Lily Communications

What Lily Communications does

Lily Communications Ltd. is a UK-based managed service provider founded in 2009 and headquartered in Leeds, operating across voice, data, mobile, IT and utilities for primarily small and medium-sized enterprises. Its flagship product is Lily Cloud, a fully hosted VoIP phone system delivered over Voice over Internet Protocol, complemented by a broader portfolio spanning on-premise telephony (iPECS), Microsoft Teams Direct Routing, video conferencing, call management and analytics, business broadband (FTTP, FTTC, SoGEA, leased lines), business mobile services (resold via O2), Mobile Device Management, managed IT, SonicWall-powered IT security (Lily Shield), dark web monitoring, Microsoft 365/Copilot integration, Cyber Essentials certification, hardware-as-a-service, business energy and merchant services. The technology stack is built on established partner platforms (Microsoft, Gamma, SonicWall, BT Openreach, CityFibre, DrayTek, O2) rather than proprietary infrastructure.

The company monetises through a mix of recurring monthly subscriptions (hosted VoIP, connectivity, managed IT, cybersecurity, dark web monitoring), managed service retainers, hardware sales, and commission/aggregation fees from utilities and merchant services. Go-to-market is consultative and direct: inside sales and account managers deliver free, no-obligation cost-saving audits and tailored quotes, supported by content marketing, SEO, and partner referrals. Customer concentration is skewed toward UK SMEs, with a defined push into the education vertical where Cyber Essentials Plus certification and ESFA funding alignment create a differentiated position. Named customers include Weetwood Hall Estate (hospitality) and Bristol Care Homes (healthcare), with broader references across manufacturing and education. Lily is positioning aggressively around the UK ISDN Switch-Off in January 2027 as a tailwind for hosted telephony and full-fibre migration demand.

Name

Lily Communications

Legal name

Lily Communications Ltd.

Website

https://lilycomms.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Lily Communications is a UK managed service provider, headquartered in Leeds and founded in 2009, delivering hosted VoIP, connectivity, business mobile, managed IT and cybersecurity to small and medium-sized enterprises, with a defined focus on the education sector.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Managed Business Communications and IT Services

NAICS

All Other Telecommunications (5178), Telecommunications Resellers (517121)

SIC

Telephone Communications (No Radiotelephone) (4813), Communications Services, Nec (4899)

akta.pro primary industry

VoIP Access & ITSP Services (HDAIAHAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Enterprise LAN/WAN & SD-WAN Services (BPAEAEAD), Unified Communications & VoIP Telephony for Campuses (EDAEAHAE), IT Managed Services for Campus Operations (Service Desk, Endpoint, Network Ops) (EDAEALAE)

Keywords

• Hosted VoIP telephony
• Business broadband connectivity
• Managed IT services
• Cyber security solutions
• Business mobile services

Headquarters

HQ city

Leeds

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Hosted VoIP Phone Systems: Monthly subscription revenue from cloud-based phone systems. Pricing based on user count and feature requirements. Includes installation, hardware options, and ongoing support.
2. Connectivity Services (FTTP, FTTC, SoGEA, Leased Lines): Recurring revenue from broadband and connectivity solutions. Business broadband with service level agreements (SLAs), static IP addresses, and backup solutions.
3. Business Mobile Services: Mobile tariffs with 90-day rolling contracts, SIM-only deals, device hire, and hardware sales. Revenue from monthly airtime plans and device purchases.
4. Managed IT Services: Ongoing IT support, monitoring, security management, patch management, anti-spam/antivirus, document backups, web filtering, and Mobile Device Management. Typically bundled into monthly packages.
5. Hardware Sales: VoIP phones, routers (including DrayTek 4G/5G backup routers), mobile devices, and accessories. One-time hardware purchases plus ongoing maintenance where applicable.
6. Cyber Security Services: Cyber Essentials certification consulting, IT security solutions, dark web monitoring subscriptions, and endpoint protection services. Includes initial certification fees and ongoing monitoring retainers.
7. Utilities (Energy, Merchant Services): Business energy tariff aggregation and merchant services for card payments. Revenue from service fees and negotiated supplier commissions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Lily Communications is a UK managed service provider that sells bundled business communications and IT solutions to UK SMEs and education organisations. Its core offering centres on Lily Cloud, a proprietary hosted VoIP phone system, supplemented by business broadband (FTTP, FTTC, SoGEA, leased lines, mobile broadband), business mobiles via O2, managed IT services, SonicWall-powered cyber security, Dark Web ID monitoring, Microsoft 365/Teams integration, Cyber Essentials certification, and adjacent utility services (business energy, merchant services, web listings).

