PEN AND INK BOOK COMPANY LIMITED(THE)
🌳Matureactive
01712439 · ltd · incorporated 1983-04-06
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
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
- · Oldest live charge 36.7y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Dec 2024
Net worth
£118.7k
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Book publishing
Sector: Information & communication
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
- 90030Artistic creation
Investor take
PursueAsset-holding vehicle with a 71-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 77/100. Strong seller-intent signal (78/100, director aged 71). 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 (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
2 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 36.7y
50/100
clean up first
Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.
- · Oldest live charge is 36.7 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, 2 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
6 officers (2 active, 6 linked, 3 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
3 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
112 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 · FRS 105 (micro)Positive net assets
Net assets £118,739
Net assets shrinking
Down £31,221 YoY
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
£119k
↓ 21% YoY
Current Assets
£135k
↓ 20% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 105 (micro)| Metric | 2024-12-31 | 2023-12-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £120.0k | £154.1k |
| Current assets | £134.7k | £167.3k |
| Net assets | £118.7k | £150.0k |
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
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (27 events)Click to expand
- 2025-09-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-09-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-09-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-09-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-01-11📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2021-01-11📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2021-01-11📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2020-12-11📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2020-07-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-10-01📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2018-09-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-09-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2016-09-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-04-06➕LEONARD, Fiona appointeddirector
- 2016-04-06📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2008-05-01➖TEMPLE SECRETARIES LIMITED resignedcorporate-secretary
- 2006-08-31➖MEYER, Janine Marjorie resignedsecretary
- 2006-08-31➕TEMPLE SECRETARIES LIMITED appointedcorporate-secretary
- 1999-06-07🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 1993-02-01➖LEONARD, Rodney William resignedsecretary
- 1993-02-01➕MEYER, Janine Marjorie appointedsecretary
- 1993-02-01➖LEONARD, Rodney William resigneddirector
- 1992-06-12🔓Charge satisfied #2
- 1990-10-31🔒Charge registered #2Lender: John Dobson
- 1989-08-30🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Lloyds Bank PLC
- 1983-04-06🏢Company incorporatedAs PEN AND INK BOOK COMPANY LIMITED(THE)
Owner dependency
81/100
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 age: Director aged approximately 71 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
Succession & seller-readiness
81/100
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 71 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 43 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
3 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Anthony Leonard Individual · British · DOB 12/1955 · age 71 | 50–75% | — | 50-75% shares | 06/04/2016 |
Mr Rodney William Leonard Individual · British · DOB 11/1947 · age 79 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 06/04/2016 |
Mr Rodney William Leonard Individual · British · DOB 11/1947 · age 79 | 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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Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
7 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
Incorporated1983-04-06
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC58110 — Book publishing
Registered office
Carlton House
High Street
Higham Ferrers
Northamptonshire
NN10 8BW
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-07-20
Last: 2025-07-06
Officers (2 active · 4 resigned)
Active
LEONARD, Fiona→
Activedirector · ~70y · appointed 2016-04-06
View their other companies + combined net worth →
LEONARD, Rodney William→
Resignedsecretary · resigned 1993-02-01
MEYER, Janine Marjorie→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 1993-02-01 · resigned 2006-08-31
TEMPLE SECRETARIES LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-secretary · appointed 2006-08-31 · resigned 2008-05-01
LEONARD, Rodney William→
Resigneddirector · ~79y · resigned 1993-02-01
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
2
Total charges
0
Outstanding
0
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| satisfied | John Dobson / Audrey Dobson(Trading as J. Dobson & Son) / Sam Dobson | Debenture | 1 property | 31/10/1990 | 12/06/1992 | |
| satisfied | Lloyds Banking Group Lloyds Bank PLC | Single debenture | 1 property | 30/08/1989 | 07/06/1999 |
Recent filings (112 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-09-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-07-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-09-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-07-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-09-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-07-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-09-07
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-07-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-09-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-07-07
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2021-01-11
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2021-01-11
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2021-01-11
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2020-12-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-07-24