HdK
HdK is a London-based, founder-led digital agency that designs WordPress websites, delivers digital marketing campaigns, and provides ongoing support exclusively to UK arts, culture, and heritage organisations, having served more than 425 clients over 22+ years.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2004
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What HdK does
HdK (legal entity The Hans de Kretser Associates Ltd, trading as HdK / Artfully Digital) is a London-based, founder-led digital agency that designs and delivers websites, digital marketing campaigns, digital strategy, and ongoing technical support exclusively for arts, culture, and heritage organisations. Founded by Hans de Kretser around 2004 after in-house roles at English National Opera and Sadler's Wells, the firm has served more than 425 organisations across ballet and dance companies, theatres, museums, galleries, heritage sites, and cultural charities, including The British Museum, English National Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet, Rambert, Alexandra Palace, Dance Umbrella, and Arts Council England.
The firm's core technology stack is WordPress, delivered with bespoke 44-block content architectures, Advanced Custom Fields-based editing, and integrations with sector-specific platforms including Tessitura, Spektrix, Patronbase, DigiTickets, Beacon CRM, Stripe, Shopify, WooCommerce, and Mailchimp. Beyond standard websites, HdK has built two notable platform products: Rambert Plus, a membership and on-demand video platform for contemporary dance, and the All In accessibility platform for Arts Council England incorporating WPML multilingual support and Signapse British Sign Language translation. Accessibility compliance (WCAG 2.1 AA), sustainable hosting, and B Corp-certified operating practices are positioned as standard rather than premium.
The business model is predominantly professional services: project-based website builds priced from approximately £10k to over £100k, complemented by recurring support retainers covering security, hosting, and CMS maintenance, plus multi-year digital marketing retainers (paid social, SEO, email, content). Go-to-market is direct and community-led, driven by referrals, sector word-of-mouth, case studies, a monthly webinar programme (4,730+ attendees since 2022), and organic content across LinkedIn, TikTok, and Instagram. Revenue is not publicly disclosed; the firm is bootstrapped with no external funding and operates within a 11-50 employee band from a single Hoxton office, suggesting a specialist-agency economics profile rather than a scaled platform business.
HdK firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- HdK
- Legal name
- The Hans de Kretser Associates Ltd
- Website
- https://wearehdk.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2004
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- HdK is a London-based, founder-led digital agency that designs WordPress websites, delivers digital marketing campaigns, and provides ongoing support exclusively to UK arts, culture, and heritage organisations, having served more than 425 clients over 22+ years.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
HdK industry classification
Industry- NAICS
- Graphic Design Services (541430)
- SIC
- Services-Computer Programming Services (7371), Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370), Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Digital Archives, Libraries & Institutional Access Platforms (MPAJAMAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- White-Label/Hosted Publishing Platforms (MPACAIAJ)
Keywords
Where HdK is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
HdK business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Others
Revenue model
- Website Design & Development: Full design and build of websites for arts and culture organisations, from discovery workshops through to launch. Pricing varies widely based on scope; the company has delivered projects ranging from approximately £10k to £100k+. Invoiced prior to or at the point of service delivery.
- Digital Marketing Campaigns: Strategy, planning, and delivery of digital marketing campaigns including social media management, paid advertising, email marketing, SEO, and content production. Includes ongoing retainer-style support relationships with clients such as Birmingham Royal Ballet and Alexandra Palace.
- Ongoing Website Support: Ongoing technical support to keep client websites secure, up to date, and running smoothly. Includes sustainable hosting, regular updates, and fast turnaround on fixes. Support portal available for clients.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Custom project-based pricing |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels8 records
HdK product offering
Product offeringCore offering
HdK designs and builds WordPress websites for arts, culture, and heritage organisations, integrated with ticketing, CRM, and e-commerce platforms. The company complements builds with digital marketing campaigns (social, paid, email, SEO), digital strategy services, and ongoing technical support and hosting retainers. Work is delivered as bespoke projects, with Rambert Plus and the Arts Council England All In platform as notable sector-specific platform builds.
Product overview
HdK (The Hans de Kretser Associates Ltd) is a digital agency specialising in arts, culture, and heritage organisations. The company offers a portfolio of integrated services centred on website design and development (built on WordPress), digital marketing campaigns, digital strategy, and ongoing web support and maintenance. Key platform work includes Rambert Plus (a digital membership platform with on-demand video, live streaming, and podcasts), the All In accessibility platform for Arts Council England, and Beacon CRM integrations for client organisations. Additional offerings include webinar programmes for the sector, ticketing integrations (DigiTickets, Tessitura, Spektrix), e-commerce solutions (Shopify, WooCommerce), and analytics dashboards (Looker Studio). The company recently underwent a brand refresh in 2024, reflecting over 20 years of sector experience.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Quantifiable outcome
- Garden Museum: +75% total users, +57% site visits, engagement rate from 80% to 95%
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use HdK
Customer profileNamed customers20 records
Segments1 record
HdK technology and API
TechnologyAPI detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration17 records
AI capability3 records
Feature1 record
HdK partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Cardboard CitizenscoreHDK's chosen charity partner since 2025. Cardboard Citizens is a London-based theatre company working with people who have lived experience of homelessness. HDK supports them across a range of projects on both paid and pro bono basis, and donates to their cause every time client feedback is received.
