Lawrence Jones (businessman)
Encyclopedia
A serial entrepreneur, Lawrence Jones set up his first business while a sixth form student at De La Salle College in Salford. Music Design Company booked classical musicians for Manchester venues and organised events before he sold it to Granada Group in 1998.
He joined forces with Granada in 1998 as a director working for a year integrating the two businesses before leaving for a period in the US.
It was whilst in America, Jones realized that the Internet was his next venture.
A fan of modern art, Jones set up a website selling pictures in 1999. But he was shocked at the poor service from his hosting company, he decided to set one up himself in September 1999. UKFast.Net Ltd or UKFast
, a Manchester
-based business-to-business
hosting provider, offering bespoke dedicated and virtual hosting
solutions. Jones' business now looks after 250,000 e-commerce web sites.
Jones and his team cut the time it took to deliver servers to clients from three weeks to one hour after being told it was impossible. His company delivers more servers in a week than he did in his first year.
Jones occupies the top of the city tower
the highest office space in Manchester city centre
. Its servers are located in three independent data centers in both Manchester and London, MANOC1, MANOC2 and Telehouse North (London). MANOC
(Manchester Network Operation Centre) was originally set up at Manchester Universities Computer Building, the home of the worlds first computer.
Lawrence Jones is responsible for hundreds of thousands of ecommerce web sites, hosting clients such as UKTV and BP. His company is expanding by organic growth and sales have risen 67% a year from £1.4m in 2005 to £6.4m in 2008.
In 2010 the Lawrence Jones turned down an offer of £53m for UKFast and sited plans to diversify into the IT security market with services such as ethical hacking, PCI accreditation, offsite back up and disaster recovery. 2010 also saw Lawarence Jones’ business UKFast enter the fastest growing companies in the North West. Out of the 100 businesses shortlisted, Jones’ UKFast came 10th place.
Lawrence Jones’ business won the UK’s most fun and friendly place to work in the Great Places To Work Institute. He was quoted saying "To be recognised as the most 'fun and friendly' place out of all UK businesses is a real honour or a very big mistake!!” During a round table organized by the Manchester Evening News Jones who holds regular employee forums where team members get the opportunity to directly feedback their opinions, states “the relationship between employee well being and productivity is vitally important.” Jones believes in the philosophy “put your staff first.” This philosophy was reinforced when Jones’ private jet was grounded at Manchester airport during the ash air crisis. Jones refused to let his staff down and commandeered a couple of Porsche Cayennes and drove his team 1000 miles (1,609.3 km) to a Hosting Summit at Branson’s famous mountain retreat, The Lodge in Verbier.
, the largest lake in the Snowdonia National Park. Employees experience climbing weekends in Snowdon which promote camaraderie between departments and promotes a healthy lifestyle.
Jones’ second training property is located in Trafford Park in Manchester. He paid £1.2m for the 10,000sq ft building, which is the home of his training academy. The academy is managed by his recruitment company MySort.co.uk
Jones is also behind UKFast.TV which provide training videos which are given to employees on iPods with frequently updated material.
in May 2009. The deal is for 3 years and takes UKFast's involvement with the Sharks to 12 years. Lawrence Jones also signed a sponsor agreement with Airwaves-Yamaha one of the British Superbike teams.
Lawrence Jones also partners with and supports Manchester Camerata
, a Manchester based chamber orchestra. In May 2010 Lawrence Jones joined the board of directors of the Manchester Camerata
to help the orchestra reach a wider audience via the Internet.
Lawrence Jones and wife Gail sponsor Five Stars Scanner Appeal to help raise £250,000 for a new MRI scanner, to be housed at the Royal Manchester Children's Hospital.
He also teamed up with skin cancer charity Factor 50 to help them raise awareness and funding for continued research.
He joined forces with Granada in 1998 as a director working for a year integrating the two businesses before leaving for a period in the US.
It was whilst in America, Jones realized that the Internet was his next venture.
A fan of modern art, Jones set up a website selling pictures in 1999. But he was shocked at the poor service from his hosting company, he decided to set one up himself in September 1999. UKFast.Net Ltd or UKFast
UKFast
UKFast.Net Ltd or UKFast is a Manchester-based business-to-business hosting provider, offering bespoke dedicated and virtual hosting solutions within the UK web hosting industry. UKFast looks after 250,000 e-commerce web sites....
, a Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
-based business-to-business
Business-to-business
Business-to-business describes commerce transactions between businesses, such as between a manufacturer and a wholesaler, or between a wholesaler and a retailer...
hosting provider, offering bespoke dedicated and virtual hosting
Virtual hosting
Virtual hosting is a method for hosting multiple domain names on a server using a single IP address. This allows one server to share its resources, such as memory and processor cycles, in order to use its resources more efficiently....
solutions. Jones' business now looks after 250,000 e-commerce web sites.
Jones and his team cut the time it took to deliver servers to clients from three weeks to one hour after being told it was impossible. His company delivers more servers in a week than he did in his first year.
