HALLMARK CARDS PLC
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Next accounts due
2026-06-30 (in 1mo)
Last filed for 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement due
2026-08-13 (in 3mo)
Last made up 2025-07-30
Watchouts
Cash
£5M
Latest balance sheet
Net assets
£65M
+12.1% vs 2023
Employees
405
-27.8% vs 2023
Profit before tax
-£10M
+33.1% vs 2023
Watchouts
Facts from the Companies House register and the latest accounts — not a rating
-
3 officer resignations in last 12 months
Multiple officers have left the board recently — see the People section for who.
Name history
Renamed 2 times since incorporation
- HALLMARK CARDS PLC 2001-07-23 → present
- CREATIVE PUBLISHING PLC 1997-08-13 → 2001-07-23
- PLAIN VANILLA LIMITED 1997-07-30 → 1997-08-13
Net assets
2-year trend · vs Consumer Discretionary median
Accounts
2-year trend · latest reflected 2024-12-31
| Metric | Trend | 2023-12-31 | 2024-12-31 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Turnover | £61,866,000 | £58,126,000 | |
| Operating profit | -£15,612,000 | -£10,860,000 | |
| Profit before tax | -£15,034,000 | -£10,065,000 | |
| Net profit | -£15,701,000 | -£10,162,000 | |
| Cash | — | £5,493,000 | |
| Total assets less current liabilities | £42,478,000 | £43,992,000 | |
| Net assets | £57,731,000 | £64,723,000 | |
| Equity | £57,731,000 | £64,723,000 | |
| Average employees | 561 | 405 | |
| Wages | £17,499,000 | £14,961,000 |
Values shown as filed in the company's annual accounts. — indicates the figure wasn't present under that line item in that period. About these numbers
Ratios
Computed from the line items above — sparklines read oldest → newest
| Ratio | Trend | 2023-12-31 | 2024-12-31 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operating margin | -25.2% | -18.7% | |
| Net margin | -25.4% | -17.5% | |
| Return on capital employed | -36.8% | -24.7% | |
| Current ratio | 1.04x | 1.06x | |
| Interest cover | -46.19x | -63.51x |
Margins divide P&L lines by turnover. Gearing is liabilities over total assets. Current ratio is current assets over creditors falling due within one year. Interest cover is operating profit over absolute finance costs. Sector-distribution context coming next.
Audit & accounting basis
- Accounting basis
- FRS 102
- Reporting scope
- Standalone (parent only)
- Auditor
- RSM UK Audit LLP
- Audit opinion
- Unqualified (clean)
- Going concern
- Affirmed
“Consequently, the directors are confident that the Company will have sufficient funds to continue to meet its liabilities as they fall due for at least 12 months from the date of approval of the financial statements and therefore have prepared the financial statements on a going concern basis.”
Group structure
- HALLMARK CARDS PLC · parent
- Hambledon Studios Limited 100%
- Mansell Licensing Limited 100%
- Route One Limited 100%
- Wilson Brothers Limited 100%
- More Stripes Limited 100%
- Remglade Limited 100%
- Plaintalk Limited 100%
- Macsel Greetings Cards Limited 100%
- Britannia Products Limited 100%
- Selective Limited 100%
- Selective Print Limited 100%
- Tigerprint Middle Limited 100%
- Tigerprint Limited 100%
- Creative Products Limited 100%
- Blue& White Limited 100%
- Duel Limited 100%
- Delgado Limited 100%
- Gallery Studios Limited 100%
- Greeting Cards House Limited 100%
- Flaxcase Limited 100%
- Hugo & Co Limited 100%
- Castle Cards Limited 100%
- Fine Art Graphics Limited 100%
- Wilson Brothers Greetings Cards Limited 100%
- Matador Paper Mills Limited 100%
- Image Arts Limited 100%
- Raphael Tuck & Sons Limited 100%
- Wilson Investment Co. Limited 100%
- Liberta IMEX Limited 100%
- The Britannia Gift Company Limited 100%
- Connoisseur Cards Limited 100%
- Paws for Thought Limited 100%
- Unique Images Limited 100%
Significant events
- “While the company experienced a modest year-over-year decline in revenue, the restructuring efforts undertaken in 2023 have delivered tangible financial benefits, driving improvements in gross profit through enhanced operational efficiency and cost optimisation.”
