ESSCHEM EUROPE LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
04096441 · ltd · incorporated 2000-10-25
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
—
not disclosed
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 20301
Sector: Manufacturing
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 67-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 57/100. Strong seller-intent signal (63/100, director aged 67). Biggest value-creation lever: Consolidate lender relationships. 3 distinct lenders creates friction — refinance into single-lender structure for cleaner diligence. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
6 live charges · 3 lenders · oldest 25.7y
35/100
too messy
Refinance path is blocked by complexity. Rethink structure or expect bespoke, expensive terms.
- · Oldest live charge is 25.7 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · 3 lenders named — inter-creditor friction likely.
- · Legal-friction score 35/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (55/100)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
6 charges (6/6 with lender, 6/6 with type)
90
Directors & officers
10 officers (5 active, 10 linked, 7 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
112 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
60
Adequate — check latest filings for context.
Acquirability
85
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
82
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 (39 events)Click to expand
- 2026-04-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2025-06-19📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2025-06-16➕FARINA, Bruce David appointeddirector
- 2025-06-16📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2025-05-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2025-04-17➖JUSTI, Parker Milne resigneddirector
- 2024-09-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-09-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-10-24📍change-sail-address-company-with-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD02
- 2022-09-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-11-17➕JUSTI, Parker Milne appointeddirector
- 2021-11-17📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2021-03-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-12-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-05-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-03-14📄termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM02
- 2019-03-14📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2019-03-14📄appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP03
- 2019-03-14📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2019-03-13➕SWAN, Kathryn Elizabeth appointedsecretary
- 2019-03-13➕SWAN, Kathryn Elizabeth appointeddirector
- 2019-03-13➖SHAW, Gary Raymond resignedsecretary
- 2019-03-13➖SHAW, Gary Raymond resigneddirector
- 2018-10-26📍change-sail-address-company-with-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD02
- 2007-04-05🔒Charge registered #6Lender: Justi Group Inc
- 2007-04-05🔒Charge registered #5Lender: Justi Group Inc
- 2007-04-05🔒Charge registered #4Lender: Hsbc Bank PLC
- 2002-10-28🔒Charge registered #3Lender: Justi Group, Inc.
- 2001-10-02🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Hsbc Bank PLC
- 2000-11-15➕JUSTI, Henry Milne appointeddirector
- 2000-11-15➕MORRISON III, Stephen Harvey appointeddirector
- 2000-11-15➕SHAW, Gary Raymond appointedsecretary
- 2000-11-15➕SHAW, Gary Raymond appointeddirector
- 2000-11-15🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Justi Group, Inc.
- 2000-11-14➖DICKINSON DEES resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2000-11-14➖CARE, Timothy James resignednominee-director
- 2000-10-25🏢Company incorporatedAs ESSCHEM EUROPE LIMITED
- 2000-10-25➕DICKINSON DEES appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2000-10-25➕CARE, Timothy James appointednominee-director
Owner dependency
65/100
High — earn-out structure requiredMaterial founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.
FACTORS
- -4 active directors: Broader management team in place — suggests transferable governance.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 26 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 67 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
70/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 67. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 26 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.
Red flags
1 low6 live charges
lowHeavily leveraged with multiple live security positions — understand the capital structure before proceeding.
Shareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Henry Milne Justi Individual · American · DOB 07/1959 · age 67 | — | — | sig. influencesignificant influence | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
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| F&R UTILITY SERVICES LTD→ 14522567 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| FALTEC EUROPE LIMITED→ 02385379 · est 1989 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 36y | — | — |
| FIDGEON LIMITED→ 01224694 · est 1975 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 50y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2000-10-25
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC20301 — SIC 20301
Registered office
Unit 3 Hall Dene Way
Seaham Grange Industrial Estate
Seaham
Co Durham
SR7 0PU
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-09-30
Last made up to: 2025-12-26
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-11-08
Last: 2025-10-25
Officers (5 active · 5 resigned)
SWAN, Kathryn Elizabeth→
Activesecretary · appointed 2019-03-13
View their other companies + combined net worth →
FARINA, Bruce David→
Activedirector · ~65y · appointed 2025-06-16
View their other companies + combined net worth →
JUSTI, Henry Milne→
Activedirector · ~67y · appointed 2000-11-15
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MORRISON III, Stephen Harvey→
Activedirector · ~66y · appointed 2000-11-15
View their other companies + combined net worth →
SWAN, Kathryn Elizabeth→
Activedirector · ~45y · appointed 2019-03-13
View their other companies + combined net worth →
SHAW, Gary Raymond→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2000-11-15 · resigned 2019-03-13
DICKINSON DEES→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2000-10-25 · resigned 2000-11-14
CARE, Timothy James→
Resignednominee-director · ~65y · appointed 2000-10-25 · resigned 2000-11-14
JUSTI, Parker Milne→
Resigneddirector · ~39y · appointed 2021-11-17 · resigned 2025-04-17
SHAW, Gary Raymond→
Resigneddirector · ~62y · appointed 2000-11-15 · resigned 2019-03-13
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
6
Total charges
6
Outstanding
3
Active lenders
Status:Lender:6 of 6 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Justi Group Justi Group Inc | Debenture | 1 property | 05/04/2007 | — | |
| outstanding | Justi Group Justi Group Inc | Legal charge | 1 property | 05/04/2007 | — | |
| outstanding | HSBC Hsbc Bank PLC | Legal mortgage | 1 property | 05/04/2007 | — | |
| outstanding | Justi Group, . Justi Group, Inc. | Legal charge | 1 property | 28/10/2002 | — | |
| outstanding | HSBC Hsbc Bank PLC | Debenture | 1 property | 02/10/2001 | — | |
| outstanding | Justi Group, . Justi Group, Inc. | Debenture | 1 property | 15/11/2000 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (112 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-full
accounts · AA
2026-04-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-11-03
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2025-06-19
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2025-06-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-full
accounts · AA
2025-05-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-11-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-full
accounts · AA
2024-09-09
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-10-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-full
accounts · AA
2023-09-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-11-07
change-sail-address-company-with-old-address-new-address
address · AD02
2022-10-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-full
accounts · AA
2022-09-08
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2021-11-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-11-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-full
accounts · AA
2021-03-24