78 Derngate

What 78 Derngate does

78 Derngate is a heritage visitor attraction in Northampton, England, operated by the 78 Derngate Northampton Trust, a registered charity (No. 1068270) established in 2003. The site comprises the 1916 Charles Rennie Mackintosh-designed house at 78 Derngate — the only location outside Scotland where Mackintosh's mature architectural and interior style is preserved in its original setting — together with the remodelled 80 Derngate visitor centre, The Dining Room boutique restaurant, light-filled exhibition galleries, and a design shop. The organization is volunteer-supported with a small core team of 7 paid staff, offering guided tours, educational visits, corporate and private venue hire, retail merchandise (including exclusive Mackintosh-inspired products), and dining.

Revenue is generated across five distinct streams: visitor admissions (standard £12.00 per person, booked via Digitickets), room and venue hire (Boardroom £90–£150+VAT, Bassett-Lowke Rooms £80+VAT, Atrium £250+VAT per evening), retail merchandise (e-commerce shipping UK and internationally), on-site restaurant and catering, and donations, grants, and Friends membership income. Go-to-market is hybrid: direct-to-consumer tourism, event-driven corporate and private hire, and community-led educational and partnership programming (including a combined heritage-tour product with Delapré Abbey). Pricing is uniformly pay-as-you-go with no subscription or contract-based revenue.

The organization's technology stack is minimal and non-proprietary: Stripe for payments, Digitickets for online booking, Webflow-hosted website, and a virtual tour interface for remote exploration. There is no disclosed AI, data platform, or developer-facing API. Strategic capability rests on the irreplaceable heritage asset, accreditation by Arts Council England (Full Museum Accreditation achieved February 2025), and a network of financial and operational partners including West Northamptonshire Council, the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the George Cadbury Foundation, the AIM Pilgrim Trust, and the Iconic Houses Network.

Name

78 Derngate

Legal name

78 Derngate Northampton Trust

Website

https://78derngate.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Heritage Visitor Attraction

NAICS

Historical Sites (712120), Museums (712110), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Historic Sites, Heritage Landmarks & Archaeological Sites (THAJACAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cultural Heritage Institutions (Archives, Historic Houses, Monuments Foundations) (THAJADAI), Museum & Landmark Guided Tours (Skip-the-line/Docent-led) (THAJAAAC), Cultural Heritage & Historic District Tours (THAJAAAB)

Keywords

• Heritage museum attraction
• Historic house tours
• Event venue hire
• Heritage retail merchandise
• Cultural visitor centre

Headquarters

HQ city

Northampton

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Visitor Admissions: Ticket sales for guided tours of the Charles Rennie Mackintosh House. Standard admission £12.00. Online booking available through Digitickets platform.
2. Room and Venue Hire: Hiring of event spaces including The Boardroom (£90-150 + VAT), Bassett-Lowke Rooms (£80 + VAT per half day), and The Atrium (£250 + VAT per evening). Catering provided by The Dining Room Restaurant.
3. Retail Merchandise: Online shop selling Charles Rennie Mackintosh-inspired products including books, gifts, jewellery, clothing accessories, home items. Products shipped UK and internationally.
4. Restaurant and Catering: The Dining Room boutique restaurant offering afternoon tea, lunches, and meals. Operated as an on-site tenant providing catering services.
5. Donations and Grants: As a registered charity (No. 1068270), receives donations, membership/friends contributions, and grant funding from Arts Council England, National Lottery Heritage Fund, and other heritage organizations.
6. Group Tours and Partnerships: Partnership with Delapré Abbey offering combined heritage day out for groups at £40 per person (with lunch) or £25 (cream tea). Also offers educational visits and visiting speaker services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

78 Derngate operates a heritage visitor attraction at 82 Derngate, Northampton, featuring the only Charles Rennie Mackintosh-designed interior outside Scotland in its original 1916 setting. Offerings include guided tours of the historic house, an on-site boutique restaurant (The Dining Room), light-filled art galleries, a design shop selling Mackintosh-inspired merchandise, and event venue hire across multiple architect-designed spaces. The organisation also runs educational visits and a visiting speakers programme for external groups.

