At some point the projects stopped feeling like side projects. Sentinel was protecting real servers. 24ad.info had real users. I was invoicing for services — or trying to, with no proper structure to do it through. That's when I decided to make it official.
Why a Limited Company and Not Just Sole Trader
For my construction work I operate as a sole trader — straightforward, minimal paperwork, works fine for physical labour. But for software, I wanted something different. A Ltd company separates personal and business liability. It looks more credible to potential clients. It makes it easier to bring someone else in later. And if something goes wrong with a product — a data issue, a contract dispute — the company carries the risk, not me personally.
It also forced me to treat FixFlex as a real business, not a hobby that sometimes earns money. That mental shift matters more than it sounds.
Companies House: Easier Than I Expected
I'd heard the horror stories — forms, solicitors, weeks of waiting. The reality in 2024 is different. The Companies House online portal is genuinely straightforward. You fill in the company name, choose your registered address, appoint a director (yourself), issue shares, and pay a small registration fee. If your application is clean, it goes through in hours, sometimes within the day.
"I registered FixFlex LTD in the evening after a full day on site. It was done before midnight."
The name choice mattered. I wanted something that worked for both the construction context I was coming from and the software context I was moving into. FixFlex — something that fixes things, something that's adaptable. It fits.
The SIC Code Question
The SIC (Standard Industrial Classification) code tells Companies House what your business does. There's a full list and you pick the one that fits best. For a company building apps, managing servers, running ad platforms, and selling AI tools, no single code is perfect. I picked the one that most closely matched the primary revenue model at the time, knowing I could update it later if the focus shifted.
Don't overthink it. It's administrative, not legal. You can update it as the business evolves.
The Practical Bits After Registration
Getting the certificate of incorporation is the easy part. What follows takes longer:
After registration checklist:
- Business bank account — some banks take days, some take weeks. Apply to more than one.
- Accounting software — even a free tier tool keeps things clean from day one
- UTR number — register with HMRC for Corporation Tax within 3 months of trading
- VAT — not required below the threshold, but plan for it early
- Confirmation statement — annual filing, straightforward, don't miss it
The first invoice I sent under FixFlex LTD was a strange moment. It was a small amount. But it felt different from anything I'd invoiced before — it was a software company charging for software, not a tradesman charging for labour. That distinction felt significant.
Running Two Lives
The practical reality of running a Ltd company while working full-time in construction is that the admin lands in the evenings and weekends — the same time I'm coding. Tax returns, bank reconciliation, invoicing, chasing payments. None of it is hard, but all of it takes time you're already spending on building the product.
The way I handle it: construction work pays the bills today, FixFlex is the investment in tomorrow. Every invoice sent, every product shipped, every user gained is compounding. The construction work doesn't compound. The software does.
If you're in a similar position — running something real on the side of a day job — incorporating is worth it once you're past the "hobby project" stage. It won't change how you build, but it changes how the world sees what you've built.