Created by the founder of the Southern California Wireless Users Group, Pasadena Networks aims to be a one-stop shop for everything a wireless ISP might need.

by Jeff Goldman [April 2, 2008]

Frank Keeney first got involved in wireless technology as the founder of the Southern California Wireless Users Group (SOCALWUG) in 2002. From there, Keeney says, starting the wireless equipment distributor Pasadena Networks, LLC to buy and resell wireless products just seemed like a logical next step.

Keeney says Pasadena Networks is focused on the needs of wireless ISPs, carrying a broad range of parts and equipment to ensure that WISPs don't need to go anywhere else for supplies. He started, he says, with Pacific Wireless antenna systems. "We've had a long term relationship with them going on over four years…we've continually brought on their new products, and have stocked most of what they have in our own warehouse," he says.

Pasadena Networks, LLC 1443 E. Washington Blvd. #125 Pasadena, CA 91104 Web contact page

Other product lines stocked by the company include Ubiquiti, EnGenius, and MikroTik, as well as more incidental items. "We have tools and other accessories that may not be found at other places," Keeney says. "We take our customers' input when they say it would be great to be able to get everything in one spot… the whole idea is to listen to the customer, find out what they want, and try to provide that in one place."

Same-day shipping
For the past six months, Keeney says, the company has been focused on increasing efficiency—they've changed warehouses, automated their ordering system, and increased the amount of stock they keep on hand to ensure that they can ship most orders on the day they're received. "The challenge has been in bringing the items in and getting them set up and staged in a way where we can have our people put the orders together and get them out the same day," he says.

Keeney says the majority of Pasadena Networks' orders come in online rather than by phone, and the company strives to make the website as easy as possible to navigate. Still, he says he and his colleagues do spend a lot of time on the phone with customers giving technical advice. "People call all the time with questions—'I need to link to this location: is it going to work? What should I buy?'" he says.

And because the people who work at Pasadena Networks all come from computer engineering rather than sales, Keeney says, they never give a strong sales pitch. "What we want to do is to have people come back to us and purchase again," he says. "We don't want to sell people something that they don't need—we really want something that's going to work for them."

Ultimately, Keeney says, it's about making sure he can sleep well at night. "I don't want people calling back, saying, 'What you sold me is overkill: I spent way too much money,' or 'You said it would work and it didn't,'" he says. "We try to set very realistic expectations… we're very conservative with the advice that we give."

Returns and pricing
Similarly, Keeney says the company does its best to assist its customers with any warranty or return issues. "If somebody bought something that just plain doesn't work and they've had it for a few weeks, we take it right back, no problem, and refund all the money," he says. "If it's been a long time, depending on the manufacturer, we typically end up supporting returns from our own stocks, because we want to support the product."

Keeney says that while Pasadena Networks' pricing is competitive, low prices aren't a key focus for the company. "We don't make it a goal to try to just beat down everybody else's price, because I don't think that's necessarily what's good for the industry as a whole… we [focus] on service and support, trying to provide the customer a pleasant experience," he says.

As a result, he says, most of the company's business comes in through word of mouth. "Things get posted on different forums, in different places," he says. "And many of our customers have been buying from us for years. I look at some of our reports and find we've got people that are ordering right now that have been ordering from us for three-plus years. We really count on having repeat customers—that's a big part of our business."

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