ASSOCIATED INDUSTRIES LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
01855796 · ltd · incorporated 1984-10-16
Investment thesis
Zombie company — trading but stalled; unlikely mover.
Why interesting: Quiet, steady; could be a succession or carve-out candidate with the right conversation.
Why risky: No growth signal; thin margin for error on price.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
£976.6k
book net assets
Opportunity
78/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Non-specialised wholesale trade
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 68-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 78/100 (strong), bankability 65/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 68). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Cash flow review and working-capital discipline. Cash down -52% YoY — forensic review of receivables, stock turns, and creditor days. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
5 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 30.9y
30/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 30.9 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
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, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
5 charges (5/5 with lender, 5/5 with type)
90
Directors & officers
4 officers (2 active, 4 linked, 2 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
4 connected companies via shared directors
57
Filing history
116 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
78/100Strong
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
82
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 £976,593
Cash draining
Cash down 52% YoY
Cash YoY
-52%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£11k
↓ 52% YoY
Net Worth
£977k
↑ 4.4% YoY
Current Assets
£1.9m
↓ 7.7% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £1.24M | £1.24M |
| Current assets | £1.94M | £2.10M |
| Cash | £11.0k | £23.2k |
| Debtors | £1.42M | £1.36M |
| Net assets | £976.6k | £935.1k |
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
1
filing
- • 1 address
Last 90 days
1
filing
- • 1 address
Last 180 days
3
filings
- • 2 address
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (26 events)Click to expand
- 2026-06-04📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2026-01-22📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2025-12-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-11-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-12-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-12-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-12-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-11-24📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2021-01-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-12-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-12-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-12-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-04-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-03-09📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortenedaccounts · AA01
- 2016-12-13📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortenedaccounts · AA01
- 2014-12-11➖ESTABROOKS, Gary Douglas resigneddirector
- 2010-03-19🔒Charge registered #5Lender: Hsbc Bank PLC
- 2004-10-20🔓Charge satisfied #4
- 2001-12-19➖PALMER, Wayne John resignedsecretary
- 2001-12-11➕ESTABROOKS, Gary Douglas appointedsecretary
- 2001-12-11➕ESTABROOKS, Gary Douglas appointeddirector
- 2001-03-22🔒Charge registered #4Lender: Hsbc Bank PLC
- 1998-04-28🔒Charge registered #3Lender: Midland Bank PLC
- 1995-08-10🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Midland Bank PLC
- 1995-07-20🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Midland Bank PLC
- 1984-10-16🏢Company incorporatedAs ASSOCIATED INDUSTRIES LIMITED
Owner dependency
90/100
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
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 68 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
75/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 68. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 42 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
Red flags
1 lowMultiple registered office changes
lowMultiple address changes in a short period can indicate operational instability or admin disorder.
Shareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mrs Denise Anne Wilson Individual · British · DOB 09/1958 · age 68 | 75–100% | 75–100% | 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting | 01/07/2016 |
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 →Similar companies
Active · Wholesale & distribution · CH postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AJ KICKZZZ LTD→ 17062630 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ALBIE CLOTHES LTD→ 16691626 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ALPINE WATER COOLERS LTD→ 11501647 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| AMANZI UTILITIES LIMITED→ 09025087 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| AMC (UK) LIMITED→ 04314412 · est 2001 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 24y | — | — |
| ANGLO TAJIK TRADING COMPANY LIMITED→ 00995533 · est 1970 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 55y | — | — |
| AROMAVEND LTD→ 16209105 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ARPACHEM LIMITED→ 10842999 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| ARPADIS UK LIMITED→ 05076900 · est 2004 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 22y | — | — |
| ASTON JONES LIMITED→ 04801602 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 22y | — | — |
| ASTRAL INTERNATIONAL AVIATION LIMITED→ 16562632 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AURORA SKINCARE LIMITED→ 15667416 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
9 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
Incorporated1984-10-16
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC46900 — Non-specialised wholesale trade
Registered office
Chester House
Lloyd Drive
Ellesmere Port
CH65 9HQ
United Kingdom
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-24
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-03-02
Last: 2026-02-16
Officers (2 active · 2 resigned)
ESTABROOKS, Gary Douglas→
Activesecretary · appointed 2001-12-11
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
PALMER, Wayne John→
Resignedsecretary · resigned 2001-12-19
ESTABROOKS, Gary Douglas→
Resigneddirector · ~74y · appointed 2001-12-11 · resigned 2014-12-11
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
5
Total charges
4
Outstanding
2
Active lenders
Status:Lender:5 of 5 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | HSBC Hsbc Bank PLC | Legal mortgage | 1 property | 19/03/2010 | — | |
| satisfied | HSBC Hsbc Bank PLC | Legal charge | 1 property | 22/03/2001 | 20/10/2004 | |
| outstanding | Midland Bank Midland Bank PLC | Debenture | 1 property | 28/04/1998 | — | |
| outstanding | Midland Bank Midland Bank PLC | Legal charge | 1 property | 10/08/1995 | — | |
| outstanding | Midland Bank Midland Bank PLC | Fixed and floating charge | 1 property | 20/07/1995 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (116 total)
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2026-06-04
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-17
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2026-01-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-12-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-02-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-11-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-02-29
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-12-14
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-03-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-12-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-02-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-12-21
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2021-11-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-02-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-01-08