Product overview

Lily Communications is a digital transformation and managed service provider offering a comprehensive portfolio of voice, data, mobile, IT, and utility solutions for UK businesses. The core offering centres on Lily Cloud, a fully hosted VoIP phone system that delivers cloud-based telecommunications with traditional phone system features. The product ecosystem includes: voice solutions (Hosted VoIP, On Premise Phone Systems, Teams Voice, Video Conferencing, Call Management); data connectivity (FTTP, FTTC, SoGEA, Enterprise Lease Lines, Mobile Broadband); mobile services (Business Mobiles, MDM); IT services (Managed IT, IT Security/Lily Shield, Dark Web ID, Microsoft Teams, Microsoft 365, Storage & Back-up, Hardware as a Service, Cyber Essentials Certification); and utilities (Business Energy, Merchant Services, Web Listings). The portfolio follows a platform-plus-modules architecture where Lily Cloud VoIP serves as the core platform, supplemented by specialized services like Collaborate (unified communications), call analytics, and mobile device management as add-on capabilities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Lily Cloud: Fully hosted VoIP phone system delivered through the cloud, offering traditional and modern communication features.
• Lily Renew
• Lily Shield
• Collaborate

Products and services

• Lily Cloud Hosted VoIP Phone System Proprietary fully hosted cloud-based VoIP phone system for UK businesses, delivering traditional telephony features (caller ID, voicemail, call forwarding) plus modern capabilities (call recording, analytics, CRM integration, video calling, instant messaging) accessible via handsets, web portal, and mobile apps.
• Collaborate Unified Communications Unified Communications sub-brand integrating voice calls, video conferencing, instant messaging and file sharing into a single platform for UK business teams.
• Teams Voice (Microsoft Teams Direct Routing) Enables Microsoft Teams as a full cloud-based UC solution with enterprise-grade telephony, allowing UK businesses to make and receive calls through Teams with number porting and call statistics.
• Managed IT Services Ongoing managed IT support covering IT helpdesk, monitoring, anti-spam/anti-virus, document backups, web filtering, patch management and endpoint protection, typically delivered as a monthly bundled retainer for UK SMEs.
• IT Security / Lily Shield Multi-layered managed IT security solution powered by SonicWall, including real-time threat detection, next-generation firewall with sandboxing and anti-malware, deep packet inspection for SSL traffic, email security and endpoint protection for UK organisations.
• Dark Web ID Monitoring Cyber Shield Dark Web ID Protection service that continuously scans the dark web for compromised organisational credentials and alerts the business when its data appears, enabling proactive response before a breach escalates.
• Cyber Essentials Certification Government-backed Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus certification, including consulting, five technical controls implementation, and ongoing support; prices start from £300 with Plus involving external auditor fees.
• Business Mobiles (O2 Reseller) Business mobile packages resold on the O2 network, including 90-day rolling SIM-only contracts (e.g., £11.50/500MB, £25.50/unlimited), device hire for iPhones and mid-range smartphones, and 4G MiFi router hire.
• FTTP (Fibre to the Premises) Broadband Full fibre business broadband delivering ultra-fast internet speeds up to 1Gbps via fibre optic cables directly to UK premises for SME and education connectivity.
• Enterprise Leased Lines Dedicated high-speed symmetric internet connection exclusively for a single business with corporate-grade security, supporting cloud software, VoIP and video conferencing.
• SoGEA Broadband Single Order Generic Ethernet Access broadband without a landline, delivering speeds up to 80Mbps via part-fibre technology, enabling ISDN-line-free connectivity.
• FTTC G.fast Broadband Part-fibre broadband using fibre to the street cabinet combined with copper for the final connection to UK business premises.
• Mobile Broadband Packages 4G mobile Wi-Fi and broadband solutions for remote working using MiFi devices and dongles, including 4G/5G primary and backup connectivity.
• Mobile Device Management (MDM) MDM solution for monitoring, updating, securing and remotely wiping smartphones, tablets and laptops; supports data-usage tracking and policy restrictions for education and business customers.
• Microsoft 365 Microsoft 365 productivity suite for UK businesses, including Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, OneDrive, Teams and embedded Copilot AI, delivered with Lily licensing and management.
• Microsoft Teams Collaboration Microsoft Teams deployment with chat, video conferencing, file sharing, SharePoint Online document storage and Forms integration for interactive meetings.
• Storage & Backup Cloud storage and backup solutions ensuring business files are protected, replicated and easily recoverable.
• Hardware as a Service Equipment rental and leasing for business hardware including VoIP phones, networking equipment, smartphones and 4G/5G routers on monthly subscription.
• Call Management Analytics Call recording, monitoring and analytics software providing real-time insights into call traffic, performance, AI-driven keyword extraction, anomaly detection and CRM integration.
• Video Conferencing Collaborate video meeting solution for ad-hoc and planned conferences with screen sharing, instant messaging, polls and participation features.
• On Premise Phone Systems Traditional on-premise phone systems including iPECS call platforms for UK businesses preferring in-house hardware solutions.
• Business Energy Business energy tariff comparison and procurement service helping UK businesses save on gas and electricity bills via aggregated supplier commissions.
• Merchant Services Payment processing and card machine services enabling UK businesses to accept card payments.
• Lily Renew Sustainability-focused technology refresh and recycling service for business hardware end-of-life.