- DigiTicketscoreIntegration partner for event and ticketing data for clients such as Garden Museum. HDK builds integrations that pull event and ticket data automatically into client websites, reducing manual admin.
- ShopifycoreE-commerce integration partner for retail clients. Garden Museum's site integrates Shopify for a fully integrated shop bringing the museum's retail offer into the main site experience.
- Beacon CRMcoreIntegration partner for Dance Umbrella's CRM needs. HDK guided the integration of Beacon CRM with Dance Umbrella's website and payment systems, centralising audience data across events, donations, and communications.
- StripecorePayment processing integration. HDK used Stripe webhooks to bypass costly third-party integrations for Dance Umbrella, tracking Digital Pass purchases and video views in real time.
- MailchimpcoreEmail marketing and audience communications integration. Artis Foundation's resource library is integrated with Mailchimp to capture contact details at the point of download, supporting ongoing audience communications.
- Accessible by DesigncoreAccessibility partnership for Arts Council England's All In platform. Accessible by Design provided design feedback and conducted accessibility audits throughout each phase of the project, partnering with HDK to ensure the platform met the highest accessibility standards.
- Four CommunicationsminorBrand agency whose brand guidelines HDK worked within for the Arts Council England All In project. HDK developed a design system from Four Communications' brand guidelines.
- SpektrixcoreTicketing platform integration for Alexandra Palace. HDK built a custom Spektrix plugin giving Alexandra Palace greater control over event data, keeping listings accurate and up to date across the site.
- PatronbasecoreMembership and ticketing data integration for Rambert's Rambert Plus platform. Custom Patronbase integration gives Rambert a single view of membership data across all their sites and makes reporting significantly more straightforward.
- Google Display NetworkcoreDigital advertising platform used alongside Meta for Dance Umbrella's festival marketing campaigns. HDK runs campaigns across both platforms with audience segmentation to reach new and existing festival audiences.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
HdK competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Substrakt: Manchester-based digital agency that builds websites, ticketing integrations and digital platforms for arts and cultural clients (e.g. Liverpool Philharmonic), directly competing with HdK for the same UK arts sector buyer.
- Soapbox: UK digital agency that builds websites, runs digital marketing campaigns and provides strategic support for charities and nonprofits, competing for the same purpose-driven UK marketing budgets as HdK.
- Reason Digital: Manchester-based digital agency specialising in websites, digital marketing and campaigns for charities and nonprofit organisations, overlapping HdK's content marketing, web build and ongoing support service lines.
- Useful Projects: UK digital design and strategy studio focused on charities, social impact and cultural organisations, providing website builds and digital strategy that competes for the same arts/culture/charity budgets as HdK.
- Bigger Boat: Bristol-based digital agency that builds websites, runs digital marketing and provides ongoing support for charities and nonprofits in the UK, closely aligned with HdK's vertical, delivery model and WordPress-style stack.
- Manifesto Digital: UK digital agency delivering website design and development alongside digital marketing services to a comparable client mix including purpose-led and cultural organisations.
Broad incumbents
- Blue State: Larger US-headquartered digital agency serving nonprofits, cultural institutions and progressive causes with strategy, fundraising and digital marketing, representing a scaled broader incumbent targeting the same cultural/nonprofit verticals.
Emerging players
- Whole Whale: US-based digital agency and training provider focused on nonprofits, offering websites, digital marketing and data services for cultural and charitable organisations, an emerging specialist in HdK's adjacent space.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
HdK social profiles
Digital presenceHdK compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance5 records
HdK financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
HdK leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
HdK funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
HdK M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about HdK
What does HdK do?
HdK designs and builds WordPress websites for arts, culture, and heritage organisations, integrated with ticketing, CRM, and e-commerce platforms. The company complements builds with digital marketing campaigns (social, paid, email, SEO), digital strategy services, and ongoing technical support and hosting retainers. Work is delivered as bespoke projects, with Rambert Plus and the Arts Council England All In platform as notable sector-specific platform builds.
Is HdK a public or private company?
HdK is a private company. It is currently operating.
When was HdK founded?
HdK was founded in 2004. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is HdK based?
HdK is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does HdK make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Website Design & Development is the primary driver. The others are digital Marketing Campaigns and ongoing Website Support.
Who are HdK's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Substrakt, Soapbox, Reason Digital, Useful Projects, Bigger Boat and Manifesto Digital. Blue State is listed as a broad incumbent. Whole Whale is listed as an emerging player.
Does HdK have an API?
No public API is recorded for HdK.
What industry is HdK in?
Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAJAMAJ, Digital Archives, Libraries & Institutional Access Platforms, with a secondary code of MPACAIAJ, White-Label/Hosted Publishing Platforms. Its NAICS code is 541430 and its SIC code is 7371.