HILLS BOOKS LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
01418170 · ltd · incorporated 1979-05-08
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
—
not disclosed
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
75/100
Strong
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What this business does
Primary activity: Non-specialised wholesale trade
Sector: Wholesale & retail
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
  • 47610SIC 47610
Investor take
Pursue
Strong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and bankable structure.

Opportunity 75/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: strategic trade sale (63/100).

Data confidence

Overall: low (54/100)

Sparse data coverage. Treat AI-generated outputs as preliminary. Manual diligence essential.

Company profile
address, 2 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
No iXBRL financials extracted
0
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
7 officers (3 active, 7 linked, 4 with DOB)
81
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
103 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
75/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

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

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
60
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.

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 (24 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-10-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-10-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  3. 2023-10-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  4. 2022-10-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  5. 2021-11-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  6. 2020-12-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  7. 2019-10-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  8. 2019-02-28
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  9. 2018-11-01
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2017-10-12
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2016-10-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  12. 2016-03-18
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  13. 2015-10-01
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  14. 2015-03-09
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  15. 2014-10-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  16. 2004-10-04
    ➕
    WILLIAMS, Zoe Louise appointed
    secretary
  17. 2004-10-04
    ➕
    WILLIAMS, Zoe Louise appointed
    director
  18. 2004-10-04
    ➖
    HILL, Ronald resigned
    secretary
  19. 2003-01-31
    ➕
    HILL, Paul Tolson appointed
    director
  20. 2003-01-31
    ➖
    HILL, John Leslie resigned
    secretary
  21. 2003-01-31
    ➕
    HILL, Ronald appointed
    secretary
  22. 2003-01-31
    ➖
    HILL, John Leslie resigned
    director
  23. 2003-01-31
    ➖
    HILL, Ronald resigned
    director
  24. 1979-05-08
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As HILLS BOOKS LIMITED

Owner dependency

83/100
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.
  • +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "HILL" — strong identity link between founder and business.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 23 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.

Succession & seller-readiness

66/100
Strong succession signal

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

SIGNALS
  • secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 23 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 47 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

clean
No 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
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Paul Tolson Hill
Individual · British · DOB 01/1971 · age 55
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting06/04/2016
Mrs Zoe Louise Williams
Individual · British · DOB 12/1975 · age 51
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 →
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Company details

Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated1979-05-08
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC46900 — Non-specialised wholesale trade

Registered office

Milburn House 3 Oxford Street
Workington
Cumbria
CA14 2AL

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-10-31
Last made up to: 2025-01-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-03-14
Last: 2026-02-28

Officers (3 active · 4 resigned)

WILLIAMS, Zoe Louise→
secretary · appointed 2004-10-04
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
HILL, Paul Tolson→
director · ~55y · appointed 2003-01-31
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
WILLIAMS, Zoe Louise→
director · ~51y · appointed 2004-10-04
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
HILL, John Leslie→
secretary · resigned 2003-01-31
Resigned
HILL, Ronald→
secretary · appointed 2003-01-31 · resigned 2004-10-04
Resigned
HILL, John Leslie→
director · ~85y · resigned 2003-01-31
Resigned
HILL, Ronald→
director · ~82y · resigned 2003-01-31
Resigned

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

Recent filings (103 total)

confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-03-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2025-10-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-04-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2024-10-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-03-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2023-10-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-03-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2022-10-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-03-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2021-11-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-04-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2020-12-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-03-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2019-10-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-02-28