What Next Step IT Limited does

Next Step IT Limited is an owner-managed IT support company founded in 2005 and headquartered in Fordingbridge, Hampshire, United Kingdom. It provides onsite and remote IT support to small and medium-sized businesses on the South Coast of England, and operates its own on-site data centre in the New Forest from which it runs the Farishon sub-brand of private cloud services. The company reports a headcount of 1–10 employees and has no disclosed funding or external investors.

The Farishon product portfolio comprises Farishon Email (hosted on Microsoft Exchange 2019 or HCL Domino 11), Farishon Defence (spam and virus filtering claiming over 99.6% spam block rate), Farishon Comet (managed cloud backup with AES-256-CTR encryption and fixed-fee pricing starting at £15 per month), and the forthcoming Farishon Drive (a private cloud file share / sync service). General IT support services include infrastructure and user support, system health checks, pre-paid Time Bank hour blocks, and ad-hoc assistance, with emergency remote support delivered through a Splashtop-powered SOS product. The technology stack relies on partnerships with Splashtop, Microsoft, and HCL layered with proprietary configuration and the bespoke Farishon Comet operational software.

Revenue mechanics are a mix of recurring subscription contracts (per-mailbox email, per-device backup, per-seat defence) and time-based support packages (Time Bank hours, ad-hoc engagements), with customer acquisition conducted through direct channels — website contact forms, email, and telephone. Customer testimonials indicate multi-year and over-a-decade relationships, and the company's value proposition centres on data sovereignty via in-house infrastructure, proactive rather than reactive support, and the personal service characteristic of an owner-managed micro-MSP.

Name

Next Step IT Limited

Legal name

Next Step IT Limited

Website

https://nextstepit.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Next Step IT Limited is an owner-managed UK IT support and private cloud provider serving small and medium-sized businesses on England's South Coast from its own New Forest data centre, operating the Farishon email, backup, and security product line.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Managed IT Support Services

NAICS

Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (5182)

SIC

Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Cloud Platforms (On‑Prem Cloud Stacks) (HDABABAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Service Desk & ITSM Outsourcing (BPAEAMAF), Data Center Operations & Managed Services (Remote Hands, NOC/SOC) (HDABANAA), Resilient DNS, Traffic Management & Global Load Balancing (HDABAIAI)

Keywords

• IT support services
• Managed IT services
• Private cloud backup
• Email hosting services
• Data backup solutions

Headquarters

HQ city

Fordingbridge

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. IT Support Services: Ongoing IT support services including infrastructure and user support, system health checks, Time Bank support contracts (block of hours), and adhoc IT support. Revenue generated through monthly/annual contracts and per-incident billing.
2. Data Backup (Farishon Comet): Fully managed cloud backup solution with fixed monthly cost based on storage space required. 1-year contract term. Pricing starts from £15 per month excluding VAT.
3. Email Services (Farishon Email): Hosted email services on Microsoft Exchange or HCL Domino platforms. Offered as part of Farishon private cloud services.
4. Email Defence Services (Farishon Defence): Email screening and security service that filters spam and viruses before delivery to customer's email server.
5. Time Bank IT Support: Block of hours that can be used for onsite, telephone, or remote support. Flexible payment for support time used rather than number of issues or users.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Next Step IT Limited provides onsite and remote IT support and private data backup services to small and medium-sized local companies on the South Coast of England. Its Farishon sub-brand offers private cloud services hosted in the company's own data centre in the New Forest, including email hosting, email security, cloud backup, and (coming soon) cloud file sharing.

Product overview

Next Step IT Limited provides a unified portfolio of IT support and private cloud services. The core offering is IT Support covering infrastructure maintenance, user support, and system health checks. The Farishon sub-brand encompasses private cloud services hosted in the company's own New Forest data centre: Farishon Email (Microsoft Exchange and HCL Domino powered email hosting), Farishon Defence (email security/spam filtering), Farishon Comet (cloud backup with fixed-cost pricing and AES-256 encryption), and Farishon Drive (cloud file sharing, upcoming). The SOS Remote Support service provides emergency remote assistance via Splashtop. Services are available as standalone offerings or combined into comprehensive support packages for small to medium businesses.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Farishon: Farishon is the name for Next Step IT's private cloud services, consisting of private cloud services hosted in the company's own data centre located within offices in the New Forest. Includes Farishon email, Farishon Defence, Farishon Comet, and Farishon Drive (coming soon).

Quantifiable outcome

• Email defence blocks over 99.6% of spam with no false positives
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• MicrosoftcoreTechnology or IntegrationMicrosoft partner providing Microsoft Exchange 2019 platform for email hosting services. Microsoft logo displayed on Partners & Vendors page indicating official partnership relationship.
• HCL SoftwarecoreTechnology or IntegrationProvides HCL Domino 11 platform for email hosting and application services. HCL logo displayed on Partners & Vendors page indicating official partnership relationship.
• SplashtopcoreTechnology or IntegrationRemote access software provider used for SOS Remote Support service, enabling remote connection to customer PCs and Macs for emergency support.
• Federation of Small Businesses (FSB)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerFSB member logo displayed on Partners & Vendors page indicating membership in business organisation for small businesses.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Netstar UK: UK managed IT support and cloud services firm targeting SMEs. Overlapping GTM (sales-led, recurring contracts) and customer profile (owner-led businesses needing backup/email/support).
• Redstor: UK-based managed cloud backup and disaster recovery provider serving SMB and mid-market. Closest analog to Farishon Comet: own-platform backup with data-residency emphasis, sold into UK SMEs.
• Air IT: UK managed IT services and cloud provider to SMEs and mid-market, with own cloud platform and recurring IT support contracts. Directly comparable product/market to NSIT's IT support + private cloud bundle.
• BackupAssist: Backup and disaster recovery software for SMBs and MSPs, with server/workstation/cloud backup. Functionally comparable to Farishon Comet's Windows/Linux/macOS backup coverage for small businesses.
• Databarracks: UK-based business continuity, disaster recovery and managed backup provider with own resilient infrastructure. Strongest direct analog to NSIT's data-protection-led private cloud positioning for UK SMBs.

Broad incumbents

• Acronis: Global cyber protection platform combining backup, disaster recovery and email security for MSPs/SMBs. Wide incumbency in same Farishon Comet/Defence categories at much larger scale.
• Veeam: Enterprise-grade backup and data management vendor widely used by MSPs and SMEs. Comparable backup functionality to Farishon Comet, with broader portfolio, partner channel, and brand.
• Sherweb: Cloud marketplace and managed services distributor enabling MSPs to deliver Microsoft, security, and backup to SMBs. Adjacent business model to NSIT's SME IT support + email/backup wrap.
• Datto (Kaseya): Unified backup, business continuity and MSP platform serving SMBs globally. Overlaps directly with NSIT's combined IT support + private backup positioning, but at significantly greater scale.

Regional players

• Prolifics Technology Services: UK IT services and managed support provider delivering infrastructure, cloud and end-user support to SMB/mid-market. Similar services mix but broader geographic reach and larger team.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Next Step IT Limited