Quantifiable outcome

• 86% of customers have saved money
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

AI capability8 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core, key and secondary.

• MicrosoftcoreTechnology or IntegrationMicrosoft partnership enables delivery of Microsoft 365, Teams, Teams Direct Routing, and Copilot AI solutions. Lily provides Microsoft 365 licensing with cost savings, Teams telephony integration, and Office 365 Education solutions for the education sector. Deep integration partnership spanning multiple product lines.
• SonicWallcoreTechnology or IntegrationSonicWall partnership provides multi-layered IT security solutions including real-time threat detection, next-generation firewalls with sandboxing and anti-malware, deep packet inspection, email security, and endpoint security. Core cybersecurity technology partnership.
• GammacoreTechnology or IntegrationGamma is a telecommunications provider whose technology supports Lily's hosted phone and SIP trunking solutions. Partnership enables delivery of VoIP services and ISDN migration solutions.
• BT (Openreach)keyTechnology or IntegrationBT Openreach is the primary network infrastructure provider for UK broadband and legacy ISDN/PSTN services. Lily works with BT to deliver FTTP, FTTC, and SoGEA broadband solutions while managing customer migration away from ISDN.
• CityFibrekeyTechnology or IntegrationCityFibre is an alternative fiber network provider. Lily delivers business broadband over CityFibre's network infrastructure, offering full fibre connectivity as alternative to BT.
• e-LGsecondaryTechnology or IntegrationTechnology partner providing mobile devices and solutions. e-LG supplies hardware that Lily includes in mobile device management and business mobile offerings.
• DrayTekkeyTechnology or IntegrationDrayTek provides 4G/5G routers used for internet backup solutions. Lily installs and manages DrayTek routers with Auto Configuration Server (ACS) software for remote monitoring, enabling business continuity during primary broadband outages.
• O2 (Telefonica)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorO2 is the mobile network operator whose SIM-only deals, device hire, and mobile tariffs Lily resells to business customers. Partnership enables business mobile packages with various data/call/text bundles.
• Education & Skills Funding Agency (ESFA)keyStrategic or Co-development PartnerESFA requires Cyber Essentials certification for schools/colleges applying for education and skills contracts. Lily supports education customers in achieving certification to qualify for ESFA funding, creating strategic alignment.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Gamma Communications: UK-based UCaaS, SIP trunking, and connectivity provider. Direct comparison to Lily because Gamma both supplies Lily's underlying hosted telephony and competes for the same UK SME cloud communications customers with its own direct sales motion.
• Daisy Communications: One of the largest UK managed communications and IT services providers serving SMEs and mid-market. Closely comparable to Lily in product breadth (voice, data, mobile, IT, cloud) and UK SME go-to-market, but at significantly larger scale.
• Wavenet: UK managed service provider offering unified communications, connectivity, cybersecurity, and cloud services to SMEs and mid-market. Directly comparable to Lily on product mix, channel-led sales motion, and UK SME target segment.
• Onecom: UK-based mobile-first communications and cloud solutions MSP serving SMEs and mid-market. Comparable to Lily on multi-product comms/IT positioning, O2 partnership, and UK regional sales-led GTM.
• Chess ICT: UK managed IT, communications, and connectivity provider serving SMEs and mid-market. Direct peer on bundled voice/data/IT/security offerings and UK SME customer base.
• RingCentral: Global cloud UCaaS and contact center platform. Comparable to Lily's hosted VoIP/UC core offering (Lily Cloud) at the product level, though operating at very different scale and primarily through channel partners in the UK rather than direct SME sales.
• 8x8: Global cloud communications and contact center provider. Comparable to Lily on cloud-hosted telephony and UCaaS functionality, with overlap in the UK SME/mid-market segment served via partners.
• Vonage (Ericsson): Cloud communications provider (now part of Ericsson) offering UCaaS, CPaaS, and SIP services. Comparable to Lily on hosted VoIP/SIP trunking product set, including wholesale SIP that competes with Gamma in Lily's supply chain.

Broad incumbents

• BT Business: Largest UK incumbent telecoms provider. Comparable because BT owns the underlying Openreach access network that Lily resells for FTTP/FTTC/SoGEA and is also the ISDN service being displaced, positioning BT as both supplier and large competitor for enterprise comms.
• TalkTalk Business: UK business broadband and communications provider serving SMEs. Comparable to Lily on connectivity-led SME comms positioning and overlapping target customers for FTTC/FTTP migration sales.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights1 record

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/lilycomms
• Facebookfacebook.com/lilycommunications

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Lily Communications