CHRIS BARBER LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
01609603 · ltd · incorporated 1982-01-28
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 Mar 2025
Net worth
£1.16M
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Growing of cereals (except rice), leguminous crops and oil seeds
Sector: Agriculture, forestry & fishing
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
- 01460SIC 01460
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 73-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 67/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 73). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Consolidate lender relationships. 3 distinct lenders creates friction — refinance into single-lender structure for cleaner diligence. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
4 live charges · 3 lenders · oldest 34.3y
15/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 34.3 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · 3 lenders named — inter-creditor friction likely.
- · Cashflow trend is negative — lender view likely cautious.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (79/100)Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.
Company profile
address, 2 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
4 charges (4/4 with lender, 4/4 with type)
90
Directors & officers
3 officers (3 active, 3 linked, 2 with DOB)
83
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
94 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
70
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 declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £1,159,212
Cash draining
Cash down 54% YoY
Cash YoY
-54%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£29k
↓ 54% YoY
Net Worth
£1.2m
~ YoY
Current Assets
£284k
↓ 11% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-03-30 | 2024-03-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £2.18M | £1.95M |
| Current assets | £284.3k | £320.9k |
| Cash | £29.4k | £64.3k |
| Debtors | £9.8k | £6.7k |
| Net assets | £1.16M | £1.15M |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
🔒Filing-note intelligence
2 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
1
filing
- • 1 mortgage
Last 180 days
2
filings
- • 1 mortgage
- • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (21 events)Click to expand
- 2026-03-10📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2026-03-10🔓Charge satisfied #4
- 2025-12-02📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2025-05-13📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2025-05-02🔒Charge registered #4Lender: Marcon Lee Limited
- 2024-11-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2023-10-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2022-11-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2022-02-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-12-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2020-02-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2019-12-23📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortenedaccounts · AA01
- 2018-08-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2017-07-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2016-06-03📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-07-31📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-07-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2011-07-12🔒Charge registered #3Lender: Hsbc Bank PLC
- 1993-12-10🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Midland Bank PLC
- 1992-01-23🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Midland Bank PLC
- 1982-01-28🏢Company incorporatedAs CHRIS BARBER LIMITED
Owner dependency
96/100
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 "BARBER" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 73 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
Succession & seller-readiness
76/100
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 73 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 44 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
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 Chris Barber Individual · British · DOB 04/1953 · age 73 | 25–50% | 25–50% | board control25-50% shares · 25-50% voting · board control | 06/04/2016 |
Mrs Fiona Helen Barber Individual · British · DOB 12/1961 · age 65 | 25–50% | 25–50% | board control25-50% shares · 25-50% voting · board control | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
🔒Co-director network graph
Radial SVG graph showing every company connected via shared directors, colour-coded by status.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Similar companies
Active · Agriculture · CV postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A B LIVERY LIMITED→ 17003706 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AGRIFAB LTD→ 14754414 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| ALDER MILL ENTERPRISE LTD→ 12766180 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| AVIAGEN LIMITED→ 01610943 · est 1982 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 44y | — | — |
| BEANIT FARM LIVERY LIMITED→ 15125073 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| BRITISH CHAROLAIS CATTLE SOCIETY LIMITED (THE)→ 00731132 · est 1962 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 63y | — | — |
| C W TREE LTD→ 16219189 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| CARP DREAMS LIMITED→ 07930601 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| CHINA JINFEN AGRICULTURAL MATERIALS GROUP CO., LTD→ 16863359 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| CHLOE’S CONNIES LTD→ 14301533 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| CJUK2019 LTD→ 11920213 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| CLARES BARN LIMITED→ 06708191 · est 2008 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 17y | — | — |
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
Incorporated1982-01-28
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC01110 — Growing of cereals (except rice), leguminous crops and oil seeds
Registered office
Berryfields Farm
Berkswell Road
Meriden Coventry
CV7 7LB
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-30
Last made up to: 2025-03-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-08-14
Last: 2025-07-31
Officers (3 active · 0 resigned)
Active
Active
Active
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
4
Total charges
3
Outstanding
2
Active lenders
Status:Lender:4 of 4 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| satisfied | Marcon Lee Marcon Lee Limited | A registered charge | — | 02/05/2025 | 10/03/2026 | |
| outstanding | HSBC Hsbc Bank PLC | Debenture | 1 property | 12/07/2011 | — | |
| outstanding | Midland Bank Midland Bank PLC | Fixed and floating charge | 1 property | 10/12/1993 | — | |
| outstanding | Midland Bank Midland Bank PLC | Legal charge over agricultural holding | 1 property | 23/01/1992 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (94 total)
mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
mortgage · MR04
2026-03-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2025-12-02
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-08-12
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2025-05-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2024-11-18
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-08-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2023-10-31
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-08-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2022-11-14
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-08-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-02-21
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-08-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2020-12-18
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-07-31
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2020-02-18