Askews and Holts Library Services Ltd.
Registered name: ASKEWS AND HOLTS LIBRARY SERVICES LTD.
Part of The Little Group Holdings Limited groupAskews and Holts Library Services Ltd. made £31.5m revenue and £71.2k profit in the year to 28 Feb 2025. read from filing text
Askews and Holts Library Services Ltd.’s revenue fell 4% to £31.5m in the year to 28 Feb 2025, with £71.2k profit and 158 employees. The company is classified under “non-specialised wholesale trade” and is based in Eastbourne; we hold 4 years of its filed accounts.
- Status
- Active
- Location
- Eastbourne, South East
- Age
- 34 yrs · since 1992
- Type
- Private Limited Company
Part of a group. The filing indicates this company sits within a group structure, so its results may depend on intra-group trading and it may be hard to replicate independently. From the filing: “The ultimate parent company of Askews and Holts Library Services Ltd is The Little Group Limited.”
Key figures
Badges are automated estimates derived from the filed figures — not statements of fact about the company.
Financial history
| Year to | 28 Feb 2022 | 28 Feb 2023 | 29 Feb 2024 | 28 Feb 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Disclosure | Full P&Lread from filing text | Full P&Lread from filing text | Full P&Lread from filing text | Full P&Lread from filing text |
| Profit & loss | ||||
| Revenue (turnover) | £39.7m | £36.7m | £32.9m | £31.5m |
| Cost of sales | £36.7m | £33.7m | £29.9m | £28.7m |
| Gross profit | £3m | £3m | £3m | £2.8m |
| Operating profit | £916k | £190k | £171k | −£141k |
| Profit before tax | £926k | £241k | £361k | £92.9k |
| Profit after tax | £767k | £176k | £270k | £71.2k |
| Profit (best available) | £767k | £176k | £270k | £71.2k |
| Staff costs | £3.7m | £3.6m | £3.5m | £3.6m |
| Employees (average) | 188 | 174 | 160 | 158 |
| Ratios | ||||
| Profit margin | 1.9% | 0.5% | 0.8% | 0.2% |
| Gross margin | 7.5% | 8.3% | 9.2% | 8.8% |
| Revenue per employee | £211k | £211k | £206k | £199k |
| Profit per employee | £4.1k | £1k | £1.7k | £451 |
| Growth (year on year) | ||||
| Revenue growth | — | ▼7.5% | ▼10.3% | ▼4.4% |
| Profit growth | — | ▼77.1% | ▲53.7% | ▼73.6% |
| Headcount growth | — | ▼7.4% | ▼8.1% | ▼1.3% |
| Balance sheet — indirect signals, not revenue | ||||
| Cash at bank | £4.4m | £5.3m | £5.4m | £5.4m |
| Net assets | £6.4m | £6.5m | £6.4m | £6.4m |
| Fixed assets | £113k | £357k | £444k | £763k |
| Current assets | £11m | £9.7m | £9.6m | £9.2m |
| Debtors | £4.4m | £3.3m | £2.6m | £2.6m |
| Deferred income | £796k | £431k | £638k | £371k |
| Source | Accounts · bulk data Nov 2023 | Accounts · bulk data Nov 2023 | FullAccounts · bulk data Nov 2024 | FullAccounts · bulk data Nov 2025 |
How the business works
- Profit margin
- 0.2%
- Profit ÷ revenue.
- Gross margin
- 8.8%
- Gross profit ÷ revenue. High for software and services.
- Revenue per employee
- £199k
- Revenue ÷ average employees.
- Profit per employee
- £451
- Profit ÷ average employees.
- Cash conversion
- —
- Cash generated from operations ÷ operating profit. Needs a cash-flow statement.
- Fixed assets ÷ revenue
- 2.4%
- Capital intensity. Low = capital-light, cheaper to start.
- Deferred income ÷ revenue
- 1.2%
- Customers paying upfront (subscriptions, deposits). Approximate when combined with accruals.
- Debtors ÷ revenue
- 8.3%
- Money owed by customers. Low = customers pay quickly.
Balance-sheet signals
Year-on-year changes in filed balance-sheet items. They can hint at momentum (or investment) but are not revenue or profit and must not be read as such.
- Net assets
- ▲1%
- Now £6.4m
- Cash at bank
- ▼0%
- Now £5.4m
- Headcount
- ▼1%
- Now 158
- Deferred income
- ▼42%
- Now £371k
- Fixed assets
- ▲72%
- Now £763k
Deferred income is reported together with accruals in this filing (“accruals and deferred income”), so it is an approximate signal only.
Group structure
Ownership chain
- The Little Group Holdings Limitedultimate parent75–100%
- The Little Group Limited75–100%
- Askews and Holts Library Services Ltd.this company
Bands show the share of ownership each company holds in the one below it.
Sister companies (6)
- A.t. Little & Sons LimitedRev. £30m · Profit £483k
- Baker & Taylor (UK) LtdRev. £24m · Profit £535k
- Book Protectors & Co. LimitedFigures not disclosed
- Gardners Books LimitedFigures not disclosed
- Hive Store LimitedFigures not disclosed
- Lasgo Chrysalis LimitedFigures not disclosed
From the Persons with Significant Control register (corporate controllers only).
Similar profitable businesses
- Fedrigoni U.K. LimitedLondon · Non-specialised wholesale trade
- Revenue
- £31.6m
- Profit
- £816k
- Staff
- 35
- Hydraquip Hose & Hydraulics LimitedCannock · Non-specialised wholesale trade
- Revenue
- £31.3m
- Profit
- £1.9m
- Staff
- 312
- William Croxson & Son,limitedTunbridge Wells · Non-specialised wholesale trade
- Revenue
- £31m
- Profit
- £1.2m
- Staff
- 29
- Chapple & Jenkins LtdKingswood · Non-specialised wholesale trade
- Revenue
- £30.7m
- Profit
- £766k
- Staff
- 93
- Beams International LimitedGillingham · Non-specialised wholesale trade
- Revenue
- £30.4m
- Profit
- £813k
- Staff
- 45
- A.t. Little & Sons LimitedMelton · Non-specialised wholesale trade
- Revenue
- £30m
- Profit
- £483k
- Staff
- 82
Sources
Latest figures from FullAccounts for the year to 28 Feb 2025 (profit £71.2k), from the Companies House accounts bulk data published Nov 2025. Spotted an error? Request a correction.
Contains public sector information from Companies House licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Data from Companies House, © Crown copyright. View the licence.