- “In addition, the sale of a distribution centre during the year further supported operating margin improvements by lowering fixed operating costs.”
- “In the year the UK business through its holding company Hallmark UK Holdings Limited, began a group simplification process, this was still ongoing at the year end.”
Auditor, going-concern and subsidiary information is drawn from the narrative of the latest annual accounts. About these numbers
People
4 active · 50 resigned
| Name | Role | Appointed | Born | Nationality |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DIXSON, Phillipa Jane | Secretary | 2018-10-01 | — | — |
| DUGGAN-HILL, Simon Donald | Director | 2026-01-05 | Jun 1965 | British |
| PRYOR JUNIOR, William Lee | Director | 2024-08-01 | Oct 1976 | American |
| SHAY, James Cornelius | Director | 2024-04-05 | Sep 1963 | American |
Show 50 resigned officers
| Name | Role | Appointed | Resigned |
|---|---|---|---|
| GARDINER, Patricia Mary | Secretary | 1999-04-23 | 2017-06-01 |
| NAJIB, Homera | Secretary | 2017-06-01 | 2018-10-01 |
| TAYLER, John Phillip | Secretary | 1997-07-30 | 1999-04-23 |
| ALM, Keith Lennart | Director | 1998-09-30 | 2001-12-11 |
| BROWN, Keith Neville | Director | 1997-08-08 | 2006-03-17 |
| BUGLER, Michael Colin | Director | 2001-12-11 | 2003-05-31 |
| BURTON, Michael Trevor | Director | 2000-01-24 | 2001-12-11 |
| BUSBY, Timothy Mark | Director | 2012-06-01 | 2017-11-01 |
| CAMPBELL, Richard Mark | Director | 2001-12-11 | 2017-03-01 |
| CAPSTICK, John Anthony | Director | 1997-09-08 | 1998-12-18 |
| CARLILL, John | Director | 2001-12-11 | 2005-06-30 |
| CHAPMAN, Keith | Director | 1997-07-30 | 1998-12-21 |
| CLEMONS, Brian Patrick | Director | 2005-11-30 | 2006-12-31 |
| COUGHLAN, Christopher Michael | Director | 2020-09-14 | 2024-08-01 |
| CRITCHLOW, Matthew James | Director | 2017-03-01 | 2022-06-03 |
| DEAN, David Charles | Director | 2010-03-10 | 2013-01-03 |
| DEL PRETE, Amanda Louise | Director | 2018-12-10 | 2021-11-30 |
| FARMERY, Anna Louise | Director | 2002-07-24 | 2006-03-17 |
| FRANEY, John Malcolm | Director | 2019-03-18 | 2026-03-18 |
| GARDINER, Patricia Mary | Director | 2011-12-31 | 2017-03-01 |
| GLEN, Andrew Christopher | Director | 2003-02-01 | 2003-07-04 |
| HAAS, Donald Patrick | Director | 2019-09-26 | 2020-08-07 |
| HALL, David Earl | Director | 2005-12-05 | 2010-03-18 |
| HALL JR, Donald Joyce | Director | 2010-03-18 | 2019-07-31 |
| HAUPT, Hannah Elizabeth | Director | 2022-07-22 | 2026-03-18 |
| HOLLAND JUNIOR, Smith Wilson | Director | 2019-09-26 | 2023-12-14 |
| JOHNSON, David Anthony | Director | 1997-07-30 | 1998-12-21 |
| KANE, Timothy James | Director | 2001-12-11 | 2004-12-31 |
| KARAVIS, Graeme Lewis | Director | 2023-04-18 | 2026-01-05 |
| KAY, Homer | Director | 1998-09-30 | 1999-12-31 |
| MAHONEY, Cynthia Lynne | Director | 2018-12-05 | 2020-10-15 |
| MCDAVID, William Mark | Director | 2005-12-05 | 2010-10-27 |
| PERRY, Michael | Director | 2019-07-30 | 2019-09-26 |
| POWDERLY, Martin Gerard | Director | 2003-07-01 | 2011-06-17 |
| RICHEY, Martha Maxine | Director | 2006-12-05 | 2011-12-31 |
| ROLT, Thomas David | Director | 2022-07-22 | 2023-03-01 |
| RYRIE, John Peter Sinclair | Director | 2010-03-10 | 2010-10-31 |
| SHARP, Matthew Simon | Director | 1997-08-08 | 1999-09-30 |
| SHAY, James Cornelius | Director | 2017-03-01 | 2019-09-26 |
| SHIELS, Anne | Director | 2011-04-21 | 2015-12-24 |
| SIMPSON, Keith Charles Faraday | Director | 1997-08-08 | 1998-09-30 |
