BENCE JONES LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
01829363 · ltd · incorporated 1984-07-03
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 Feb 2025
Net worth
£69.0k
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Retail sale of audio and video equipment in specialised stores
Sector: Wholesale & retail
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
  • 47540Retail sale of electrical household appliances in specialised stores
  • 77291Renting and leasing of media entertainment equipment
Investor take
Pursue
Asset-holding vehicle. Family succession underway — not a classic acquisition target.

Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Same-surname younger director in place — likely family handover, not open to sale. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).

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, 3 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
6 officers (3 active, 6 linked, 4 with DOB)
83
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
3 connected companies via shared directors
54
Filing history
89 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
80/100Exceptional
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
90
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 102
Positive net assets
Net assets £68,988
Net assets shrinking
Down £2,714 YoY
Cash YoY
+153%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£29k
↑ 153% YoY
Net Worth
£69k
↓ 3.8% YoY
Current Assets
£49k
↓ 7.8% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£14k£29k£43k£57k£72kFeb 2024Feb 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2025-02-282024-02-29
Total assets£69.0k£71.7k
Current assets£48.5k£52.7k
Cash£29.1k£11.5k
Debtors£19.4k£41.1k
Net assets£69.0k£71.7k

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
1
filing
  • • 1 officers
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (22 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-01-29
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  2. 2026-01-27
    ➕
    JONES, Matthew appointed
    director
  3. 2025-11-03
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2024-11-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2023-11-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2022-11-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2021-11-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2021-01-12
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2019-11-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2018-11-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2017-11-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2016-11-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  13. 2016-01-03
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  14. 2015-12-03
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  15. 2014-12-31
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  16. 2014-12-01
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  17. 1997-12-31
    ➕
    JONES, Amanda Jayne appointed
    secretary
  18. 1997-12-31
    ➖
    JONES, Mary Sebeana resigned
    secretary
  19. 1997-12-31
    ➖
    JONES, Mary Sebeana resigned
    director
  20. 1991-07-04
    ➕
    JONES, Philip Bence appointed
    director
  21. 1991-07-04
    ➖
    JONES, Norman Bowen resigned
    director
  22. 1984-07-03
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As BENCE JONES LIMITED

Owner dependency

100/100
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 "JONES" — strong identity link between founder and business.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 35 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 72 — succession pressure is live.
  • +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.

Succession & seller-readiness

46/100
Moderate signal

Some succession indicators present. Worth watching; approach if sector/strategy fits.

SIGNALS
  • primaryFamily succession underway: Not a takeover target — JONES, Matthew (same surname) appointed 2026-01-27. Pattern consistent with intra-family handover.
  • primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 72 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 35 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • 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

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Philip Bence Jones
Individual · British · DOB 07/1954 · age 72
75–100%
75–100%75-100% shares · 75-100% voting01/07/2016

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 →

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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
Incorporated1984-07-03
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC47430 — Retail sale of audio and video equipment in specialised stores

Registered office

Combens Top Of The Hill
Easton Lane
Portland
Dorset
DT5 1BW

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-11-30
Last made up to: 2025-02-28
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-01-14
Last: 2025-12-31

Officers (3 active · 3 resigned)

JONES, Amanda Jayne→
secretary · appointed 1997-12-31
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
JONES, Matthew→
director · ~35y · appointed 2026-01-27
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
JONES, Philip Bence→
director · ~72y · appointed 1991-07-04
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
JONES, Mary Sebeana→
secretary · resigned 1997-12-31
Resigned
JONES, Mary Sebeana→
director · ~106y · resigned 1997-12-31
Resigned
JONES, Norman Bowen→
director · ~109y · resigned 1991-07-04
Resigned

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

Recent filings (89 total)

appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2026-01-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-01-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-11-03
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-14
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-11-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-01-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-11-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-01-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-11-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-01-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-11-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-01-12
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-01-08
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-01-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-11-29