The benefits of broadband are now being appreciated on the sea bed, thanks to a Tynemouth diving company, Deep Blue Dive Centre.
For the company, which switched to adsl Broadband around 18 months ago, has noticed a marked improvement in business as their customer service and response times have improved. They have cut running costs by having an always-on BT Openworld Business 500 broadband connection, and increased their business to the point that they have built an extra storey on their premises and expanded to take on new staff.
Deep Blue Dive Centre specialises in teaching people to dive, selling and repairing diving equipment and organising diving holidays. They have a shop 400 yards from the seashore in Tynemouth, and a "virtual shop" online from which they sell to divers all over the world through affiliate sites, on a commission basis.
"We also have a standard mail order service via the telephone because there are still people who want to talk to us about sizes and equipment they have seen online before they actually buy" said co-owner John Paul Gardner.
But the on-line business is booming and they are now considering moving to an even faster connection.
They are also looking to expand into more shops to service the demand they have created. "Broadband has really changed the way we run our business," said John Paul. "We have franchised our website as well so that if customers do a Google search, they still come to us through the affiliate sites. And we have customers as far away as Belize and Bermuda.
John Paul, himself a diver, set up the business seven years ago with his partners Scot Bisset and Lewis Rana.
The business has already won several awards, including from the Princes Youth Business Trust, and the eCommerce Awards – for which they won the best Internet site. They have also been named as the Best Retailer of the Year and the Best Dive Shop in Britain.
The site has something for all the family too, with online diving games to suit all the family.
For further information see: www.deepbluedive.com