It all started in February 1998 when chief designer Frank Nuovo felt inspired to sketch ideas for a high-end mobile device that would set the standard as the most beautiful phone available in the market. In October 1998 the Vertu brand was born, committed to the principle of handmade craftsmanship and the use of exotic, rare and naturally durable material. Where normal phone manufacturers produce mass volumes for short periods, Vertu would produce small volumes for long periods. Years have since gone by and the world has witnessed myriad launches and innovations that have clearly entitled Vertu to be recognised as an icon and the pinnacle of mobile phones excellence worldwide.
Vertu is often compared to luxury watch manufacturers like Rolex and Patek Philippe, however, luxury phone devices are a completely new field and Vertu is leading the way. “When you are the market leader it’s not about how you benchmark yourself here, it’s really defining luxury mobility and differentiating yourself,” affirms Perry Oosting, president of Vertu, to which he adds “I wouldn’t say we could be compared to an elegant watch, I think it’s a lot more, because if you look at the mobile device it has functionalities inside the device that go from email solutions, to web access, calendar management, but it’s also about the services, the touch button and what it can do for you. So I think it’s a lot more than just an elegant watch, it’s actually a kind of companion. And above all Vertu is a lifestyle. That’s a better description.”
Vertu’s Concierge, run by Ten UK, offers a unique service, dedicated to supporting Vertu customers. It’s accessed through a special button, the “concierge key”, on the side of every phone. This hot key puts the user through to a team of lifestyle managers who can book services such as gourmet dining, luxury travel or accommodation around the clock. “In its simplest form, the concierge service provides a lot of help and makes sure that we deliver exactly what our customer wants anytime and anywhere,” says Mark Izatt, global consumer marketing manager at Vertu. But that’s not all, the service can be upgraded to a dedicated one on one personalised service, “Once you upgrade, you are now dealing mainly with one named individual, like a personal assistant, and if you phone at any time you will always get that same person or a small team that reports to him, that way we can cater to individual needs and get to know our customer and their preferences to better fit their needs,” explains Izatt.
Concierge is clearly the key service benefit of Vertu and currently caters to customers in seven languages. However, it’s a challenge to implement, “Customers don’t need standstill services so we are currently looking at new ways of bringing the proposition alive. Better ways of making it regionally relevant, so that the global service can really respond to the unique interests and capture some of our customers in the Middle East and North America,” says Izatt. “There are definitely challenges but it’s challenges that we respond to well as we have a strong team of dedicated restaurants and food experts who are there to meet the expectations of the customers and who have a unique access so they can meet customers’ requests but also they can informed and suggest alternatives and be more proactive with customers in order to suggest things that perhaps they might have not thought of.”
Above all though, Vertu is a mobile phone company, and the latest offering, the Ascent Ti Ferrari collection, was launched this June. Vertu was born from an obsession to create a personal communication tool that deployed craftsmanship and technology in a way that had never been achieved before. Of course you expect the highest quality when you are paying around 10,000 USD for a phone, but it still surprises many when they first use the notable Yamaha audio system, which is better than any other in the market and capable of a staggering 100dB clear sound. The phone is perhaps comparable to the craftsmanship involved in a Ferrari car but then again Vertu spent twice as many hours researching and developing the Vertu Ascent than Ferrari does developing its Formula One car. The liquid metal chassis of the phone is flexed under 55 kilograms of pressure to check for elasticity and return to form in the event of it being dropped. In addition, the leather used is tested for resistance to everything including petrol and lipstick. Each phone is micro-perforated by lasers to create the effect of light shining through solid steel. We’re not just talking about a phone here, it’s serious engineering. So much so that Vertu tries not to include any features that are likely to be outdated so as to extend the product life. The company spokesmen are famously quoted as saying ‘when they make one good enough we'll use it’ in response to a question on why none of their phones have cameras.
One can’t help but wonder if Vertu has suffered the consequences of the ongoing harsh financial crisis. “Of course, the world changed quite a bit since February 2009 and it was the first time it hit the luxury global market. There was some short-term tactics to be done while at the same time preparing for the future. One of the key elements we’ve done is the launching of the strategy for the next three years looking not only at how Vertu started as design and craftsmanship but also starting to close the gap of the technology side, defining what is a luxury technology, to really gain experience in the user interface which is as important as style, service and content,” says Oosting.
Vertu is a pioneer in luxury phone technology and craftsmanship, but other, lesser known, companies have recently entered the market, such as French-based firm Celsius. Will Vertu continue to be number one, and what about the competition? “I think it’s a 360 degree job, quality of product, quality of service, quality of distribution, quality of technology, quality of hardware, quality of people, quality of communication, quality of interaction, and to remain within the right environment otherwise you dilute the quality of the brand. These are the real things we strive for and that will protect the brand. And of course the definition of luxury in brand quality is about exclusivity and uniqueness. So it’s a good thing to make sure it’s not suddenly everywhere, that it remains exclusive without having to be niche,” explains Oosting. It seems that the leaders of the pack are bullishly confident. With their track record, perhaps they have reason to be.
