We believe in transparency — so here's an honest account of what it actually takes to launch a UK technology company in 2026. If you're thinking about doing the same, this is for you.
Step 1 — Companies House (1 hour, £50)
Incorporating a UK limited company is genuinely fast now. GERIZIM DIGITAL LTD went from "idea" to "Company No. 17243068" in about an hour via Companies House online. Sole director, sole shareholder, single share class. The £50 fee is the cheapest thing you'll spend all year.
Step 2 — Google Workspace email (30 min, £4.60/mo)
We picked one paid mailbox — hello@gerizimdigital.co.uk — and added unlimited free aliases: info@, support@, billing@, careers@ all routing into the same inbox. £55/year covers email forever.
Step 3 — Domain & DNS (45 min)
Bought the domain, added MX records for Workspace, then SPF + DKIM + DMARC so our outbound email doesn't land in spam. The hardest part: figuring out which DNS provider was actually serving the zone.
Step 4 — Website (5 hours)
We built our own marketing site — the one you're reading this on. 16 pages, mobile responsive, real logo, real favicon, Companies-Act-compliant footer, animated hero, blog. It's all static HTML/CSS deployed to Firebase Hosting on the free tier.
If we can't ship our own marketing site in a day, why would anyone trust us with theirs?
Step 5 — Firebase Hosting (free)
Created the gerizim-digital project on Spark plan. Site went live at gerizim-digital.web.app in under 10 minutes. Custom domain points at it via two A records. SSL auto-provisioned. £0/month until we exceed the generous free quotas.
Step 6 — Banking (NatWest + Revolut)
Two business accounts in flight: NatWest for the primary current + reserve account, Revolut for fast international FX. Both still in compliance review, both should land within 1–2 weeks. Honest UK answer: bank account opening is still the slowest part of starting a company.
Step 7 — Stripe (live the same day)
Stripe was the fastest payment system to set up. Business profile, statement descriptor, weekly Friday payouts to bank. Active in less than 30 minutes.
Step 8 — Apple Developer + DUNS
Acquiring a D-U-N-S Number is free for UK companies (Dun & Bradstreet processes it in 1–3 business days). With that in hand we're migrating the existing Apple Developer Program membership into Gerizim's organization account.
The bill so far
- Companies House: £50
- Google Workspace: £4.60/month
- Domain: £12/year
- Firebase Hosting: £0
- NatWest Business: £0/month
- Stripe: 1.4% + 20p per transaction (only when we earn)
Total monthly cost to operate: under £10/month. The biggest variable is what we choose to spend on AI APIs, hosting, marketing.
Lessons so far
- Modern banking is the bottleneck. Everything else can be set up the same day. Banks still take days to weeks.
- You don't need much money. <£100 covers the entire setup cost.
- Build your own website first. It's the cheapest marketing material you'll ever own.
- Use aliases, not multiple mailboxes. Cuts email costs by 80%.
We'll keep posting updates as the company grows. If you're at the early stages of your own venture and want a software partner who's been there, say hello.
— The Studio Team