John Marick and Greg Pryor founded Consumer Cellular in 1995 with a goal of providing low-cost service to casual mobile users of all ages. In 2008, Consumer Cellular became a preferred provider for
AARP members, becoming the first cellphone company to market extensively to the over-50 demographic. The company's first retail presence was established in 2011 with a partnership with
Sears stores. In 2014, Consumer Cellular was introduced in
Target stores, and in 2018 became available at select U.S.
Best Buy stores. In 2013, the company introduced a smartphone financing program called EasyPay that is available to consumers purchasing smartphones that cost $200 and up. That same year, the company partnered with
SquareTrade to begin providing cellphone protection plans. In May 2018, Consumer Cellular announced an investment in GrandPad and also became a distributor of the GrandPad tablet in the United States. In February 2013, in celebration of its one millionth customer, Consumer Cellular donated $100,000 to each of five non-profit partners, and $500,000 to its employees, for a total of $1 million. To celebrate its 20th anniversary and its milestone of 2 million customers, it donated $2 million to the Knight Cancer Challenge on behalf of their customers in 2015. After reaching 2.5 million customers in the summer of 2017, it donated 2.5 million meals via
Feeding America, and to mark the addition of its 3 millionth customer in October 2018, the company donated $500,000 to each of three charities selected by its employees. In August 2019, the company celebrated its 3.5 millionth customer by donating $350,000 to the American Red Cross through the Disaster Responder Program. In the fall of 2020, to honor its 25th anniversary, Consumer Cellular donated $2.5 million to
Toys for Tots. In October 2020, upon the decision of Marick and Pryor to retire, Ed Evans was installed as CEO, replacing Marick. ==Products==