Like many others who were either encouraged or forced into self-employment by the pandemic, Tony built his IT support business amid a turbulent business landscape.

Throughout that journey, it’s the people around him who have been crucial to his success – from his wife Kasia, who encouraged the once-crazy idea to start a solo venture, to his wide network of industry contacts, who continue to support his growth to this day.

And although Covid may have been the catalyst which finally brought BITSmart.tech to life, for Tony, it had been a long time coming.

He explained: “In 2019 I wrote a proposal to my bosses.

“Everything was changing in the IT and telecoms space, so I said: ‘This is where we can leverage some of our experience and buying power to help our clients’.

“And I was told they weren’t confident I could do that. They weren’t confident in me.”

Tony knew his idea had promise, and many of his self-employed friends agreed.

Weeks later he was tucked away backstage at an annual work conference, juggling his sound and video duties with the early stages of what would become his business.

He said: “I was sat there doing Companies House registration on my phone, designing some very basic social media graphics.

“I looked at them this morning and they were crap. But we’ve all got to start somewhere!

“I was put on furlough in April 2020, and as soon as that happened, I knew I wouldn’t go back to my old job.

“I was quite lucky because I’d signed my first client on Christmas Eve 2019.

“It was only worth 80 quid a month, but it proved that I could do it.

“And once you’ve done it once, every time you make a sale, it gets that much easier.”

Tony’s early business model closely resembled that initial proposal to his bosses.

He wanted to focus exclusively on IT procurement – selecting, buying, and implementing technology on behalf of companies.

As it turned out, that wasn’t what his clients were looking for.

Tony explained: “I must have spent 15 to 20 hours a week on Zoom doing various events.

“I was talking with more and more people who said: ‘you’re doing all this, but you’re not offering IT support, and I’d rather use you than my other company’.

“So I made the decision – quite spur of the moment – to focus on IT support, and have this other stuff as value-add.

“Pivoting like that during a pandemic was a bizarre experience, at a time when you couldn’t actually go out and meet people.”

Having worked in IT for a while at this point, Tony was used to adapting to constant change within the industry, so it only made sense to apply that to his business as well.

He also found that, where before companies had been content to stay behind the times, the new business landscape was forcing many of them to reconsider how new technology could help save them time, money, and resources.

Even though that trend spelled good news for Tony, the money didn’t just start rolling in.

He said: “It’s been tough, don’t get me wrong.

“There were times when I was stacking shelves three nights a week at a supermarket just to pay the rent.

“I took a contract job, training the elderly on basic digital skills – I still do that a little bit here and there.

“But it took my focus away from the business, and that was what I really wanted to do.

“So luckily I was able to step away from that role this time last year and do it full-time.

“It’s now my main source of income, it’s growing, and it’s profitable.”

Tony with awards sponsor Diane Avery. Credit: Vicki Head

And while it may be that nobody can ever truly call themselves an ‘expert’ in the world of IT, Tony’s latest awards success has meant a lot to him and his business.

He said: “I’m super happy to have won, and I suppose this win has cemented this little voice in the back of my head telling me I could do it – and I’ve done it.

“I’ve got a sustainable business, and the proof is in this glass trophy.”

Tony also produces his own ebooks and how-to videos, as well as hosting the IT Smart Guy podcast for modern business owners. To find out more, visit bitsmart.tech.