ARBURY COACHWORKS LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
01984774 · ltd · incorporated 1986-01-31
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 May 2025
Net worth
£65.8k
book net assets
Opportunity
77/100
Strong
🔔
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 45200
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
Pursue
Strong opportunity: asset-holding vehicle with strong profile and bankable structure.

Opportunity 77/100 (strong), bankability 85/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Broaden director team. Sole director creates succession risk and reduces buyer comfort. Appoint a second director or strong #2. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (58/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

1 live charge · oldest 39.9y

45/100
under pressure

Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.

  • · Oldest live charge is 39.9 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
  • · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.

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, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
14 officers (1 active, 14 linked, 10 with DOB)
84
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
120 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
77/100Strong
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
100
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declared
Positive net assets
Net assets £65,809
Cash YoY
-1%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£68k
↓ 1.2% YoY
Net Worth
£66k
↑ 9.0% YoY
Current Assets
£73k
~ YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£15k£29k£44k£59k£73kMay 2024May 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-05-312024-05-31
Total assets£70.3k£62.9k
Current assets£73.3k£73.1k
Cash£68.2k£69.0k
Debtors£1.7k£1.1k
Net assets£65.8k£60.4k

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 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (39 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-02-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-02-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2024-02-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2023-02-10
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2022-02-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2021-01-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2020-02-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2019-02-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2018-09-13
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  10. 2018-02-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2017-02-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  12. 2016-09-07
    📄
    mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
    mortgage · MR04
  13. 2016-09-07
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #1
  14. 2016-02-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  15. 2015-09-14
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  16. 2015-02-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  17. 2014-03-28
    ➖
    FREEMAN, Peter John resigned
    director
  18. 2014-03-28
    ➖
    FREEMAN, Stewart John resigned
    director
  19. 2011-09-30
    ➕
    FREEMAN, Stewart John appointed
    director
  20. 2009-04-28
    ➖
    FREEMAN, Irene Margaret resigned
    secretary
  21. 2009-04-28
    ➖
    FREEMAN, Irene Margaret resigned
    director
  22. 2002-09-02
    ➖
    BARRS, John resigned
    director
  23. 2000-06-01
    ➕
    MOORE, Ian Robert appointed
    director
  24. 2000-06-01
    ➕
    FREEMAN, Irene Margaret appointed
    secretary
  25. 2000-06-01
    ➕
    FREEMAN, Irene Margaret appointed
    director
  26. 2000-03-27
    ➖
    BARRS, Neil John resigned
    secretary
  27. 2000-03-27
    ➖
    BARRS, Debra Amanda resigned
    director
  28. 2000-03-27
    ➖
    BARRS, Neil John resigned
    director
  29. 1995-07-26
    ➖
    BARRS, John resigned
    secretary
  30. 1995-07-26
    ➕
    BARRS, Neil John appointed
    secretary
  31. 1995-07-26
    ➕
    BARRS, Debra Amanda appointed
    director
  32. 1995-07-26
    ➕
    FREEMAN, Peter John appointed
    director
  33. 1994-10-24
    ➕
    BARRS, John appointed
    secretary
  34. 1994-10-24
    ➖
    BARRS, Mavis resigned
    secretary
  35. 1994-10-24
    ➖
    BARRS, Mavis resigned
    director
  36. 1994-08-04
    ➖
    FREEMAN, Peter John resigned
    director
  37. 1993-12-10
    ➖
    LLOYD, Micael Thomas resigned
    director
  38. 1986-08-22
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Midland Bank PLC
  39. 1986-01-31
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As ARBURY COACHWORKS LIMITED

Owner dependency

85/100
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
  • +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 26 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.

Succession & seller-readiness

75/100
Likely off-market candidate

Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.

SIGNALS
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 26 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 40 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

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Ian Robert Moore
Individual · British · DOB 01/1978 · age 48
75–100%
75–100%board controlsig. influence75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control · significant influence06/04/2016

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
Incorporated1986-01-31
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC45200 — SIC 45200

Registered office

5 Hazel Way
Off Bermuda Road
Nuneaton
Warwickshire
CV10 7QG

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-02-28
Last made up to: 2025-05-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-09-25
Last: 2025-09-11

Officers (1 active · 13 resigned)

MOORE, Ian Robert→
director · ~48y · appointed 2000-06-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BARRS, John→
secretary · appointed 1994-10-24 · resigned 1995-07-26
Resigned
BARRS, Mavis→
secretary · resigned 1994-10-24
Resigned
BARRS, Neil John→
secretary · appointed 1995-07-26 · resigned 2000-03-27
Resigned
FREEMAN, Irene Margaret→
secretary · appointed 2000-06-01 · resigned 2009-04-28
Resigned
BARRS, Debra Amanda→
director · ~53y · appointed 1995-07-26 · resigned 2000-03-27
Resigned
BARRS, John→
director · ~85y · resigned 2002-09-02
Resigned
BARRS, Mavis→
director · ~87y · resigned 1994-10-24
Resigned
BARRS, Neil John→
director · ~61y · resigned 2000-03-27
Resigned
FREEMAN, Irene Margaret→
director · ~75y · appointed 2000-06-01 · resigned 2009-04-28
Resigned
FREEMAN, Peter John→
director · ~84y · appointed 1995-07-26 · resigned 2014-03-28
Resigned
FREEMAN, Peter John→
director · ~84y · resigned 1994-08-04
Resigned
FREEMAN, Stewart John→
director · ~45y · appointed 2011-09-30 · resigned 2014-03-28
Resigned
LLOYD, Micael Thomas→
director · ~79y · resigned 1993-12-10
Resigned

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

Mortgages & charges

1
Total charges
0
Outstanding
0
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
TypeProperties
satisfied
Midland Bank
Midland Bank PLC
Charge1 property22/08/198607/09/2016

Recent filings (120 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-02-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-09-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-02-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-09-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-02-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-09-14
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-02-10
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-10-14
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-02-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-09-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-01-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-09-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-02-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-09-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-02-19