PANAMA CITY — Cricket Wireless, a subsidiary company of AT&T, has opened its first store in the Panama City.
The store, located on East 23rd Street in the PetSmart shopping center, is Cricket’s first in the Panhandle, but owners say it won’t be the last.
“We’re also looking at other locations in town,” said store owner Mo Rustom. “This is where they wanted us to come and grow.”
Cricket Wireless specializes in discounted cellphone plans with no annual contract. Plans feature unlimited talk and text and offer a variety of data plans on a 4G LTE nationwide network. The company’s major competitors include Boost Mobile, Sprint, T-Mobile and MetroPCS.
“We’re able to have one of the stronger networks because we’re a subsidiary of AT&T,” said store manager Scott Vaughn. “We’re able to offer the coverage at a discounted price.”
Cricket offers a variety of smart phones, including iPhones, Samsung, Android, LG, Windows Phones and more. Data plans include a 1 gigabyte data plan for $40 per month, 3 GB of data for $50 a month and a 10 GB plan for $60 a month. All plans also include unlimited talk and text.
“You may pay a little more for the phone up front, but there’s no contract,” Vaughn said. “There’s a benefit to be able to switch or cancel your service at any time.”