In January 2024, Fixfactor reached ten years in business. These photographs look back at the shop, the team and the work that shaped those first ten years.
Starting as Raphone
We opened in January 2014 as Raphone. The business began as a partnership, but within the first year only one of us remained. For six months it was a one-person operation. By the end of 2014 there were three of us; in 2015, six.
Keeping the right parts in stock was an early challenge. We also tried phone colour conversions, but they never became a substantial part of the business. Demand for Google, OnePlus and later Xiaomi repairs was a more useful direction. DJI drone repairs brought another set of faults and skills into the workshop.
The shop changed with the work
We redecorated three times, including moving internal walls and replacing the floor. We did the refurbishment ourselves. In 2019, the new interior accompanied the change of name to Fixfactor.
We also opened in central London, first at Monument and then near Oxford Circus. Lockdowns interrupted those plans, and we later returned to operating from Wimbledon. Laptop repair and hardware data recovery became more important parts of the work.
Photographs from the first ten years
What continues
The range of devices has changed, but the practical job remains: establish the fault, explain the options and carry out work worth doing. Some repairs are straightforward; others require work on the original board or a separate discussion about the data.
Thank you to the customers and team members who have been part of those years. Today our customer-facing location is Wimbledon, alongside UK-wide mail-in repairs. This article is a historical retrospective, not an announcement of another branch.
