At Redline, family is at the heart of everything we do. This goes all the way back to our foundation, and the two brothers who started Redline, Edward and Colin. Today we’re sharing the story of how Redline began, and how Edward and Colin’s perspectives have shaped the way our business has grown moving forwards.
How it all began
The idea to start a business together was never a plan that Edward and Colin had in mind while they were growing up. Like so many great businesses, it was about seizing a great opportunity. Here’s how the stars aligned for the brothers.
In his life before telecoms, Colin was a landscape gardener. However, an illness left him unable to return to his job, and so Colin took a chance and enrolled on a business start-up course. While on this course Colin developed a clear vision for a mail-order phone accessories business that would eventually become Redline.
At the time Edward was working at Vodafone, but after hearing Colin’s business plan, suggested that they join forces and put their combined telecoms know-how to good use. And so, Redline was born! It was a very different business than the one you know today, mainly built around providing mobile contracts on the Orange Network.
The business grew fast and within the same year, Redline moved to Commercial Road focusing on servicing the needs of business customers rather than the consumer market. This was when the business began in earnest, providing fixed lines, broadband and some of the services we’re best known for now.
Now that you know how Redline began, here’s a bit more about the brothers themselves!
Meet Colin!
Colin is instrumental to the day to day operations here at Redline. He provides a watchful eye over our installations, customer service and accounts, and works closely with some of our key accounts. Colin’s greatest strength is his ability to problem solve. One of the founding principles of Redline was to sit down a take the time to resolve customer queries when other providers wouldn’t. This is a policy Colin follows to this day.
Owing to his time as a landscape gardener, Colin has a degree in Geography and Environmental Management. He’s an ex-motocross and Enduro racer. Life is a little quieter now though. These days he enjoys his time in the countryside on two legs, rather than two wheels! He loves nothing more than going for walks with his family and springer spaniels.
Meet Edward!
These days, Edward dedicates most of his time toward Redline Telecom’s sister company, Redline Technology. This new venture supports a wide variety of customers with technology for vehicles including tracking devices, alarms and cameras. Here Edward manages day-to-day operations and takes care of key accounts.
Away from the office Edward spends his free time cruising around on his motorbike and watching his son compete in national Enduro motorbike racing.
It’s fantastic to see how Redline has grown from a mobile accessories shop to an established name in the UK communications market. We’re excited to see how, under the guidance of Edward, Colin and the team, Redline keeps developing into the future.
