A J MARTEL LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
04633384 · ltd · incorporated 2003-01-10
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
75/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Retail sale via mail order houses or via Internet
Sector: Wholesale & retail
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
- 62020Information technology consultancy activities
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 75/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Broaden director team. Sole director creates succession risk and reduces buyer comfort. Appoint a second director or strong #2. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (58/100).
Data confidence
Overall: low (54/100)Sparse data coverage. Treat AI-generated outputs as preliminary. Manual diligence essential.
Company profile
address, 2 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
No iXBRL financials extracted
0
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
2 officers (2 active, 2 linked, 1 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
52 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
75/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
60
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Recent activity
Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (17 events)Click to expand
- 2025-10-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-10-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-10-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-10-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-10-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-10-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-10-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2018-10-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-10-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2016-10-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-01-18📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-10-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-01-11📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2014-10-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2003-01-10🏢Company incorporatedAs A J MARTEL LIMITED
- 2003-01-10➕CURRAN, Terry Christopher appointedsecretary
- 2003-01-10➕STERMAN, Mari Anna appointeddirector
Owner dependency
90/100
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.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 23 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +No director turnover: Company is 23 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
75/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 23 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 23 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
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Ms Mari Anna Sterman Individual · British · DOB 12/1976 · age 50 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Retail · SG postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| & AGAIN CLOTHING LTD→ 13925097 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| 1 ST CLASS PRODUCTS LIMITED→ 15852362 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| 21ST CENTURY OFFICE CONCEPTS LIMITED→ 03164838 · est 1996 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 30y | — | — |
| 2ND LIFE IT LTD→ 16341272 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| 3 RETRO LTD→ 10302148 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| 4R FUTURE LIMITED→ 06430577 · est 2007 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 18y | — | — |
| 7 DAYS EXPRESS LTD→ 13123704 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| 7 DAYS EXPRESS STEVENAGE LTD→ 15171836 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| A1 CARPET & FLOORING LIMITED→ 06149610 · est 2007 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| A2Z WINDOWS AND DOORS LIMITED→ 09979853 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| AARDVARK BUSINESS SUPPLIES LIMITED→ 06364531 · est 2007 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 18y | — | — |
| ABBEY ROAD JEWELLERS LIMITED→ 14863501 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2003-01-10
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC47910 — Retail sale via mail order houses or via Internet
Registered office
173 Ripon Road, St Nicholas
Stevenage
Hertfordshire
SG1 4LR
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-10-31
Last made up to: 2025-01-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-01-31
Last: 2026-01-17
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
CURRAN, Terry Christopher→
Activesecretary · appointed 2003-01-10
View their other companies + combined net worth →
STERMAN, Mari Anna→
Activedirector · ~50y · appointed 2003-01-10
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (52 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-01-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-10-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-10-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-01-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-10-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-01-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-10-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-01-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-10-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-01-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-10-29
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-01-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2019-10-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-01-20