Hochanda

Hochanda Global Limited, operating as Create & Craft, established a significant presence in the UK's home shopping market, specializing in the arts, crafts, and hobbies sector. The company's journey began with seasoned entrepreneurs Paul Wright and Valerie Kaye, who had previously founded the successful shopping channel Ideal World in the 1980s as a mail-order business, which transitioned to television in 2000. After selling Ideal World in 2011, Wright and Kaye launched Hochanda, an acronym for Home of Crafts, Hobbies and Arts, in 2015, pouring their extensive experience in television retail into this new venture.

The business operated primarily as a multi-platform retailer, leveraging live television broadcasts and a robust e-commerce website to reach a broad audience of craft enthusiasts across the UK. Its revenue model was based on direct-to-consumer sales of a wide array of crafting supplies, including products for papercraft, sewing, knitting, and art. The television channel served as both a sales platform and a source of educational content, featuring live demonstrations that showcased product features and provided creative inspiration, aiming to build a loyal community of customers. A key milestone was the acquisition of its main rival, Create & Craft, from Ideal World in January 2022. This strategic move consolidated the UK's two largest craft shopping channels under Hochanda's control, merging the operations to offer a wider variety of products and suppliers.

In late 2023, facing personal health challenges, founders Paul Wright and Val Kaye announced their retirement and sold their stakes in the company to an equity fund, TNUI Capital. Paul Goodrum was appointed as the new managing director to steer the company forward. However, the company faced significant financial headwinds. Despite an increase in turnover to £33.2 million for the year ending December 31, 2022, post-tax losses widened to £5.7 million, and net liabilities grew to over £16.3 million. These difficulties, attributed to factors like a slump in trade and non-payment issues with suppliers, led to the company being placed into administration in October 2024, ultimately ceasing all operations.

Keywords: Hochanda, Create & Craft, TV shopping channel, arts and crafts, hobbies, e-commerce, Paul Wright, Valerie Kaye, direct-to-consumer retail, craft supplies, papercraft, sewing supplies, knitting, UK craft market, television retail, live shopping, craft demonstrations, Ideal World, The Craft Store, Hochanda administration, TNUI Capital