A.E. HOPCRAFT LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
02060809 · ltd · incorporated 1986-10-02
Investment thesis
Established operating company — standard diligence applies, no dominant angle.
Why interesting: Live, filing, normal profile.
Why risky: No standout signals in either direction.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
72/100
Strong
🔔
Follow this company (free)
Email alerts on filings, charges, director changes, gazette notices. No account needed.

Unsubscribe any time from any email. GDPR-respectful.

🔒Generate AI memo →🔒Outreach pack →🔒Corporate story →📑 Reports →Sign in to watch
What this business does
Primary activity: Artistic creation
Sector: Arts, entertainment & recreation
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)
Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.

Opportunity 72/100 (strong), bankability 65/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Biggest value-creation lever: Resolve: Confirmation statement overdue. Annual confirmation statement not filed on time. Required statutory filing — overdue is a strong discipline signal. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).

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
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
6 officers (4 active, 6 linked, 5 with DOB)
87
Ownership & PSC
3 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
110 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
72/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.

Business quality
60
Adequate — check latest filings for context.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
67
Some moderate concerns — review flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
£0£0£0£0£0£0Mar 2024Mar 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2025-03-312024-03-31
Average employees00

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 (24 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-12-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-12-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2023-12-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2023-03-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2022-03-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2021-05-18
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  7. 2021-05-18
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  8. 2021-05-18
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  9. 2021-03-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2019-12-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2018-12-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2018-05-03
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  13. 2018-05-03
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  14. 2018-05-03
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  15. 2018-05-03
    📄
    change-corporate-secretary-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH04
  16. 2018-01-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  17. 2017-08-21
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  18. 2007-03-30
    ➕
    FOSTER, Richard James appointed
    director
  19. 2007-03-30
    ➕
    FOSTER, Trevor Robert appointed
    director
  20. 2007-03-30
    ➕
    HOPCRAFT, Robert James appointed
    director
  21. 2007-03-30
    ➖
    APTED, Joan resigned
    director
  22. 2004-11-22
    ➖
    HOPCRAFT, Arthur Edward resigned
    director
  23. 1986-11-14
    ➕
    HOPCRAFT, Arthur Edward appointed
    director
  24. 1986-10-02
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As A.E. HOPCRAFT LIMITED

Owner dependency

98/100
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
  • +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "HOPCRAFT" — strong identity link between founder and business.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 19 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 74 — succession pressure is live.
  • +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.

Succession & seller-readiness

78/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 74 years old. Natural succession window is now.
  • secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 19 years.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 40 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.

Red flags

1 high ·
Confirmation statement overdue
high

Annual confirmation statement not filed on time. Required statutory filing — overdue is a strong discipline signal.

Evidence: Next due: 2026-04-22

Shareholders & ownership

3 active beneficial owners
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Richard James Foster
Individual · British · DOB 02/1956 · age 70
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting06/04/2016
Trevor Robert Foster
Individual · British · DOB 07/1960 · age 66
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting06/04/2016
Robert James Hopcraft
Individual · British · DOB 06/1952 · age 74
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting06/04/2016

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

Similar companies

Active · Leisure & entertainment · TW postcode area
CompanyEst. valueTurnoverNet worthStaffAgeOppDirector
21SM LTD→
15799933 · est 2024 · no financials extracted
————1y——
2FAST 2SAY LIMITED→
16082403 · est 2024 · no financials extracted
————1y——
360 ULTIMATE FITNESS LIMITED→
09315625 · est 2014 · no financials extracted
————11y——
4RATS PRODUCTIONS LTD→
13899541 · est 2022 · no financials extracted
————4y——
6SHOT LTD→
16875721 · est 2025 · no financials extracted
———————
868 ENTERTAINMENT LTD→
12069058 · est 2019 · no financials extracted
————6y——
A B BACKLINE LIMITED→
06581520 · est 2008 · no financials extracted
————17y——
A.A. BAINES (RACING) LIMITED→
01197389 · est 1975 · no financials extracted
————51y——
AC SCENIC PAINTING LTD→
15152724 · est 2023 · no financials extracted
————2y——
ACCESS PA LTD→
12749278 · est 2020 · no financials extracted
————5y——
ACHIEVE LIFESTYLE→
07451733 · est 2010 · no financials extracted
————15y——
ACTIVE MUMS LTD→
13756776 · est 2021 · no financials extracted
————4y——
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
Incorporated1986-10-02
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC90030 — Artistic creation

Registered office

1 The Green
Richmond
TW9 1PL
England

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-04-22OVERDUE
Last: 2025-04-08

Officers (4 active · 2 resigned)

HARCOURT REGISTRARS LIMITED→
corporate-secretary
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
FOSTER, Richard James→
director · ~70y · appointed 2007-03-30
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
FOSTER, Trevor Robert→
director · ~66y · appointed 2007-03-30
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
HOPCRAFT, Robert James→
director · ~74y · appointed 2007-03-30
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
APTED, Joan→
director · ~83y · resigned 2007-03-30
Resigned
HOPCRAFT, Arthur Edward→
director · ~94y · appointed 1986-11-14 · resigned 2004-11-22
Resigned

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

Recent filings (110 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-12-28
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-04-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-31
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-05-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-12-08
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-05-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-03-31
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-05-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-03-31
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-05-18
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2021-05-18
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2021-05-18
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2021-05-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-03-25
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-05-15