Aqueduct Marina

What Aqueduct Marina does

Aqueduct Marina is an independent, family-run narrowboat marina located on the Middlewich Branch of the Shropshire Union Canal in Church Minshull, Cheshire, United Kingdom. The company provides full-length serviced moorings and hard-standing storage for narrowboats, professional boat maintenance (hull blacking, engineering, welding and fabrication), a workshop-hire facility, and a brokerage service for buying and selling new and second-hand narrowboats (the latter via a partnership with Knights Narrowboats). Ancillary revenue comes from an on-site chandlery, motorhome repair services using the same in-house engineering team, a licensed Waterfront Café supplying locally sourced food and drink, a meeting-room hire offering, and a caravan-park plus luxury bell-tent accommodation business marketed through the Marina Retreats brand and the Pitchup third-party platform.

The business operates as a single physical site rather than a multi-location or platform model, with services delivered on the marina premises and bookings taken by phone, via the company website, or through integrated third-party platforms. Its technology footprint is conventional for a small UK leisure business — website, e-commerce booking integrations, a YouTube-hosted live webcam, and standard social channels — with no proprietary software, mobile app, or disclosed AI components. It holds the highest-quality 5 Gold Anchor rating from The Yacht Harbour Association, is a member of British Marine, and has accumulated a series of regional industry and customer-service awards from 2017 through 2025.

Revenue is generated across multiple small streams: recurring mooring subscriptions (annual canal moorings, monthly hard-standing), transaction-fee brokerage, professional-services fees for boat maintenance and motorhome work, hardware sales through the chandlery, café and meeting-room hire, and accommodation stays via caravan park and glamping pitches. The customer base is fragmented and primarily consumer — narrowboat owners, motorhome users, and short-stay visitors — with no disclosed enterprise contracts, making revenue largely a function of mooring occupancy, brokerage throughput, and seasonal tourism demand in Cheshire.

Name

Aqueduct Marina

Legal name

Aqueduct Marina Church Minshull

Website

https://aqueductmarina.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Aqueduct Marina is an independent, family-run narrowboat marina in Church Minshull, Cheshire, offering serviced moorings, boat maintenance, narrowboat brokerage, a chandlery, a waterfront café, and caravan-park and bell-tent accommodation. It holds a 5 Gold Anchor rating and serves individual narrowboat and motorhome owners plus short-stay visitors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Marina Services

NAICS

Marinas (71393), Support Activities for Water Transportation (4883)

SIC

Ship & Boat Building & Repairing (3730), Water Transportation (4400)

akta.pro primary industry

Marina & Small Craft Harbor Construction (IMAFAJAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Marina & Waterfront Full-Service Hotels (THAGAAAK), Harbor & River Shuttle Services (THAIAJAE)

Keywords

• Narrowboat mooring services
• Boat brokerage services
• Marine maintenance services
• Canal marina facilities
• Boat repair engineering

Headquarters

HQ city

Nantwich

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Mooring Services: Full-length serviced moorings for narrowboats providing security and peace of mind, including Hard Standing facilities
2. Brokerage: Professional brokerage service for buying and selling narrowboats with over 10 years of experience
3. Boat Services: Hull blacking, engineering, welding and fabrication, workshop hire for narrowboats and motorhomes
4. Chandlery Sales: On-site chandlery stock for boating essentials with staff assistance
5. Hospitality: Waterfront Cafe with locally sourced food and drinks, plus meeting room hire
6. Accommodation: Caravan park and luxury bell tents for overnight stays

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Aqueduct Marina is a family-run narrowboat marina that sells full-length serviced moorings, professional narrowboat brokerage (buying and selling), and on-site boat maintenance services including hull blacking, engineering, welding, fabrication, and workshop hire. The marina also offers motorhome servicing, an on-site chandlery, a licensed waterfront cafe, hard standing storage with electric and water, and accommodation via caravan park and luxury bell tents.

