ACE ENGRAVING LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
04572865 · ltd · incorporated 2002-10-24
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 Nov 2025
Net worth
£117.3k
book net assets
Opportunity
81/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Other service activities n.e.c.
Sector: Other service activities
Investor take
Pursue
Asset-holding vehicle with a 63-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 81/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 63). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

Data confidence

Overall: medium (69/100)

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
1 year of iXBRL accounts extracted (no YoY comparison) + narrative notes parsed
50
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
6 officers (2 active, 6 linked, 3 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
66 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
81/100Exceptional
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Strong composite across quality, acquirability, and risk. High-priority target — progress to serious diligence.

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
85
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 · accounting standard not declared
Positive net assets
Net assets £117,283

Key financials

1 year extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£94k
Net Worth
£117k
Current Assets
£145k
Current Liabilities
—

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-11-30
Total assets£123.8k
Current assets£145.3k
Cash£94.5k
Debtors£48.8k
Net assets£117.3k

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 accounts
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (27 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-03-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-03-11
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  3. 2024-03-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  4. 2023-06-20
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  5. 2023-06-20
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  6. 2023-03-02
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  7. 2022-04-06
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  8. 2021-04-07
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  9. 2020-02-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  10. 2019-03-14
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  11. 2018-12-07
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  12. 2018-12-07
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  13. 2018-12-07
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  14. 2018-12-07
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  15. 2018-11-30
    ➖
    SADD, Stephen Raymond resigned
    secretary
  16. 2018-11-30
    ➖
    SADD, Stephen Raymond resigned
    director
  17. 2018-04-12
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  18. 2017-04-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  19. 2016-04-06
    ➕
    GRUBB, Mark Anthony Terence appointed
    director
  20. 2002-10-24
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As ACE ENGRAVING LIMITED
  21. 2002-10-24
    ➕
    BUTCHER, Mark Andrew appointed
    director
  22. 2002-10-24
    ➕
    SADD, Stephen Raymond appointed
    secretary
  23. 2002-10-24
    ➕
    LONDON LAW SECRETARIAL LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  24. 2002-10-24
    ➖
    LONDON LAW SECRETARIAL LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  25. 2002-10-24
    ➕
    SADD, Stephen Raymond appointed
    director
  26. 2002-10-24
    ➕
    LONDON LAW SERVICES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  27. 2002-10-24
    ➖
    LONDON LAW SERVICES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

76/100
High — earn-out structure required

Material 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.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 24 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 63 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

86/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

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.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 24 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 24 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

2 active beneficial owners
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Mark Anthony Terence Grubb
Individual · British · DOB 06/1984 · age 42
25–50%
—25-50% shares30/11/2018
Mr Mark Andrew Butcher
Individual · British · DOB 01/1963 · age 63
25–50%
—25-50% shares06/04/2016
1 historic (ceased) PSC
  • Mr Stephen Raymond Saddceased 30/11/2018· 25-50% shares

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

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
Incorporated2002-10-24
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC96090 — Other service activities n.e.c.

Registered office

Towlers Court
30a Elm Hill
Norwich
Norfolk
NR3 1HG

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-08-31
Last made up to: 2025-11-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-11-07
Last: 2025-10-24

Officers (2 active · 4 resigned)

BUTCHER, Mark Andrew→
director · ~63y · appointed 2002-10-24
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
GRUBB, Mark Anthony Terence→
director · ~42y · appointed 2016-04-06
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
SADD, Stephen Raymond→
secretary · appointed 2002-10-24 · resigned 2018-11-30
Resigned
LONDON LAW SECRETARIAL LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2002-10-24 · resigned 2002-10-24
Resigned
SADD, Stephen Raymond→
director · ~67y · appointed 2002-10-24 · resigned 2018-11-30
Resigned
LONDON LAW SERVICES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2002-10-24 · resigned 2002-10-24
Resigned

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

Recent filings (66 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2026-03-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-10-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2025-03-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-10-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2024-03-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-11-01
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2023-06-20
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2023-06-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2023-03-02
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-10-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2022-04-06
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-11-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2021-04-07
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-11-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2020-02-18