Product overview

78 Derngate is a multi-award-winning heritage visitor attraction offering a unified experience combining a historic house museum, dining, retail, and venue hire. The core offering is The Charles Rennie Mackintosh House - the only complete example of Mackintosh's mature architectural style outside Scotland - complemented by The Dining Room restaurant, The Galleries exhibition space, and an online shop selling Mackintosh-inspired merchandise. The venue also offers room hire for events and educational visits for schools. The product portfolio spans museum entry, catering services, retail e-commerce (books, jewellery, homeware, textiles), venue hire, and educational programmes.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Dining Room: On-site boutique restaurant offering coffee, light lunch, afternoon tea, and full meals. Combined with visits to the Mackintosh House.

Products and services

• The Charles Rennie Mackintosh House

Quantifiable outcome

• Thousands of visitors from around the globe have visited since opening
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Art Fund Wild Escape ProjectminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2023Major project led by Art Fund uniting hundreds of museums with schools and families in celebration of UK wildlife and creativity. Partnership with WWF, RSPB, National Trust, English Heritage. Funded by Arts Council England's National Lottery Project Grants.
• Delapré AbbeycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2022Partnership between two iconic Northampton heritage attractions offering combined day out for groups of 12 or more. Includes guided tours of both sites with 3-course lunch or cream tea options at £40 or £25 per person respectively.
• The Dining Room RestaurantcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerOn-site restaurant providing all catering for room hire and events. Contact: 07506 745269. Operates independently with separate booking and contact details.
• HaddonstoneminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLocal family-run firm supplying stonework for the new rear extension, including some of the steps and copings.
• Crockett & JonesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNorthampton-based shoemaker donated a pair of slightly damaged men's shoes for time capsule concealed within the new extension steps, continuing traditional of hiding shoes in buildings.
• University of NorthamptonminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStudent exhibitions including Architecture & Product Design exhibition and Interior Architecture and Spatial Design course projects. Photography and videography support from students.
• Northampton Museum and Art GalleryminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDelivery partner for Arts Council England's NPO 'Histories of Northamptonshire' project including the WNC Blue Plaque scheme.
• Iconic Houses NetworkminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational network membership connecting significant architecturally-designed houses open to the public.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• English Heritage: UK-wide heritage charity (over 400 sites) operating historic properties, monuments and visitor experiences. Broad incumbent with overlapping membership model, gift shop, events and grant-funded conservation work.
• National Trust for Scotland: Scotland's largest heritage conservation charity operating dozens of historic properties including The Hill House, Gladstone's Land and Pollok House. Broad incumbent operating at far greater scale but comparable membership/donor/grant-driven heritage attraction model.

Direct peers

• The Hill House: National Trust for Scotland's Charles Rennie Mackintosh-designed house in Helensburgh, widely considered one of the most important Mackintosh properties. Same category of single-house, architecturally-significant heritage visitor attraction.
• Red House: National Trust property in Bexleyheath — William Morris's Arts & Crafts home. Comparable single-site, architecturally significant heritage attraction with tours, shop and event programming.
• House for an Art Lover: Glasgow arts venue inspired by Mackintosh's 1901 competition entry, with galleries, a café/bar and event hire. Direct comparable as a Mackintosh-heritage visitor attraction with a similar venue-hire/event revenue mix.
• Wightwick Manor: National Trust Arts & Crafts movement house in the West Midlands, similar architecturally-significant heritage house with guided tours, retail, café and event programming. Comparable scale and visitor proposition.
• Standen House and Garden: National Trust Arts & Crafts house in West Sussex designed by Philip Webb. Similar heritage house museum with guided tours, shop and event hire in a period-restored interior setting.
• Delapré Abbey: Northampton heritage attraction operating as a registered charity with house tours, gardens, events and a restaurant. Direct local partnership partner with a documented combined-day-out offering and similar business model.
• The Mackintosh at the Willow: Glasgow-based restored Charles Rennie Mackintosh tea rooms (re-opened 2018), operating as a heritage visitor attraction and restaurant. The closest direct peer given the shared Mackintosh design focus and combined visitor/dining/retail model.

Emerging players

• Charles Rennie Mackintosh Society: Glasgow-based charitable society dedicated to celebrating Mackintosh's life and work through events, publications and education. Comparable peer as a Mackintosh-focused heritage/education charity, though without operating a physical visitor attraction.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks3 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/78derngate
• Facebookfacebook.com/78derngate
• Instagraminstagram.com/78derngate
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/78-derngate

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

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 78 Derngate