SNX Fix I.T., Doing Right by Residents of VaHi

After decades of working for large firms in the I.T. industry, Jeremy Anderson began to feel uncomfortable with common practices at the IT firm where he worked.

“The morals of the I.T. industry was hard for me,” Anderson said.  “I had been asked before to draw out more time so we could charge more to the customer and a lot of that just didn’t sit well with who I am.”

In 2008 he started up SNX IT with his former colleague Michael Petri. 

“I just felt like if we built something from the ground up we could do it the right way the first time,” Anderson said.

SNX IT is an independent IT firm that caters to medium and small businesses.

Now, Anderson and Petri are reaching out to the residential market with their new brick and mortar store SNX Fix I.T., opening in half of the property that used to be Armour & Co. on N. Highland Avenue. 

“This neighborhood is us,” Anderson said.  “It allows us to grow in good ways with the neighborhood and us, we probably wouldn’t have done this is any other location in Atlanta.”

The store will offer installation and repair services for technology including computers and mobile devices, sell computers and other computer-related tools and offer advice to consumers about new or unfamiliar products.

”We’re trying to bring the same type of environment and expertise and knowledge to all of the other devices that aren’t handled by Apple,” Petri said.

This is key for SNX Fix I.T. because although they have the knowledge to handle Apple products, they do not yet have the certification required by Apple.  For Apple users, using an uncertified technician will nullify the product warranty.  SNX Fix I.T. is in the process of gaining certification and hopes to have it in a few months.   

Also in a few months, SNX Fix I.T. will offer training classes so that customers can better understand technology and can even repair and install things on their own.

“We really want to run this from an education standpoint,” Petri said. 

The two are not concerned that if their customers have the knowledge, they might not come back to the store for repairs.

“I’d rather them have the knowledge,” Anderson said, adding that he hopes to empower and educate customers, not take advantage of their lack of expertise.   

These tech experts have been working with computers for most of their lives and are eager to give away tips and tricks to help residents of Virginia Highlands who aren’t technologically gifted understand the tools that they use every day.   

“My brain works that way. I love puzzles, I like things that aren’t the same all of the time,” Anderson said.  “I’d like to bring people to understand what that actual back end of the problem could be.”

For SNX Fix I.T. helping others isn’t just good for community relations, it’s their business philosophy. 

“You do right for others and the rest of it just falls into place,” Anderson said.

SNX Fix I.T. is still under construction but will be opening later this fall.