FATHER’S dAY gIFTS

It can sometimes feel challenging to find a meaningful gift that somehow shows your love and gratitude but do not worry, I’m here to help get you ready for the big day!

Sunday 18th June 2023 finding the right father’s day gift can be tricky at times, especially when they have everything they ‘need’, including a lifetime supply of socks from previous years’ gifts. Bless our dads, ever the practical types aren’t they? Well, I’m here to help you knock his socks off this year with some memorable gifts.

Hampers

Brown paper packages tied up with string, full of all of his favourite things!

It is often useful to stick to a theme when deciding what to put in a hamper. Whether that’s cinema night treats, delicatessen nibbles, home spa kit or even whisky related. To begin making your hamper from scratch, you will need a box or basket big enough to fit everything in, some tissue paper or any kind of filling you have around the house and some string for the finishing touch!

Local Beer

In recent years, we are noticeably ditching the big chain shops and opted to support our local businesses for our shopping needs. So why not look to local breweries such as Summerskills Brewery who, not only brew their ales here in Plymouth but can also give the bottles a personalised label, especially for Father’s Day, making it the perfect gift. Nothing says I love you more than the satisfying fizz of a freshly cracked bottle.

Sweet Treats

Baking a batch of gooey brownies or triple chocolate cookies is a great way to show your dad some love this Father’s Day. If baking isn’t your thing, then why not try loco about cocoa. They handmake all of their chocolates here in Plymouth! Offering a variety of chocolate from White, Milk, Dark and Vegan, all made with the finest ingredients. Carefully packaged in a beautiful gift boxe, makes them a great Father’s Day gift. And we all know the way to a man’s heart.

Flowers

It may seem slightly unorthodox, but men like flowers too! Ok, they may not be a huge fan of pastel pinks, lavender or minty greens, but a general rule of thumb, opt for the “manly” bunch. Rich, bold colours and a solid, strong structure is a good way to go and perhaps a flower with more of a spicy scent rather than sweet. Get yourself down to a local florist who will help you find the perfect bunch.

Father’s Day can be an exceptionally difficult time for those who’ve lost their beloved Dad or Fathers who have lost their children. Take this time to sit with those beautiful memories, perhaps visit a favourite spot of theirs and reminisce.

from Sweet Shop to tech Support, business owner Stephen gray has an inspiring fluidity to his progression. Starting out like most entrepreneurs, Stephen was tired of working for companies that didn’t share the same core values and doing right by the customer. forming a sweet shop delivery service in 2022 laid the foundations to lean into something Stephen was really passionate about and created an I.t. management and repair service.

It’s hard to believe that at only 24 years old, Stephen has already had a very successful business and is now within the first 12 months of his new venture, device revive. So how did he go from Sweets to tech, I hear you wonder.

With the success of the sweet shop business, Stephen found himself working seven days a week taking and packing orders as well as making deliveries well into the night. Feeling inspired for a change of direction with the business it was time to make the shift from Slushie Machines to I.T. equipment.

Having an I.T. background from apprenticeships, it was a no-brainer for Stephen which route to go down. Opening its doors in August 2022, with just Stephen and a colleague repairing devices, but within 7 months the team rapidly expanded to five and they’re now looking at continuing to grow the team to help with demand. Device Revive covers everything I.T. related, from PC support and repairs to CCTV and installations, No matter the device, they will support it.

Stephen wanted to bring something to the area that puts its main focus on helping residential customers with any I.t. enquiries which makes up 90% of their client base. for this reason, device revive has an all-in-one service so that customers can pay a small monthly fee for the company to handle all of the I.t. like phone lines, internet, repairs etc. they also have a 24-hour phone line which goes straight through to a technician in case of any emergencies.

Whilst they are based in Plympton, they are not capping themselves to just the Plymouth and South West area. Device Revive will travel and assist anywhere within a 2-hour radius but they’re not stopping there, within the next 12 months, their goal is to open another premise in Lancashire to be able to cover more of the UK.

Within the 7 months of the business being open, they have secured themselves a fantastic contract with a customer in Lydford, managing and installing the CCTV, broadband, phone line and mobile phone. Device Revive is the one-stop shop that handles all of those technical issues, rather than calling up various providers for each device, each time having to wait in a long hold queue. Having Device Revive on your side, all the customer would need to do is make that one call and they take care of the rest.

Since introducing CCTV installations to their repertoire, they have seen a rise in demand. The addition of CCTV installation to their list of services was inspired by a customer who was having trouble finding reasonable quotations. Device Revive contacted one of their suppliers in the UK who, luck had it, sells CCTV systems and asked for a quote. Including the parts, labour and installation, Device Revive charged the customer half of what he was being quoted elsewhere.

“You’ve paid for the hour, we’re there for the hour.”

As a business, they are aware the prices they are charging are a lot lower compared to other similar businesses on the market at the moment, for installations and repairs. Their call-out fees start from £35 (depending on location) and their hourly rate after that is £17.50, they want their services to be affordable, especially as their main client base is residential customers. Whilst on the call out, the customer will have that technician for an hour and they will not charge any extra to help with other I.T. issues, as opposed to other similar companies, where they will charge separate fees for separate problems.

When a customer comes to Device Revive with a budget for a new laptop, for example, they will look into their suppliers to see if there is anything within that amount. If not, they will contact one of their many suppliers that also supplies the likes of Currys and other major retailers. If all is well and the customer is happy, Device Revive will go and collect the product, transfer the warranty into the customer’s name and will do a data transfer to ensure the setup is exactly how the customer wants it. After that, they will even re-deliver the device back to the customer’s desired address. This business takes five-star customer service to a whole new level.

When placing a callout, customers can expect help within one to two working hours depending on their location and they will try their best to rectify the issues on-site at the callout location address. If the device is needing some extra t.l.c. they will take the item back to their premises to fix the issue and redeliver once repaired. On average, clients can expect the item to be returned in 3-7 working days depending on the delivery of parts.

What makes Device Revive stand out from the rest is they provide a bespoke quote for each customer. For example, if there is a request for CCTV installation, they will come to the property and assess how many are required and how many the customer would like, how long they’d like the recordings to be available for and they will provide full training on how to use the system and through the app which is all included within the price.

Amongst all of the above of what they already offer, they haven’t forgotten where they started; repairs. The business offers any type of device repair service with their stateof-the-art lasering equipment and polishing machines in the workshop. Customers are more than welcome to pop down to their office and meet with the incredibly friendly team and enjoy a nice coffee, or Device Revive can arrange to collect and redeliver once it’s been repaired. after meeting the young entrepreneur and the team, it’s very clear that they really enjoy the work they do and have a genuine care and a desire to help people. the core values of device revive is to make technical support and help accessible for their customers and will always recommend the best options for their clients even if that option is not with them. keep an eye out for their call-out van on the roads and you’ll be seeing their second one on the road in the next few weeks.

Now let’s give it up for the teddy of the hour, the Device Revive mascot. With custom-made hoodies, you will find them pop up on social media to mark which areas where the technicians have been. So far, the team is Devon, Somerset, Cornwall and Cambridge and hopefully, they’ll welcome Lancashire to the teddy tribe soon.