilemma sparked the idea for a niche opportunity in the $300 billion after-sale computer market: “traveling” computer repair. In 1999, he and a partner founded Geeks on Call, an onsite, computer-support franchiser. The company dispatches technicians to law firms, accounting offices and other small- and mid-sized businesses to remove viruses, restore Internet connections, correct software conflicts and address other operating system and networking problems. Customers pay a flat fee for a service call and then, after the technician makes a diagnosis, a fee to repair the problem.

Based in Norfolk, Geeks on Call has experienced phenomenal growth in its short history. During the past year it doubled its revenue and number of franchisees — its 300th was announced in February. Cole expects gross revenue to double again this year, topping $25 million. The company has franchises in 19 states plus the District of Columbia, with 54 in Virginia.
Cole attributes the company’s good fortune to high demand by its target base of customers (companies with fewer than 15 employees, less than $2 million in revenue and no IT department) and an oversupply of outplaced or downsized IT personnel.

These entrepreneurial-minded geeks are attracted to the company’s relatively low-cost franchise model, which requires a $25,000 investment to be an owner/operator. Ongoing costs remain relatively low because no storefront is required (though a PT Cruiser, or what Cole refers to as a “PC Cruiser,” is must-have transportation), and the company handles all customer inquiries and appointments through a national call center.