Perspectives

Advertising Feature 15
teCHnOlOGy
sOlutIOns
squared
If there is a brand which symbolizes the mood and
aspiration of our time, you would struggle to find a
better standard-bearer than apple. Once the quirky
preserve of a small band of creative types, apple has
made the difficult transition to mass market whilst
remaining focused on design. the advent of the ipod
signalled apple turning a corner and selling the brand
is now very big business.
Above: Square’s
retail outlets in
London and High
Wycombe.
Below: Central
London training
suite.
national retailer Square Group hold
the coveted Apple Premium Reseller
status and have been voted reseller
of the year in the 2010 Macworld
Magazine awards (as well as being
nominated for the same award by Mac
User, results announced October 8th).
With retail stores in Central London,
High Wycombe, Alfreton and Derby,
plus the wholesale acquisition of
Computer Warehouse for online sales,
you could say that they know a thing or
two about the Apple brand.
“It’s all about looking beyond the
obvious” muses MD Darren King. “When
we started to sell Apple products in 1994
it was such a niche market. Our clients
were all B2B, albeit at the more creative
end of the spectrum and 99.9% London
based. But now that’s all changed...
Apple’s focus has shifted from business
to retail and products like the iPhone
really have brought the brand to the
masses. So, as resellers and providers
of the latest business technology we
have to be clever and spot the gaps
before they close”.
Opening outlets and spotting business
needs in areas where there is demand
but limited supply has clearly helped
Square stay ahead of the competition.
The upward curve in the demand
for Apple products has also opened
a plethora of opportunities in the
corporate world. There has clearly been
a paradigm shift in the way it is perceived
of late and the power of the Mac is being
realised by sectors as diverse as banking
and insurance to medical research – all
of which Square has worked hard to
establish close links with.
The hospitality sector has also
recognised the potential of an Apple
platform with many top hotels tapping
Square’s expert knowledge to run
mind-bogglingly slick entertainment
systems. There’s definitely a ‘cool by
association’ thing going on as well,
with all kinds of businesses now
looking for technology it may have
once overlooked.
Square’s Central London store (and
business headquarters) sit at the heart
of the capital, sandwiched between
Centre Point and the British Museum
on bustling new Oxford Street. At a
glance it looks every part the slick
retail operation, bristling with shiny
iMacs and every form of ‘i’ accessory
known to man. Scratch the smoked
glass exterior however and there is
clearly more than meets the eye.
Below the showroom full of shiny
must-haves and hungry tourists sits a
state-of-the-art training suite. Rows
and rows of metallic iMacs gleam like a
classroom of the future. A group of well
groomed professionals listen intently as
the instructor explains the finer points of
Advanced Photoshop. The soft drawl of
the instructor making the complicated
lesson sound incredibly simple.
The training courses offered are diverse
and address a variety of business
needs. From the basics of Microsoft
Office through to professional motion
graphics software, Square delivers
the highest quality training by working
closely with the client to provide
bespoke, expert instruction.
With their unique understanding of
technology for business and the high
street plus the service and training
to back it up, Square Group are well
positioned to become market leaders.
To find out more visit www.squaregroup.co.uk