| SINGH, Ricky Roop | Director | 2017-11-01 | 2019-07-01 |
| SMITH, Hazel | Director | 2020-03-01 | 2022-06-17 |
| STUART, Ian Iveson | Director | 2001-12-11 | 2011-12-31 |
| SULLIVAN, Brian Martin | Director | 2010-03-10 | 2012-11-30 |
| TAPP, Christopher | Director | 2001-12-11 | 2003-02-28 |
| WILKINSON, Janet | Director | 2001-12-11 | 2003-11-30 |
| WRIGHT, Steven Paul | Director | 2010-03-10 | 2019-01-01 |
| WRIGHT, Tracey Lee | Director | 2003-02-01 | 2005-12-31 |
| YOUNG, Mark Terence | Director | 2013-01-02 | 2015-05-29 |
Ownership
Persons with significant control
| Name | Kind | Nature of control | Notified | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hallmark Cards Uk | Corporate entity | Shares 75–100% | 2016-04-06 | Active |
Filing timeline
Last 20 of 215 total filings
| Date | Type | Category | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-03-20 | TM01 | officers | Termination director company with name termination date | |
| 2026-03-20 | TM01 | officers | Termination director company with name termination date | |
| 2026-01-19 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2026-01-13 | TM01 | officers | Termination director company with name termination date | |
| 2026-01-07 | SH01 | capital | Capital allotment shares | |
| 2025-07-30 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with updates | |
| 2025-06-25 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full | |
| 2025-01-07 | SH01 | capital | Capital allotment shares | |
| 2025-01-06 | MR01 | mortgage | Mortgage create with deed with charge number charge creation date | |
| 2025-01-06 | MR01 | mortgage | Mortgage create with deed with charge number charge creation date | |
| 2024-08-06 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with no updates | |
| 2024-08-06 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2024-08-06 | TM01 | officers | Termination director company with name termination date | |
| 2024-07-11 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full | |
| 2024-04-05 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2024-01-12 | TM01 | officers | Termination director company with name termination date | |
| 2023-08-14 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with updates | |
| 2023-07-19 | SH01 | capital | Capital allotment shares | |
| 2023-07-14 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full | |
| 2023-04-24 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date |
Public-record activity
Raw counts from Companies House — last 12–24 months
- Filings
- 7
- Capital events
- 2
- Officers appointed
- 1
- Officers resigned
- 3
last 12 months
last 24 months
last 12 months
last 12 months
Direct counts from the register. No score, no rating — see the Filing timeline for the underlying events.
Year-on-year
FY2023 → FY2024 · period ending 2024-12-31 vs 2023-12-31
-
Turnover
-6%
£61,866,000 £58,126,000
-
Cash
—
Not reported
-
Net assets
+12.1%
£57,731,000 £64,723,000
-
Employees
-27.8%
561 405
-
Operating profit
+30.4%
-£15,612,000 -£10,860,000
-
Profit before tax
+33.1%
-£15,034,000 -£10,065,000
-
Wages
-14.5%
£17,499,000 £14,961,000
Each % is (latest − prior) ÷ |prior| for the line item as filed. The comparison is only shown when the latest and prior accounts cover broadly equal-length periods — short or long stubs (typical around incorporation or a year-end change) are suppressed rather than misrepresented. Lines a company doesn't report are omitted. About these numbers