ALANS (WIGAN) LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
00640241 · ltd · incorporated 1959-10-23
Investment thesis
Well-run mature business — low negotiation leverage; premium likely.
Why interesting: Textbook target; clean filings, stable trading.
Why risky: No pressure on seller; any deal likely at full price.
Opportunity decay
hardening · 12-months
Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.
  • · Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Apr 2025
Net worth
£97.6k
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 47640
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 62-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 67/100. Strong seller-intent signal (80/100, director aged 62). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Consolidate lender relationships. 4 distinct lenders creates friction — refinance into single-lender structure for cleaner diligence. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

3 live charges · 3 lenders · oldest 63.9y

35/100
too messy

Refinance path is blocked by complexity. Rethink structure or expect bespoke, expensive terms.

  • · Oldest live charge is 63.9 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · 3 lenders named — inter-creditor friction likely.
  • · Legal-friction score 35/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.

Data confidence

Overall: medium (78/100)

Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.

Company profile
address, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
3 charges (3/3 with lender, 3/3 with type)
90
Directors & officers
8 officers (3 active, 8 linked, 6 with DOB)
85
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
105 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
79/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
77
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 102
Positive net assets
Net assets £97,565
Net assets shrinking
Down £11,577 YoY
Cash YoY
+311%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£71k
↑ 311% YoY
Net Worth
£98k
↓ 11% YoY
Current Assets
£292k
↑ 73% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£58k£117k£175k£233k£292kApr 2024Apr 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2025-04-302024-04-30
Total assets£97.6k£121.0k
Current assets£291.6k£169.0k
Cash£71.2k£17.3k
Debtors£73.0k£46.5k
Net assets£97.6k£109.1k

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

🔒Filing-note intelligence

1 signal detected in this company's narrative notes — going-concern language, audit opinion, contingent liabilities, related-party transactions.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →

Recent activity

Last 30 days
2
filings
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
  • • 1 officers
Last 90 days
2
filings
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
  • • 1 officers
Last 180 days
3
filings
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
  • • 1 officers
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (31 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-07-13
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  2. 2026-05-19
    ➕
    WOODS, Alan Matthew appointed
    director
  3. 2026-01-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2025-01-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2024-04-02
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2023-06-05
    ➖
    WOODS, Alan Matthew resigned
    director
  7. 2023-06-05
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  8. 2023-04-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2022-04-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2021-02-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2020-01-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2019-01-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2018-04-10
    📄
    gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
    gazette · DISS40
  14. 2018-04-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  15. 2018-04-03
    📄
    gazette-notice-compulsory
    gazette · GAZ1
  16. 2017-01-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  17. 2016-05-25
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  18. 2007-05-30
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #2
  19. 2007-05-30
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #1
  20. 2007-05-25
    ➕
    WOODS, Julie appointed
    secretary
  21. 2007-05-25
    ➕
    WOODS, Julie appointed
    director
  22. 2007-05-25
    ➖
    SULLIVAN, Daniel resigned
    secretary
  23. 2007-05-25
    ➖
    MULLINS, Andrea resigned
    director
  24. 2007-05-25
    ➖
    MULLINS, Brian resigned
    director
  25. 2007-05-25
    ➖
    SULLIVAN, Daniel resigned
    director
  26. 2007-05-25
    ➕
    WOODS, Alan Matthew appointed
    director
  27. 2007-05-25
    🔒
    Charge registered #3
    Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
  28. 1997-11-03
    ➕
    MULLINS, Andrea appointed
    director
  29. 1984-09-17
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: Yorkshire Bank PLC.
  30. 1962-08-13
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Northern and General Finance LTD
  31. 1959-10-23
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As ALANS (WIGAN) LIMITED

Owner dependency

84/100
Critical — business is the founder

The business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.

FACTORS
  • +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 19 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 62 — approaching natural succession window.
  • +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.

Succession & seller-readiness

59/100
Strong succession signal

Multiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.

SIGNALS
  • secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 62. Early succession window.
  • secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
  • secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 19 years.
  • supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.

Red flags

1 med ·
Charge satisfaction-then-recreation pattern
medium

Multiple instances where a charge was satisfied and a new charge created within 6 months. Suggests active refinancing cycle.

Shareholders & ownership

2 active beneficial owners
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Alan Matthew Woods
Individual · British · DOB 09/1964 · age 62
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting06/04/2016
Julie Woods
Individual · British · DOB 12/1964 · age 62
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting06/04/2016

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

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Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions

6 specific questions generated from this company's actual signals — liquidity, leverage, director age, charge count, red flags, age-of-company.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →
🔒Advanced scoring suite

Exit-route ranking, improvement thesis, quiet-distress detector, covenant-pressure proxy, extraction monitor, approaching triggers, ownership drift, local cluster, value trap, debt capacity, archetype classification — 48+ scoring modules.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →

Company details

Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated1959-10-23
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC47640 — SIC 47640

Registered office

47 - 49 Wallgate
Wigan
Lancs
WN1 1BE

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-01-31
Last made up to: 2025-04-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-06-03
Last: 2026-05-20

Officers (3 active · 5 resigned)

WOODS, Julie→
secretary · appointed 2007-05-25
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
WOODS, Alan Matthew→
director · ~62y · appointed 2026-05-19
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
WOODS, Julie→
director · ~62y · appointed 2007-05-25
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
SULLIVAN, Daniel→
secretary · resigned 2007-05-25
Resigned
MULLINS, Andrea→
director · ~81y · appointed 1997-11-03 · resigned 2007-05-25
Resigned
MULLINS, Brian→
director · ~93y · resigned 2007-05-25
Resigned
SULLIVAN, Daniel→
director · ~78y · resigned 2007-05-25
Resigned
WOODS, Alan Matthew→
director · ~62y · appointed 2007-05-25 · resigned 2023-06-05
Resigned

Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.

Mortgages & charges

3
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:3 of 3 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
Legal charge1 property25/05/2007—
satisfied
Virgin Money
Yorkshire Bank PLC.
Legal charge3 properties17/09/198430/05/2007
satisfied
Virgin Money
Northern and General Finance LTD / Yorkshire Bank LTD
Debenture1 property13/08/196230/05/2007
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (105 total)

confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-07-13
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2026-07-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-01-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-05-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-01-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-05-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-04-02
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2023-06-05
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-05-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-04-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-06-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-04-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-06-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-02-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-05-21