Parent Company Setup
Setup a single parent company structure for your own products and agency services - Done Once
Last updated: 23rd May 2025
This page covers PARENT COMPANY setup - done ONCE to create your business entity.
Company registration is only necessary in two specific scenarios:
- When your product accepts payments (requires legal entity for Stripe),
or
- When building an agency.
For beginners learning to code, you can skip company setup while building practice projects with Titan. Focus on building products first, and only register a company when you have a working product that’s been tested and is ready to accept payments, or when you’re ready to start agency work.
After completing parent company setup, each individual product you build (whether for clients or yourself) will follow the MVP Development Process.
Understanding the Structure
Your parent company serves as a single business entity that can handle:
Your Own Products
- Multiple SaaS products under your company
- Unified legal entity and accounting
- Your company retains all IP and control
- Your company handles all billing and customer relationships
Agency Services
- Client project development
- Consulting and technical services
- Client owns the final product and IP
- Clear handover of assets and credentials
Key Principle: One parent company → Multiple products/projects. Each product gets its own domain, branding, and setup process, but operates under your single legal entity.
Company Setup Costs Breakdown
Here’s a comprehensive breakdown of all costs involved in setting up and maintaining a UK limited company:
| Expense Type | Standard Cost | DIY Method Cost | Payment Frequency | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Company Registration | £69.99 (Companies Made Simple) | £50 (Register directly with Companies House) | One-off | Basic registration without privacy protection is just £50 |
| Confirmation Statement | £34 (online) / £62 (paper) | £34 (online) | Annual | Required filing to confirm company details |
| Business Bank Account | £0-£7.50/month | £0 (Tide, comes free with Companies Made Simple package) | Monthly | Free Tide account included with privacy package |
| Accountant | £800-£1,500/year | £0 (Self-filing) | Annual | DIY accounting software: £10-30/month |
| Corporation Tax | 19% on profits | 19% on profits | Annual | Only payable if your company makes profit |
| VAT Registration | £0 | £0 | N/A | Only required if turnover exceeds £89,000 |
| Voluntary Dissolution | £44 (paper) | £33 (online) | One-off | Cost to close your company if needed |
DIY Cost-Saving Tips:
- File your own Confirmation Statement online (£34 vs £62)
- Use free business banking (Tide, Starling)
- Consider self-filing accounts for micro-entities with low/no revenue
- Apply to strike off your company online (£33) instead of using paper form (£44)
Dissolving Your Company
Don’t worry! If you want to close your company later for whatever reason, for a one-person company, closing down is simple:
-
Online Application: Apply online at Companies House to strike off your company - costs just £33.
-
Quick Checklist:
- Make sure your company hasn’t traded in the last 3 months
- Close your business bank account and transfer any remaining money
- File your final accounts and tax return with HMRC
-
Timeline: After application, Companies House publishes a notice. If nobody objects within 2 months, your company is dissolved.
That’s it! No complicated liquidation process needed for a simple one-person company with no debts.
This page was last updated on: 2nd May 2025
Parent Company Structure Timeline
Setting up a single company that can function both as a product business and as an agency is the smartest approach. We’ll go through a comprehensive timeline for setting up such a structure, with specific guidance for UK-based founders (You will have to set up something similar for your own jurisdiction if you live outside the UK).
Phase 1: Initial Setup
Buy Your Company Domain
Purchase a domain for your parent company (not individual products).
Examples:
- yourcompanyname.com
- yourcompanyname.co.uk
- techcorpsolutions.com
Recommended registrars: Namecheap or Porkbun
This domain is for your company’s main website and email. Each product you build will get its own separate domain during the MVP Development Process.
Setup Company Email
Establish professional communication channels for your parent company operations:
Company Email Setup Setup with Google Workspace - Tutorial. It’s £6/email/month.
Required Company Email:
- admin@yourcompany.com - Main admin email for all business operations (banking, accounting, legal correspondence, and company registration)
Additional Emails (create after company registration):
- agency@yourcompany.com - For agency client communications (only if doing agency work)
- hello@yourcompany.com - General inquiries about your company
- support@yourcompany.com - Customer support across all your products
Important: This Google Workspace setup is for your parent company operations only. Each product you build will need its own email setup during the MVP Development Process, whether it’s for clients (agency work) or your own products.
Register Your Parent Company
Now that you have your company email setup, register a single parent company that will house both your own products and agency services.
This dual-purpose structure allows you to:
- Launch multiple products under one legal entity
- Provide agency/freelance services to clients
- Maintain simple unified accounting
- Scale operations efficiently with minimal admin overhead
For UK-based founders:
Use the Privacy Package from Companies Made Simple (GBP 69.99 one-off including GBP 50 Companies House fee) which provides:
- Companies House registration
- London registered office and service address for privacy
- Scanning of HMRC/Companies House mail
- Free business bank account referral to Tide
Key SIC Codes for Dual-Purpose Business:
- 62012: Business and domestic software development (for your products)
- 62020: Information technology consultancy activities (for agency work)
Choose a company name that’s broad enough to accommodate both your product business and agency services. Avoid names that pigeonhole you into a specific niche. Examples: “TechCorp Solutions Ltd”, “Digital Innovations Ltd”, “CodeCraft Technologies Ltd”
Setup Business Banking
Establish a business bank account to keep your finances separate from personal funds. This will come with the above privacy package.
