A.P.L. DESIGN LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
02498429 · ltd · incorporated 1990-05-02
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 Apr 2025
Net worth
£39.8k
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Other engineering activities
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: asset-holding vehicle with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
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
5 officers (2 active, 5 linked, 4 with DOB)
86
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
99 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
75
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 105 (micro)Positive net assets
Net assets £39,775
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
£40k
↑ 6.0% YoY
Current Assets
£58k
~ YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 105 (micro)| Metric | 2025-04-05 | 2024-04-05 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £39.8k | £37.5k |
| Current assets | £57.9k | £57.8k |
| Net assets | £39.8k | £37.5k |
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
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (23 events)Click to expand
- 2025-09-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-12-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-12-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-01-03📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-12-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-05-06📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2021-05-06📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2021-05-06📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2021-05-06📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2020-12-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-10-07📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2019-10-01➕LEUENBERGER, Judith Fiona appointeddirector
- 2019-09-02📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-08-19📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2019-01-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-05-23📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2018-05-23📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2018-05-23📄withdrawal-of-a-person-with-significant-control-statementpersons-with-significant-control · PSC09
- 2014-04-07➖LEUENBERGER, Judith Fiona resigneddirector
- 2014-03-07➖WRIGHT, Corina Anita resignedsecretary
- 1992-12-30➕LEUENBERGER, Judith Fiona appointeddirector
- 1992-12-30➖LEVENBERGER, Rena May resigneddirector
- 1990-05-02🏢Company incorporatedAs A.P.L. DESIGN LIMITED
Owner dependency
74/100
High — earn-out structure requiredMaterial founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.
FACTORS
- +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 63 — approaching natural succession window.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
Succession & seller-readiness
66/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 63. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 36 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
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
2 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Andre Pierre Leuenberger Individual · British · DOB 10/1963 · age 63 | 25–50% | 25–50% | board control25-50% shares · 25-50% voting · board control | 18/05/2018 |
Mrs Judith Fiona Leuenberger Individual · British · DOB 07/1965 · age 61 | 25–50% | 25–50% | board control25-50% shares · 25-50% voting · board control | 18/05/2018 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
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Active · Professional services · NR postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A P WEST LTD→ 15511675 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| AJB EVENTS AND ENTERTAINMENT LIMITED→ 16818030 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ALCIDAE CONSULTING LTD→ 15895465 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| AMN ENGINEERING LTD→ 15458662 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ANDREW BLOY LTD→ 09419444 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| ANDREW WINSTON MORTGAGE SERVICES LTD→ 16716530 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ANGELA'S BOOKKEEPING & CONSULTANCY LTD→ 04811194 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 22y | — | — |
| ANGLIAN ACCOUNTANTS LTD→ 12855361 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| ANGLIAN BUSINESS SERVICES LIMITED→ 01563749 · est 1981 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 44y | — | — |
| ANGLIAN PIPEWORK LTD→ 14157624 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| ANGLIAN PLANNING SERVICES LIMITED→ 06632713 · est 2008 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 17y | — | — |
| ANGLIAN RECRUITMENT LIMITED→ 16241885 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
6 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
Incorporated1990-05-02
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC71129 — Other engineering activities
Registered office
24 Suffolk Road
Lowestoft
NR32 1DZ
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-01-05
Last made up to: 2025-04-05
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-05-16
Last: 2026-05-02
Officers (2 active · 3 resigned)
Active
LEUENBERGER, Judith Fiona→
Activedirector · ~61y · appointed 2019-10-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
WRIGHT, Corina Anita→
Resignedsecretary · resigned 2014-03-07
LEUENBERGER, Judith Fiona→
Resigneddirector · ~61y · appointed 1992-12-30 · resigned 2014-04-07
LEVENBERGER, Rena May→
Resigneddirector · ~95y · resigned 1992-12-30
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (99 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-05-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-09-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-05-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-12-12
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-05-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-12-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-05-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-01-03
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-05-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-12-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-05-06
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2021-05-06
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2021-05-06
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2021-05-06
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2021-05-06