User:HelenPerkins86/UK Good Deals

UK Good Deals Ltd based in Preston in the North West region of England, is a worldwide importer and retailer.

In 2009 the company became a UK Top 60 Ebay Titanium Power Seller.

Company history
Two friends, Ian Moore and Adam Patel, set up the business in 2004. They started with the aim of bringing products to the UK which a consumer could not find at a similar price – which is why they named their company UK Good Deals.

Both members had previous careers which hinged on an ability to buy and sell the right products at the right price using Ebay and they exploited these ‘etailing skills’ for UK Good Deals. They transferred this knowledge of pricing and marketing to UK Good Deals and found a solid trading opportunity purchasing and selling inflatable dinghies through trade shows.

Twelve months later the company had gained enough capital for the pair to buy larger premises in Preston. They then started to look for trading opportunities in other markets.

During 2006, UK Good Deal’s directors decided to trade as a retail-only business in order to give customers the benefit of purchasing their goods without having to go through another company selling UK Good Deals’ stock.

By October 2009 the firm had 19 staff and was about to launch a new streamlined website in order to allow the company to trade worldwide across Ebay, Amazon and its own websites.

Ghostbikes
Determined to keep an open mind about what they would sell, Mr Moore and Mr Patel travelled to Hong Kong to look for good deals they could import. Mr Moore had a longstanding interest in motorbikes and discovered Mini Motos – a type of small bike that had not reached the UK except from Italy where they were substantially more expensive. In 2006 UK Good Deals branched into a small Mini Moto, Quad Bike, Pit Bike and Pocket Bikes range. These were imported back to Britain and traded through company’s second name – Ghostbikes – which has now become the main, and most profitable, area of the business. At the same time several other dealers selling Pocket Bikes began trading and left a serious shortfall in spare parts. The company gradually phased out its motorbikes range but still stocks spare parts dedicated to them and is now sells its own brand of [Ghost MX Pit Bikes].

In March 2007 Ghostbikes began sponsoring one of its members – Reece Rothwell – who competes nationally in motorcycle road races. Eighteen-year-old Reece started out as a customer at Ghostbikes but he gained interest in the company and its products. He now works as a marketing and sales assistant for Ghostbikes while competing across Britain. He assists the company in picking and testing its products.

In September 2009 Reece was placed in the Triumph Triple Challenge, reaching third place. As a result, he was asked to trial Michelin’s new range of tyres at their head quarters in Clermont-Ferrand. Next year he will begin competing in the British Superbike Championships. He blogs about his competitions around the UK.

Pro Jump
After realising there were many interesting products abroad which the UK market place was missing out on, Mr Moore and Patel travelled back to China to research further importing opportunities. Later in 2005 Mr Patel saw extreme sport jumping stilts being demonstrated and decided they would be popular in Britain. The stilts are an invention of Alexander Böeck. They are a patented product in the USA, UK, Spain, Italy, France and Germany and Mr Böeck only allowed a few companies to sell them using their own trade mark. UK Good Deals was granted permission.

In July 2006 the Pro-Jump Forum opened. It was the first forum of its type where a jumping stilts seller gave a focal point for all their customers to share experiences, pictures and videos and get instant support from other Pro Jumpers. This forum continues to grow and now has 1800 members.

Powerbock is the general name used for spring loaded jumping stilts regardless of the brand name. Sometimes people often refer to the stilts simply as "Bocks". UK Good Deals’ own brand of stilts has been named Pro-Jump.

In October 2006, Pro-Jump became the first stilts seller with its own sponsored display team, made up of talented individuals who promoted the sport around the country and offered training sessions. The Pro-Jump display team enjoyed lots of TV coverage and a member of the team appeared on the Jonathan Ross show in the Christmas 2006 show.

The Pro Jump side of the business has gained notoriety after particular interest from the regional and national press.

In 2009 the company began looking for a larger premises in Preston, in order to meet increasing customer demand and expand the business and its shop front.