For UK-based founders:
Tide’s free tier (Pay As You Go plan) is sufficient for startups:
- UK business account with no monthly fees
- Low-cost transactions (e.g., 20p per transfer)
- App-based invoicing and expense tracking
- Suitable for dormant companies or those earning less than GBP 100/year
Essential banking features:
- Separate expense tracking for own products vs agency work
- Invoice tracking for client work
- Integration with accounting software
Strictly separate business and personal expenses from day one - this simplifies accounting, tax compliance, and makes your business more credible to clients and investors.
Phase 2: Legal and Compliance Setup
Cost: £0 for now
Tax Registration and Compliance
For UK-based founders:
If your company will be actively trading, register with HMRC within 3 months of starting business activity:
- HMRC Registration is simple: Register for corporation tax using your UTR (Unique Taxpayer Reference) - This will be in the letter from Companies House. You can do this online and should be done within 3 months of starting business activity.
- Annual Requirements:
- Confirmation Statement (GBP 34/year)
- Annual Accounts filing
- Corporation Tax: Payable at 19% on profits, due 9 months after your accounting period ends
For very small businesses (e.g., less than GBP 100/year), DIY filing is straightforward and can save GBP 800 to 1,500/year on accountant fees. Consider hiring a professional accountant only when your revenue grows significantly.
Agency Contract Templates (Optional)
This is optional and can be skipped for now unless you’re starting agency work immediately. Focus on your own products first.
Set up professional contract templates for your agency/freelance services. These contracts are essential for:
- Clarifying project scope and deliverables
- Establishing payment terms
- Protecting your intellectual property
- Limiting your liability
- Setting clear expectations for both parties
Two essential contract types:
Software Development Agreement (when working through your company)
- Defines the relationship between your company and the client
- Specifies work scope, timelines, and payment terms
- Includes IP assignment provisions
- Sets out acceptance criteria for completed work
Service Agreement (for ongoing relationships)
- Establishes a framework for multiple projects
- Defines service levels and support terms
- Includes provisions for recurring payments
- Outlines termination process
Use this contract as a template (tweak as you see fit): https://www.pandadoc.com/software-development-agreement-template-uk/
Always include intellectual property (IP) clauses that clearly transfer ownership of code and assets to the client upon final payment. For agency work, this ensures your client owns what they’ve paid for. For your own products, you retain all IP.
Always have your contracts double-checked by a legal professional to ensure they provide adequate protection for your specific situation and comply with local laws. The cost of proper contracts is minimal compared to the potential costs of disputes or intellectual property issues.
Phase 3: Operational Setup
Setup Company Payment Processing
Establish payment systems for your parent company:
For Agency Services
- Setup a company Stripe account for invoicing clients
- Configure invoice templates with your company branding
- Setup milestone-based payment structures
For Your Own Products
- Use the same company Stripe account
- Each product will have separate payment flows during MVP Development
Setup Stripe for your company - Tutorial
Essential Stripe configuration:
- Business information with your company details
- Bank account linked to your business banking
- Tax settings for your jurisdiction
- Company branding in Stripe dashboard
Your company Stripe account can handle payments for multiple products and client projects. Each will be tracked separately for accounting purposes.
Agency Work Framework
If you plan to do agency work, understand these key principles:
Client Responsibilities vs Your Responsibilities
What Clients Must Provide for Agency Projects:
Critical: For agency projects, clients should ideally own and control all third-party services. This ensures clean handover and avoids billing/ownership complications.
Client Must Setup & Own:
- Domain registration and DNS control
- Production hosting accounts (Vercel, Netlify, etc.)
- Database services (Supabase, PlanetScale, etc.)
- Authentication services (Clerk, Auth0, etc.)
- Payment processing (their own Stripe account)
- Email services (their own Google Workspace or email provider)
- Any other third-party integrations
Client Must Provide to You:
- Admin access to only the services that you need to setup (Google Workspace)
- API keys and configuration details
- Brand assets (logo, colors, fonts)
- Content and copy for the application
- Clear project requirements and scope
Your Agency Provides:
- Development expertise and code
- Technical consultation and advice
- Setup and configuration guidance
- Testing and quality assurance
- Documentation and handover
- Support during handover period
Agency vs Own Products Workflow
For Agency Projects:
- Client completes company setup
- Client purchases domain and makes sure they have a business bank account and Google Workspace
- You follow MVP Development Process
- Clean handover with documentation and credential transfer
For Your Own Products:
- You control all services and credentials
- You purchase product domain
- You follow MVP Development Process using your company’s setup
- You retain all ownership and control
Next Steps
Ready to Build Products
Your parent company is now set up. Each product you build (whether for clients or yourself) will follow the MVP Development Process, which covers product-specific setup like domains, branding, and service configuration.
Remember: Parent company setup is done ONCE. Product development setup is done for EACH product you build.