Jones occupies the top of the city tower
City Tower, Manchester
City Tower, is a 30-storey office block situated at Piccadilly Gardens in Manchester, England. It has the highest office space currently available in Manchester standing 107 metres tall. City Tower was completed in 1965, the Plaza complex was constructed by the developers Bernard Sunley and...
the highest office space in Manchester city centre
Manchester City Centre
Manchester city centre is the central business district of Manchester, England. It lies within the Manchester Inner Ring Road, next to the River Irwell...
. Its servers are located in three independent data centers in both Manchester and London, MANOC1, MANOC2 and Telehouse North (London). MANOC
MANOC
MANOC is the home to UKFast's servers and network.MANOC I & MANOC II originally started as facilities with in data centres owned by Manchester University. MANOC I was located in the Computer Building on Oxford Road...
(Manchester Network Operation Centre) was originally set up at Manchester Universities Computer Building, the home of the worlds first computer.
Lawrence Jones is responsible for hundreds of thousands of ecommerce web sites, hosting clients such as UKTV and BP. His company is expanding by organic growth and sales have risen 67% a year from £1.4m in 2005 to £6.4m in 2008.
In 2010 the Lawrence Jones turned down an offer of £53m for UKFast and sited plans to diversify into the IT security market with services such as ethical hacking, PCI accreditation, offsite back up and disaster recovery. 2010 also saw Lawarence Jones’ business UKFast enter the fastest growing companies in the North West. Out of the 100 businesses shortlisted, Jones’ UKFast came 10th place.
Lawrence Jones’ business won the UK’s most fun and friendly place to work in the Great Places To Work Institute. He was quoted saying "To be recognised as the most 'fun and friendly' place out of all UK businesses is a real honour or a very big mistake!!” During a round table organized by the Manchester Evening News Jones who holds regular employee forums where team members get the opportunity to directly feedback their opinions, states “the relationship between employee well being and productivity is vitally important.” Jones believes in the philosophy “put your staff first.” This philosophy was reinforced when Jones’ private jet was grounded at Manchester airport during the ash air crisis. Jones refused to let his staff down and commandeered a couple of Porsche Cayennes and drove his team 1000 miles (1,609.3 km) to a Hosting Summit at Branson’s famous mountain retreat, The Lodge in Verbier.
Training and Personal Growth
Lawrence Jones owns 2 training properties. One in Snowdonia known as Castell Cidwm, which combines as a training centre and recreational escape for staff, the estate is located at the foot of Mount Snowdon and includes Llyn CwellynLlyn Cwellyn
Llyn Cwellyn is a reservoir in North Wales which supplies drinking water to parts of Gwynedd and Anglesey. It lies on the Afon Gwyrfai in Nant y Betws between the Snowdon Massif and Mynydd Mawr in the northern part of Snowdonia National Park. It has an area of , and is over deep...
, the largest lake in the Snowdonia National Park. Employees experience climbing weekends in Snowdon which promote camaraderie between departments and promotes a healthy lifestyle.
Jones’ second training property is located in Trafford Park in Manchester. He paid £1.2m for the 10,000sq ft building, which is the home of his training academy. The academy is managed by his recruitment company MySort.co.uk
Jones is also behind UKFast.TV which provide training videos which are given to employees on iPods with frequently updated material.
Sponsorship
Lawrence Jones signed a record £2.5m sponsorship deal with the Sale Sharks Rugby ClubSale Sharks
Sale Sharks are a professional rugby union club who play in England in the Aviva Premiership.The club is an offshoot of Sale FC, which is based at Heywood Road in Sale, Greater Manchester, but Sharks currently play in Stockport at Edgeley Park, ground sharing with Stockport County F.C.Part of the...
in May 2009. The deal is for 3 years and takes UKFast's involvement with the Sharks to 12 years. Lawrence Jones also signed a sponsor agreement with Airwaves-Yamaha one of the British Superbike teams.
Lawrence Jones also partners with and supports Manchester Camerata
Manchester Camerata
The Manchester Camerata is a British chamber orchestra based in Manchester, England. The orchestra was founded in the 1971–1972 season. A sub-group from the orchestra, the Manchester Camerata Ensemble, specialises in chamber music performances....
, a Manchester based chamber orchestra. In May 2010 Lawrence Jones joined the board of directors of the Manchester Camerata
Manchester Camerata
The Manchester Camerata is a British chamber orchestra based in Manchester, England. The orchestra was founded in the 1971–1972 season. A sub-group from the orchestra, the Manchester Camerata Ensemble, specialises in chamber music performances....
to help the orchestra reach a wider audience via the Internet.
Corporate Social Responsibility
Lawrence Jones sponsored a high profile celebrity fund raising event in July 2009 hosted by Sarah Ferguson the Duchess of York. The Duchess teamed up with co-founders Gail and Lawrence Jones, directors of UKFast, who contributed financially to the Duchess on the Estate Project. The purpose of the sponsorship was to raise money for a community project in Northern Moor in Sale. The "Duchess on the Estate" was televised on ITV and successfully raised enough funds to complete the centre and raise awareness in the area.Lawrence Jones and wife Gail sponsor Five Stars Scanner Appeal to help raise £250,000 for a new MRI scanner, to be housed at the Royal Manchester Children's Hospital.
He also teamed up with skin cancer charity Factor 50 to help them raise awareness and funding for continued research.