Sam King has formally stepped into the role of chief executive officer at iMint, marking a defining leadership transition for the UK based secondary mobile specialist as it accelerates its growth strategy across Europe. The appointment reflects a deliberate move to anchor the business around experienced industry leadership at a time when reverse logistics, device recovery and sustainable recommerce models are gaining structural importance within the global used electronics ecosystem. Sam King brings years of operational and commercial exposure to the secondary market as he worked for Mobio and TES Consumer Solutions.
Experience driven foundation
iMint’s leadership narrative is closely tied to the depth of experience embedded across its senior team. The company highlights a combined industry tenure of more than 40 years, with a four person senior leadership structure designed to balance commercial execution, operational discipline and regional expansion. Alongside Sam King, Lorenzo van der Spek has joined as commercial director Europe, tasked with building and scaling the company’s continental footprint. This experience driven foundation positions iMint to engage credibly with enterprise and operator partners seeking compliant, large volume device lifecycle solutions.
Operational model explained
At its core, iMint operates across global device buyback, trade in and B2B distribution. The business sources inventory directly from enterprises, mobile network operators and large institutional sellers, managing everything from broken and faulty devices to pristine, mint condition stock. Operations are currently anchored by a UK warehouse facility that manages B2B orders, international shipping and grading workflows. This facility forms the first node in a broader dual hub strategy designed to locate processing as close to customers as possible.
European expansion plans
As part of its next growth phase, iMint is actively planning a European processing hub in the Netherlands. The expansion is intended to strengthen compliance, reduce cross border friction and improve turnaround times for EU based partners. Sam King has emphasised that proximity to customers is not only a commercial advantage but also a sustainability lever, reducing unnecessary transport kilometers and enabling tighter control over downstream outcomes. Lorenzo Van der Spek will lead regional execution, focusing on building long term partnerships across Western and Central Europe.
Reverse logistics specialism
A defining characteristic of iMint’s positioning is its focus on reverse logistics and asset recovery, particularly for devices that are often overlooked or undervalued by traditional refurbishers. The company consistently procures broken, faulty and device exchange stock from major operators across the UK and EU. By integrating these complex flows into its processing model, iMint aims to extract maximum residual value while ensuring responsible handling of assets that might otherwise be exported for disposal or low standard processing.
Addressing industry challenges
The company has been explicit about what it describes as a persistent challenge within the secondary device market: the export of used electronics to low-income countries with limited environmental regulation. iMint’s leadership frames this practice as incompatible with credible circular economy claims. Its stated mission is to keep devices within regulated markets wherever possible, buying, reconditioning and reselling all grades including aged stock and non-functional units. This approach seeks to align commercial outcomes with measurable sustainability improvements.
Technology enabled consistency
To make this model commercially viable at scale, iMint is investing in next generation automation, AI driven grading and robotics. These technologies are intended to bring consistency, transparency and efficiency to device assessment and decision making, reducing subjective variance and improving throughput. Management describes this as autonomous decisioning applied to real world recommerce challenges, supporting more predictable pricing, faster settlement for sellers and clearer quality expectations for buyers.
Market traction emerging
While still early in its lifecycle, iMint reports that initial market traction has validated its approach. The business has approached seven figures in revenue within its first months of operation, driven primarily by B2B flows rather than consumer facing sales. Management is careful to stress that revenue alone is not the primary objective. Instead, the focus is on building trusted sourcing partnerships and infrastructure capable of supporting sustained, meaningful volume over time.
Commercial focus areas
iMint’s commercial offering spans competitive cash solutions for broken and faulty devices, supply of brand new, used, graded and refurbished smartphones, and tailored solutions for aged or overstated inventory. The company distributes mint condition devices into retail and insurance channels while also onboarding partners for all graded categories. By operating on both the buy and sell side globally, iMint positions itself as a flexible intermediary within increasingly complex trade in and redistribution flows.
Partner onboarding message
With leadership now in place, iMint is actively onboarding retail, wholesale, insurance and distribution partners across Europe. Strategic partnerships, particularly with operators and holders of large stock batches, are a stated priority. The company is clear that its model depends on consistent access to device exchange, broken and faulty inventory. By aligning commercial incentives with circular economy objectives, iMint aims to professionalise how these flows are managed within the secondary mobile market.
Market
Trade-in
Repair
Refurbishing
