PhoneBox was launched in Canada over 10 years ago with the goal of making it as easy as possible for international newcomers to get phone service without requiring a physical address or a Canadian bank account.
“That has been our niche since then pretty much,” said PhoneBox Director of Partnerships Jonas Kahon. “That’s the same kind of concept we are targeting our services to in the U.S. as well.”
It’s not exclusively for students or others who are temporarily away from their home country. “That’s just our main target group. Of course, anyone can sign up for the plans,” he told Fierce.
Kahon, who is originally from Germany, joined the company when it was looking for someone familiar with the European market. A lot of students from Germany and France attend school in Canada.
PhoneBox works with colleges, universities, travel agencies and other entities. When students are coming to North America for the first time, a lot of them are trying to learn English, and they feel more comfortable speaking with someone in their native tongue when setting up a phone service.
That’s why PhoneBox currently offers customer service in 12 languages: English, French, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Hindi, Punjabi, Khmer and Vietnamese.
Expansion into U.S.
The company decided about a year ago that it wanted to establish as an MVNO in the U.S., where it’s using the T-Mobile network.
One big reason it hooked up with T-Mobile was its ability to accommodate eSIM capabilities, Kahon said. Because it’s targeting people in other countries, it’s much faster and easier to set up service via eSIM without having to the ship a physical SIM card to someone.
Currently, PhoneBox has one store in Vancouver, British Columbia, and one in Toronto, Ontario. Its goal is to set up similar operations in the U.S. over the next five years, but in the meantime, it’s likely to be found in retail stores alongside other service providers.
The company usually doesn’t sell devices; only phone service. When it does have phones to sell, it’s usually advertised at the stores and internally to current clients through a newsletter. Last year, it did share on social media that it was offering smartphones at 70% off, and it sold all of them, according to Luisa Murta, content marketer at PhoneBox.
Kahon hinted that now that PhoneBox is starting to offer service in the U.S., it might become more focused on devices.
PhoneBox serves about 55,000 active clients in Canada. It’s a mix of postpaid and prepaid, but more than half is postpaid because that’s how it started out. In the near future, it will probably be more 50/50, he said.
In the U.S., the plans are prepaid. The company offers four plans, starting with a 3 GB plan for $25/month. Mid-tier plans range from $35 and $45 depending on the data package. PhoneBox is also introducing an unlimited data plan for $55. There’s no contract or credit check required.
Personalized approach
Certainly in the U.S., the MVNO industry has seen its share of ups and downs. One thing that makes PhoneBox different is its target group, and it’s gained a lot of experience operating in Canada over the past decade, he said.
It’s also a smaller company, employing about 55 people, which probably has its disadvantages, he said. But one big advantage is it’s more personal in its relationships with its partners, and that makes it easier to help them.
“It’s not just one solution that works for all of the partners,” he said. For example, some universities want PhoneBox to attend their orientation days so students can get help with their phone service. Others might want to pay for their students’ first month of service.
“We always try to make it work,” he said. “We’re small enough to change the way we work, just within a few days, to tailor it to the specific needs of that partner.”