BARROWS CARTONS LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
01308264 · ltd · incorporated 1977-04-13
Investment thesis
Established operating company — standard diligence applies, no dominant angle.
Why interesting: Live, filing, normal profile.
Why risky: No standout signals in either direction.
Opportunity decay
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
- · Oldest live charge 41.3y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Dec 2024
Net worth
£-40.4k
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 17120
Sector: Manufacturing
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 76). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Discharge stale live charges. 3 live charge(s) created 15+ years ago — likely paid but undischarged. Clean register. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
3 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 41.3y
50/100
clean up first
Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.
- · Oldest live charge is 41.3 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
- · Legal-friction score 25/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (77/100)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
7 officers (3 active, 7 linked, 5 with DOB)
84
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
106 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
82/100Exceptional
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Strong composite across quality, acquirability, and risk. High-priority target — progress to serious diligence.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredNegative net assets
Liabilities exceed assets by £40,367
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£5k
Net Worth
-£40k
↑ 11% YoY
Current Assets
£75k
↑ 4.5% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2024-12-31 | 2023-12-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £-10.4k | £-14.0k |
| Current assets | £75.2k | £72.0k |
| Cash | £5.0k | — |
| Debtors | £38.1k | £41.3k |
| Net assets | £-40.4k | £-45.3k |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
🔒Filing-note intelligence
3 signals 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
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (27 events)Click to expand
- 2025-11-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2025-10-23📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2025-10-23📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2025-09-15📍change-sail-address-company-with-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD02
- 2024-12-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2023-12-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2023-02-28📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2023-02-28📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2023-02-28📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2022-12-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2021-12-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2021-03-09📍change-sail-address-company-with-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD02
- 2021-03-08📍move-registers-to-sail-company-with-new-addressaddress · AD03
- 2020-12-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2019-09-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2018-09-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2002-03-06🔒Charge registered #3Lender: Hsbc Bank PLC
- 2001-08-31➖BARROW, Steven resigneddirector
- 2000-10-05➕BICKERTON, Kelvin appointedsecretary
- 2000-10-05➕BARROW, Paul appointeddirector
- 2000-10-05➖BARROW, Margaret resignedsecretary
- 2000-10-05➖BARROW, Eric resigneddirector
- 2000-10-05➖BARROW, Margaret resigneddirector
- 1999-04-01➕BICKERTON, Kelvin appointeddirector
- 1992-07-31🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Midland Bank PLC
- 1985-03-13🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Midland Bank PLC
- 1977-04-13🏢Company incorporatedAs BARROWS CARTONS LIMITED
Owner dependency
98/100
Critical — business is the founderThe 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.
- +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "BARROW" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 27 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 76 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
96/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 76 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 27 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 49 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
- supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.
Red flags
cleanNo red flags detected from available public data. (This is not a clean bill of health — detailed accounts review still recommended.)
Shareholders & ownership
2 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Kelvin Bickerton Individual · British · DOB 05/1950 · age 76 | 50–75% | — | 50-75% shares | 06/04/2016 |
Mr Paul Barrow Individual · British · DOB 12/1967 · age 59 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ASHROAD LIMITED→ 12475325 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
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| AZURA SOFT FURNISHINGS (UK) LIMITED→ 05888200 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| BAFASHIONSUK LTD→ 15406040 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| BAMFORD PRINT LIMITED→ 07332583 · est 2010 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 15y | — | — |
| BAREILLY SHOP LTD→ 12348021 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| BARKAT JEWELLERS NORTHWEST LTD→ 13490768 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| BAVARO GROUP UK LIMITED→ 06738896 · est 2008 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 17y | — | — |
| BB DOLLHOUSE LIMITED→ 16749942 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| BCAN SOLUTIONS LTD→ 16804688 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| BCH (ROCHDALE) LIMITED→ 10415909 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
8 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
Incorporated1977-04-13
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC17120 — SIC 17120
Registered office
Unit 1a Squires Mill
Micklehurst Road
Mossley
Lancashire
OL5 9JL
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-03-07
Last: 2026-02-21
Officers (3 active · 4 resigned)
Active
BARROW, Paul→
Activedirector · ~59y · appointed 2000-10-05
View their other companies + combined net worth →
BICKERTON, Kelvin→
Activedirector · ~76y · appointed 1999-04-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
BARROW, Margaret→
Resignedsecretary · resigned 2000-10-05
BARROW, Eric→
Resigneddirector · ~86y · resigned 2000-10-05
BARROW, Margaret→
Resigneddirector · ~86y · resigned 2000-10-05
BARROW, Steven→
Resigneddirector · ~65y · resigned 2001-08-31
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
3
Total charges
3
Outstanding
2
Active lenders
Status:Lender:3 of 3 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | HSBC Hsbc Bank PLC | Debenture | 1 property | 06/03/2002 | — | |
| outstanding | Midland Bank Midland Bank PLC | Charge | 1 property | 31/07/1992 | — | |
| outstanding | Midland Bank Midland Bank PLC | Fixed and floating charge | 1 property | 13/03/1985 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (106 total)
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2025-11-28
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2025-10-23
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-10-23
change-sail-address-company-with-old-address-new-address
address · AD02
2025-09-15
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-02-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2024-12-20
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-02-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2023-12-22
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-02-28
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2023-02-28
change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH03
2023-02-28
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2023-02-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2022-12-30
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-02-23