Kazam prepare for their new phone launch by employing a load of new people

Remember a few months ago when two ex HTC staff members decided to start up their own phone company? Well, here they are and their new company logo.

Leigh wrote about the initial announcement of their company here, which gives more detail on their history. Yesterday they announced that their team is expanding ahead of the full launch. Judging on the location of the new staff, Kazam are planning on a fairly wide rollout.

They have employed the following people:

Chief Operating Officer – Frank Jensen, based in Denmark
European Customer Care and Service Director – Stefan Schietaert, based in Brussels
Kazam’s Head of Products – Daniel Boff
Sales Director – Rakesh Odedra, based in the UK
Javier Martinez Esparza to drive sales & marketing across Spain
Yves-Raphael Loerke to drive sales & marketing across the DACH region
Wojciech Wasilewski to drive sales & marketing in Poland

These new appointments takes the team up to about thirty people, pulling in experience from companies like Motorola, Toshiba, Panasonic, Sharp, Carphone Warehouse and Nokia.

James Atkins CMO said the following about Kazam

“As we get closer to the launch of our first range of phones we continue to refine and improve our processes and services in order to deliver a really credible offering. We want to disrupt the current status quo by delivering quality phones at accessible prices underpinned by excellent customer service and having a local and lean structure.”

It will be interesting when Kazam actually announce any products. At this stage all we know is that they used to work for HTC and that their key staff member used to work for a load of other companies. Just a clue as to what OS they are leaning towards would be enough at this stage for me. I guess we just have to sit and wait.

Show Press Release (417 More Words)

15 August 2013, London, new smartphone brand Kazam, gears up for the imminent launch of its first range of smartphones, with a number of key appointments across Europe.

Joining the executive team as Chief Operating Officer is Frank Jensen, based in Denmark. Jensen brings with him a wealth of experience and has already established Kazam’s European supply chain strategy delivering a more flexible sales solution. Jensen will also lead sales & marketing across the Nordics, supported by Thomas Faber and Clause Pederson to drive sales.

Stefan Schietaert has been appointed as European Customer Care and Service Director, based in Brussels. He has over 15 years telcos experience working for major brands including Motorola and Toshiba.

Daniel Boff has been appointed as Kazam’s Head of Products, responsible for design, selection and testing. He has 9 years experience within the mobile industry and has held senior product positions for Panasonic and Sharp.

Rakesh Odedra joins Kazam as Sales Director, based in the UK. Odedra brings over a decade of mobile phone sales experience, most recently leading sales for global MVNO’s and working for major telco brands including The Carphone Warehouse and Nokia.

‘We are pleased to announce a strong and experienced team to support the European launch of Kazam’s first range of mobile phones next month. We are confident these strategic appointments bring the skills, expertise & local knowledge that is needed to successfully launch a new mobile phone brand,’ said Michael Coombes, CEO of Kazam.

Other key appointments include:

•       Javier Martinez Esparza to drive sales & marketing across Spain, Portugal and Greece, supported by Borja Diaz responsible for sales and Carolina López responsible for marketing.

•       Yves-Raphael Loerke to drive sales & marketing across the DACH region, supported by Richard Häusler, responsible for sales and Nora-Madeleine Barakath, responsible for marketing.

•       Wojciech Wasilewski to drive sales & marketing in Poland, based in Warsaw. Kazam Poland has also recruited sales and marketing positions.

These strategic European appointments deliver a strong, experienced yet lean Kazam team of 30 people.

James Atkins CMO said, “As we get closer to the launch of our first range of phones we continue to refine and improve our processes and services in order to deliver a really credible offering. We want to disrupt the current status quo by delivering quality phones at accessible prices underpinned by excellent customer service and having a local and lean structure.”

Kazam was set up by Michael Coombes and James Atkins earlier this year, both former HTC executives, with the desire to build a new phone brand that really stands out.