Product overview

Aqueduct Marina is an independent, family-run 5 Gold Anchor narrowboat marina offering a comprehensive portfolio of services centered around narrowboat ownership and enjoyment. The core offering combines serviced moorings with professional brokerage services for buying and selling narrowboats, supported by on-site maintenance facilities including hull blacking, engineering, welding, and workshop hire. The marina extends its offerings to motorhome services using the same expert team, an on-site chandlery for boating essentials, and a licensed waterfront cafe. For non-boat owners, the marina provides caravan park and glamping accommodations, plus electric boat hire. The business operates as a single-location service provider rather than a platform architecture.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Waterfront Cafe: On-site café offering locally sourced food and drinks with stunning marina views
• Marina Retreats
• Knights Narrowboats
• Saturday Sounds

Products and services

• Narrowboat Mooring Services
• Boat Brokerage
• Narrowboat Maintenance Services
• Waterfront Cafe
• Hard Standing Facility Outdoor boat storage and hard standing areas with electric points and water access for boats left for extended stay or DIY maintenance work, available on a monthly subscription basis.
• Chandlery On-site chandlery shop stocking and offering help for all boating essentials and supplies for narrowboat and canal users.
• Motorhome Services Motorhome repair and upgrade services provided by the same expert engineering team on-site, targeting motorhome owners needing pre-touring-season preparation.
• Caravan Park and Glamping Stays Tranquil short stays available through caravan park pitches and luxury bell tents, plus electric boat hire options, targeting staycation visitors seeking waterside breaks.
• Hull Blacking Service Professional narrowboat hull blacking service to protect boat hulls from corrosion and damage, with a DIY blacking option also available.
• New Narrowboat Builds New narrowboat construction available through the Knights Narrowboats partnership for custom-built boats, sold through the marina brokerage.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Knights NarrowboatscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorKnights Narrowboats is featured as a partner for new boat builds sold through the marina brokerage. Aqueduct Marina offers new builds by Knights Narrowboats through their brokerage service.
• Three Wrens Gin DistilleryminorGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal gin distillery featured as a partner, likely providing products for the licensed cafe.
• British MarinecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBritish Marine is the trade body for the UK leisure marine industry. The marina holds membership and displays their branding, indicating industry leadership.
• The Yacht Harbour Association (TYHA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTYHA provides the Gold Anchor marina grading scheme. Aqueduct Marina holds the highest 5 Gold Anchor rating.
• South Cheshire Chamber of CommerceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal business chamber that has awarded the marina Customer Service Award and Business of the Year.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Mercia Marina: One of the largest inland marinas in the UK, located on the Trent & Mersey Canal. Offers serviced moorings, boat sales, engineering services, and hospitality on a comparable scale and with a similar multi-service model to Aqueduct Marina.
• Nantwich Canal Centre: Canal centre in Nantwich, Cheshire offering moorings, narrowboat services, chandlery, and brokerage. Directly comparable as a nearby competitor serving the same Shropshire Union Canal customer base.
• Hilperton Marina: Wiltshire-based narrowboat marina offering moorings, boat sales, engineering, and chandlery. Comparable as a UK canal-side marina operating a similar integrated service portfolio for narrowboat owners.
• Tingdene Marinas: One of the UK's largest independent marina groups operating multiple inland and coastal sites. Comparable business model of multi-service marina operations including moorings, sales, and boatyard services.
• Overwater Marina: Family-run marina in Staffordshire offering moorings, brokerage, chandlery, and boat services on the Shropshire Union Canal network. Closely comparable in scale, service mix, and canal-side operating model.
• Swanley Bridge Marina: Inland narrowboat marina on the Llangollen Canal offering moorings, sales, and engineering services. Comparable as a UK canal-based marina serving narrowboat owners with a similar multi-service offering.
• Black Prince Holidays: UK narrowboat hire and brokerage operator with multiple canal bases, operating new-build and brokerage activities that overlap with Aqueduct Marina's boat sales and new-build partnership model.
• Goytre Wharf: Welsh canal-side marina offering moorings, boat sales, chandlery, and cafe on the Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal. Comparable as a single-location inland marina combining boating services with hospitality.

Others

• Drifters: Co-operative of independent canal boat hire operators across the UK canal network. Comparable as an ecosystem participant aggregating demand for canal-based leisure services that ultimately drive mooring and brokerage activity.

Broad incumbents

• Canal & River Trust Marinas: The charity that operates the majority of UK canals and runs its own network of inland marinas. Comparable as a large incumbent in the UK inland marina space, with broader portfolio but overlapping mooring customers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/aqueductmarina
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCBUlZOhCGgBz3tn0jqV2lwA
• Facebookfacebook.com/aqueductmarinacheshire
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/churchminshullaqueductmarina
• Instagraminstagram.com/aqueductmarina

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Aqueduct Marina