London calling for UKFast

Manchester-based cloud firm heads south with new office

Manchester-based cloud firm UKFast has opened a London office as it looks to grow its business with customers based in the capital.

Its new base is in the Second Home building in Shoreditch and will act as a southern home for the firm, which has a Scotland office in addition to its central-Manchester HQ and datacentres.

Newly appointed commercial director Lee Hull is charged with growing the business in the capital, by focusing particularly on the channel and the public sector.

"As our services are engaged by more public sector bodies and as our activities in the channel continue to grow, it makes sense to have a presence in London," he said. "Our G-Cloud offerings are proving very popular and being here is important as more government systems move to the cloud.

"We're aiming to have a large team in place here within the next two years and it will be fantastic to see the further development UKFast can achieve."

UKFast's chief executive Lawrence Jones said setting up shop in London is not a snub for Manchester.

"The question for me isn't about Tech City vs Tech North or Manchester vs London," he said. "It's about collaboration between all UK tech interests in order to get the best results for our country and economy. I believe in buying British because we have the talent and the resources to deliver the best in everything we do. Tech is no exception.

"Being based in Shoreditch, in one of the main tech hubs in the UK, makes perfect sense. In Manchester we are right at the heart of the tech and digital community and we want to build a similar network here."