Two students found iPhone repair companies on campus

Within eight days in September, two students created iPhone repair companies that are in direct competition.

This past summer, John Plonk ’15 was stuck with a broken iPhone, and his warranty had expired. Instead of buying a new one, he decided he wanted to try to fix it himself. After watching YouTube videos and buying a couple of tools, he successfully repaired the phone on his own.

He became interested in the process and sent out emails to neighborhood listservs asking individuals if they had broken iPhones he could buy and practice fixing.

After returning to Princeton, Plonk decided to open up a company buying and selling secondhand iPhones.

“I knew that because the iPhone 5 had just been released, a lot of people would have old iPhones that they would be willing to sell,” Plonk said.

His company, Tiger iPhone Service, was registered as a website domain on Sept. 16. He noted he planned to add to his business model to incorporate repairs soon after.

Just one week later, on Sept. 24, another website domain was registered to Martin Barakso ’16 for his company, Princeton iPhone Repair. Barakso had begun fixing computers and iPhones as a senior in high school, and after noticing that many students had iPhones with cracked screens on campus, he decided to start his own service for repairs.

As of now, both companies are operated solely by their founders. Soon after Plonk found out about his competitor, Plonk emailed Barakso to discuss the possibility of merging companies. Barakso said he declined the offer because it would cut into his profits and would require increased communication that could reduce efficiency.

Both offer to fix common problems with iPhones such as cracked screens, water damage and broken home buttons. Plonk and Barakso say their services provide an easier and quicker alternative than traveling to an Apple store or mailing in a phone to get it fixed.

“You really have to do some digging online to figure out how to go about repairing [iPhones],” Plonk said.

Both Princeton iPhone Repair and Tiger iPhone Service provide similar prices for these fixes, which are both significantly cheaper than Apple’s out-of-warranty services. Plonk’s company only repairs iPhones, while Barakso’s business also offers services for broken Macbook laptops.

“Both of our [prices] are so much lower than anybody else,” Barakso said. “The cheapest iPhone replacement you can get in New York is around $90, and the most expensive goes up to about $130."

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Both companies offer to replace LCD screens for $70. Barakso orders replacement parts from a company in China that sells in bulk, while Plonk orders his parts from Amazon.

Both have advertised their businesses through posters and Facebook pages and also have their own websites. Barakso added that he also pays for Facebook and newspaper ads to help spread word about his repair company throughout the community. Both companies offer services not only to University students but to local people as well.

“I wanted the experience of starting a company, seeing what it is like to register a business, and I am really happy with what I’m doing,” Plonk said.

Plonk said he handles the competition by trying to offer the best service possible, testing each phone before it is returned to the owner, offering free pickup and guaranteeing a service to be finished in 45 minutes.

Barakso said his company’s broader repair abilities and his flexibility and availability are characteristics that will allow Princeton iPhone Repair to be successful.