Meet The Young + Passionate Team Behind This Innovative, Local Start-Up

How good is an awesome start-up story?

And it’s doubly good when there are three incredibly passionate locals behind the start-up all about innovation and good old-fashioned customer service. 

Yep! The two can cohabitate quite nicely together, thank you very much! 

It’s Casey Noble, Nicole Vella and Reuben Scott making it happen.  

And it’s us Highlanders who get the benefits. 

Meet the team from new local business, The Techery.

1 :: We’re excited to chat to you, guys. Congrats on launching The Techery! Tell us how it all started.

Casey :: We’ve been working together for some time in this space and saw a real gap in the market for being able to provide smart technology solutions for locals, supported by fast internet.

Reuben :: Our skills and experience lie in that rural internet space and this was a way we could build on that, and also offer something innovative and progressive to the homes and businesses of the Southern Highlands.

Nicole :: We also wanted to create a company where customer service is the primary focus. You know, that old school customer service where you pick up a phone and you talk to a local who not only knows what they’re talking about but can absolutely customise a solution for a customer.

2 :: And who is doing what at The Techery?

Casey :: I’m the General Manager, Nicole is our Operations Manager and Reuben is Head of Field Operations.

Nicole :: We also have three others on the team, so it’s a small team to start with but we’ve hit the ground running.

Reuben :: Casey, Nicole and myself have worked together for some time and our values and the way we approach business and innovation are aligned at a core level. Our strengths and skill sets work really well together.

Casey [pictured below] :: I knew straight away that if I was going to go into business, it would be with Reuben and Nicole. We work so well as a team and combine to create a bit of a business, tech and innovation superhuman!

3 :: So, first of all let’s talk about the new service you’re offering…..SMART automations for homes, businesses and rural properties. 

Reuben :: SMART automation and technology is definitely where the future is with the way we live. We’re heading to the point where you can walk into your house, talk to it and activate lifestyle elements of the house from closing blinds to opening locks to security cameras to turning lights on and more.

Smart doorbells and smart locks – ones that you can activate with fingerprints, for example – and smart security systems are popular with customers at the moment.

Nicole :: We also work with Airbnb owners to install systems and automations that allow them to manage their property remotely and efficiently.

Casey :: We’re giving people back their time. It’s all about simplifying life for them.

4 :: And most people would be surprised to know that for many of these products, the installation, cost and ongoing maintenance doesn’t take as long or cost as much as people initially expect. 

Reuben  :: That’s right. One of our products is a security system with a camera that doesn’t need to be hard wired which makes it easier to position a camera exactly where you want it. It has a 365 day battery life and you can even get ones with solar panels so you never have to charge them ever. 

They take 20 minutes to install, it connects to your Wi-Fi and an app on your phone and now you can see what those cameras are seeing on your phone at any time of the day or night. 

Nicole [pictured below] :: It’s just really seamless and easy for busy residents and business owners to manage, from when they call us to talk through their needs right through to installation. 

Casey :: It’s cost effective too. I’m a single parent and I installed five SMART cameras around my house. It was a small investment for me to feel safer at home. 

And that speaks to relieving the mental load of life for our customers too. How many times have we all walked out the door and forgotten something? Whether it’s turning the heating off, or closing the blinds so the afternoon sun doesn’t heat up the house, activating the robot vacuum or one of the kids’ has lost their house keys and can’t get in….SMART automations provide a quick and easy solution for all those issues, and more.

5 :: Now, slow internet is still a problem for so many locals, especially those living on the land. Providing fast internet solutions for Highlanders is a very important part of what you do too, isn’t it? 

Nicole :: Well, there’s two elements to that. Firstly, strong, reliable internet is the foundation for being able to provide SMART automation solutions. You need it to be able to have this level of technology operate effectively in your home or business. 

Secondly, there are still so many properties [urban or rural] and businesses that just can’t get fast internet. We’re working with customers in places like Exeter and Bundanoon, both of which are less than half an hour from a major town in the Highlands but still can’t get reliable internet or decent speeds. 

Reuben [pictured below]  :: We provide fast and specialised antennas that allow locals [who feel like they’ve been forgotten by the big telco’s] to get those fast internet speeds. We’re talking speeds of up to 100mbps depending on the distance of your home to the closest tower.

Casey :: We can also optimise your existing internet service, provide a new one or install a point to point system that allows you to connect to other buildings on your property, like a granny flat, shed or stables.

6 :: We love that everyone on the end of the phone and the techs that turn up are all local too. 

Casey :: We know the area, we know our customers and we know our technology. 

That means we can jump on any sort of tech issue really quickly. Our customers don’t have to wait weeks for a technician from a big company unfamiliar with the area and the local internet challenges to turn up and maybe fix the issue. 

Our guys will be on your doorstep within a day or two and most of the tech issues we come up against, we manage to fix within 24 hours.

7 :: Innovative new products are something the three of you like discovering and tinkering with too, right?  

Nicole :: We’re always researching and coming up with new ideas and products together. The whole team often chats about new innovations we’ve come across, then we’ll source the equipment or technology, hand it over to Reuben and find a customer who’s open to trialling something new at their property. 

Casey :: It’s so important to keep innovating and improving on what we already provide now. 

Reuben :: And that’s really core to how the three of us [and actually, the whole team] operate. We get really excited about technology that’s going to make a big and positive difference to our customers’ lives. 

Casey :: And we know that because, as I said before, we know our customers and they know us. 

And that makes all the difference to The Techery customer experience.

How awesome does all that sound? We really enjoyed chatting to Casey, Nicole and Reuben and are pumped that a young, customer-focused and innovative company has chosen the Highlands for their tech start-up. Silicon Valley?? Pffttt….

If you’re a local resident, run a business and/or own a rural property, reach out to  this small but passionate team to see how they can simplify your life through SMART automation technology and bloody decent internet. 

Good to know it’s doable, right? 

Head to The Techery’s newly launched website for more information, contact details and to support a local start-up.

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