DIRECT FARM MARKETING LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
03217691 · ltd · incorporated 1996-06-27
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
—
not disclosed
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Support activities for crop production
Sector: Agriculture, forestry & fishing
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 80/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Discharge stale live charges. 1 live charge(s) created 15+ years ago — likely paid but undischarged. Clean register. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 29.3y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 29.3 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (58/100)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
No iXBRL financials extracted
0
Lenders & charges
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
10 officers (2 active, 10 linked, 4 with DOB)
78
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
10 connected companies via shared directors
75
Filing history
94 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
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
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 (36 events)Click to expand
- 2026-02-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2025-01-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2024-12-05📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2024-03-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2023-08-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2022-01-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2020-08-20📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2020-08-15➖WHITE, Anthony John resigneddirector
- 2020-07-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2019-12-18📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2019-12-18📄appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP03
- 2019-12-18📄termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM02
- 2019-12-18📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2019-12-17➕PARISH, David John appointedsecretary
- 2019-12-17➕PARISH, David John appointeddirector
- 2019-12-17➖ANDREWS, Michael John resignedsecretary
- 2019-12-17➖BIANCHI, John David resigneddirector
- 2019-07-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2018-06-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2017-06-29📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC02
- 2004-03-23➖POULTON, John William Hugh resigneddirector
- 2000-07-01➕BIANCHI, John David appointeddirector
- 1999-07-01➕ANDREWS, Michael John appointedsecretary
- 1998-11-11➖BIANCHI, John David resignedsecretary
- 1998-05-01➕BIANCHI, John David appointedsecretary
- 1998-05-01➖ELLERTON, David Richard, Dr resignedsecretary
- 1997-03-25🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Midland Bank PLC
- 1997-03-14➕POULTON, John William Hugh appointeddirector
- 1996-06-27🏢Company incorporatedAs DIRECT FARM MARKETING LIMITED
- 1996-06-27➕ELLERTON, David Richard, Dr appointedsecretary
- 1996-06-27➕WATERLOW SECRETARIES LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 1996-06-27➖WATERLOW SECRETARIES LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 1996-06-27➕WHITE, Anthony John appointeddirector
- 1996-06-27➕WATERLOW NOMINEES LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-director
- 1996-06-27➖WATERLOW NOMINEES LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-director
Owner dependency
83/100
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.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 62 — approaching natural succession window.
Succession & seller-readiness
65/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 62. Early succession window.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 30 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.)
Group structure
Pro Cam Cp Ltd is the ultimate parent — holding 75%+ shares. This company sits inside their group.
🏛️ultimate parent
Pro Cam Cp Ltd
Corporate parent · holds 75-100% shares · board control
⬇
DIRECT FARM MARKETING LIMITED
This company · 03217691
Parent relationships inferred from Persons with Significant Control filings. Full subsidiary tree requires reverse-lookup (coming).
Shareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Pro Cam Cp Ltd Corporate entity | 75–100% | 75–100% | board controlsig. influence75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control · significant influence · firm interest | 26/06/2017 |
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 · Agriculture · CB postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| COVERANDCARRY LIMITED→ 09953145 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| CRF RACING SERVICES LTD→ 13006888 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| CROPS FOR THE FUTURE (UK) CIC→ 12501585 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| DABAN BLOODSTOCK LIMITED→ 14777655 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| DAVID BRITNELL EVENTING LTD→ 15583494 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| DB CONTRACTING (CAMBS) LIMITED→ 12529105 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| DEMETER TECHNOLOGY LIMITED→ 06296711 · est 2007 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 18y | — | — |
| DENHAM VICARAGE FARM LIMITED→ 09195229 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| DENNIS (HADDENHAM) LIMITED→ 00687287 · est 1961 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 65y | — | — |
| DONGASSI LTD→ 16050936 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| DRA FARMING LIMITED→ 11817054 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| DRAKELEY STABLES LIMITED→ 10930521 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
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
Incorporated1996-06-27
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC01610 — Support activities for crop production
Registered office
2030 Cambourne Business Park Cambourne
Cambridge
CB23 6DW
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-09-30
Last made up to: 2025-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-07-11
Last: 2025-06-27
Officers (2 active · 8 resigned)
PARISH, David John→
Activesecretary · appointed 2019-12-17
View their other companies + combined net worth →
PARISH, David John→
Activedirector · ~62y · appointed 2019-12-17
View their other companies + combined net worth →
ANDREWS, Michael John→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 1999-07-01 · resigned 2019-12-17
BIANCHI, John David→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 1998-05-01 · resigned 1998-11-11
ELLERTON, David Richard, Dr→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 1996-06-27 · resigned 1998-05-01
WATERLOW SECRETARIES LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 1996-06-27 · resigned 1996-06-27
BIANCHI, John David→
Resigneddirector · ~68y · appointed 2000-07-01 · resigned 2019-12-17
POULTON, John William Hugh→
Resigneddirector · ~64y · appointed 1997-03-14 · resigned 2004-03-23
WHITE, Anthony John→
Resigneddirector · ~84y · appointed 1996-06-27 · resigned 2020-08-15
WATERLOW NOMINEES LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-director · appointed 1996-06-27 · resigned 1996-06-27
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
1
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Midland Bank Midland Bank PLC | Debenture | 1 property | 25/03/1997 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (94 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2026-02-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-07-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2025-01-09
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2024-12-05
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-07-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2024-03-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2023-08-10
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-06-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-07-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2022-01-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2021-09-04
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-07-14
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2020-08-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2020-07-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-06-29