ALBERT'S 'ARDWARE LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
04585291 · ltd · incorporated 2002-11-08
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 Nov 2024
Net worth
£-10.0k
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Retail sale of hardware, paints and glass in specialised stores
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.
Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 65). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (76/100)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
9 officers (3 active, 9 linked, 5 with DOB)
81
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
74 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 102Negative net assets
Liabilities exceed assets by £10,017
Cash YoY
+195%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£511
↑ 195% YoY
Net Worth
-£10k
↑ 43% YoY
Current Assets
£43k
↑ 3.6% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2024-11-30 | 2023-11-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £16.2k | £14.4k |
| Current assets | £42.7k | £41.2k |
| Cash | £511 | £173 |
| Debtors | £2.0k | £2.0k |
| Net assets | £-10.0k | £-17.6k |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
🔒Filing-note intelligence
2 signals 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
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (33 events)Click to expand
- 2025-08-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-08-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-08-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-08-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-08-08📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2021-08-03📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-08-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-11-17📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2019-11-17📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2019-11-05➕PENNY, Neil Anthony appointeddirector
- 2019-10-29📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2019-10-29📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2019-10-29📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2019-10-16➖PENNY, Neil resigneddirector
- 2019-09-17📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2019-09-15📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2019-09-15📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2019-08-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-08-02📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2011-11-30➕CLARK, Tracey appointedsecretary
- 2011-11-30➕CLARK, Tracey Elizabeth appointeddirector
- 2011-11-30➖FOSTER, Sheila Ann resignedsecretary
- 2011-11-30➖FOSTER, Sheila Ann resigneddirector
- 2011-11-30➕PENNY, Neil appointeddirector
- 2010-04-01➖FOSTER, Albert Dixon resigneddirector
- 2002-11-10➕FOSTER, Sheila Ann appointedsecretary
- 2002-11-10➖SECRETARIAL APPOINTMENTS LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2002-11-10➕FOSTER, Albert Dixon appointeddirector
- 2002-11-10➕FOSTER, Sheila Ann appointeddirector
- 2002-11-10➖CORPORATE APPOINTMENTS LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-director
- 2002-11-08🏢Company incorporatedAs ALBERT'S 'ARDWARE LIMITED
- 2002-11-08➕SECRETARIAL APPOINTMENTS LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2002-11-08➕CORPORATE APPOINTMENTS LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-director
Owner dependency
73/100
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.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 65 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
79/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 65. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 15 years.
- 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
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 Neil Anthony Penny Individual · British · DOB 10/1961 · age 65 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 08/08/2022 |
Mrs Tracey Elizabeth Clark Individual · British · DOB 10/1968 · age 58 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 29/10/2019 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- Mr Neil Pennyceased 01/05/2019· 25-50% shares
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Retail · TA postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 45 CRICKET SUPPLIES LTD→ 13240046 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| A HUMPHRIES LIMITED→ 04795975 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 22y | — | — |
| A2B STAIRLIFTS LIMITED→ 07707087 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| AAYUSHI TRADING LTD→ 11716326 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| ABZ ECOMMERCE LTD→ 16866615 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ADAPT TAPE LTD→ 12651885 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| AE EMPIRE SERVICES(UK) LIMITED→ 13877587 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| AERIAL ATTIRE LTD→ 11819473 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| AFRICAN ARTISANS LIMITED→ 05763975 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 20y | — | — |
| AIMEE'S WINE HOUSE LIMITED→ 07104767 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 16y | — | — |
| AIRARMSSPARES.COM LTD→ 04627848 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 23y | — | — |
| ALEGREE LTD→ 12553347 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2002-11-08
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC47520 — Retail sale of hardware, paints and glass in specialised stores
Registered office
37b Swain Street
Watchet
Somerset
TA23 0AE
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-08-31
Last made up to: 2024-11-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-08-11
Last: 2025-07-28
Officers (3 active · 6 resigned)
Active
CLARK, Tracey Elizabeth→
Activedirector · ~58y · appointed 2011-11-30
View their other companies + combined net worth →
PENNY, Neil Anthony→
Activedirector · ~65y · appointed 2019-11-05
View their other companies + combined net worth →
FOSTER, Sheila Ann→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2002-11-10 · resigned 2011-11-30
SECRETARIAL APPOINTMENTS LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2002-11-08 · resigned 2002-11-10
FOSTER, Albert Dixon→
Resigneddirector · ~73y · appointed 2002-11-10 · resigned 2010-04-01
FOSTER, Sheila Ann→
Resigneddirector · ~71y · appointed 2002-11-10 · resigned 2011-11-30
PENNY, Neil→
Resigneddirector · ~65y · appointed 2011-11-30 · resigned 2019-10-16
CORPORATE APPOINTMENTS LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-director · appointed 2002-11-08 · resigned 2002-11-10
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (74 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-08-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-08-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-08-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-08-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-08-09
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-07-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-08-22
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-08-08
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2022-08-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-08-03
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-08-03
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-08-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-08-10
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2019-11-17
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2019-11-17