AARDVARK BOOKS LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
04989603 · ltd · incorporated 2003-12-09
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
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
  • · Oldest live charge 22.2y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
£67.3k
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 47610
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 64-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 64). 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 (65/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

1 live charge · oldest 22.2y

65/100
clean up first

Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.

  • · Oldest live charge is 22.2 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
  • · Legal-friction score 25/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.

Data confidence

Overall: medium (79/100)

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
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
6 officers (3 active, 6 linked, 3 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
67 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
82/100Exceptional
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
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 105 (micro)
Positive net assets
Net assets £67,336

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
£67k
↑ 2.5% YoY
Current Assets
£159k
~ YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£32k£64k£96k£128k£159kMar 2024Mar 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 105 (micro)
Metric2025-03-312024-03-31
Total assets£78.0k£82.4k
Current assets£159.1k£159.4k
Net assets£67.3k£65.7k

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
1
filing
  • • 1 address
Last 90 days
1
filing
  • • 1 address
Last 180 days
3
filings
  • • 1 address
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (26 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-05-05
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  2. 2025-12-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  3. 2025-01-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  4. 2024-02-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  5. 2023-11-02
    📄
    change-account-reference-date-company-previous-extended
    accounts · AA01
  6. 2022-11-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  7. 2021-11-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  8. 2021-01-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  9. 2019-11-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  10. 2018-09-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  11. 2018-09-25
    📄
    change-account-reference-date-company-previous-extended
    accounts · AA01
  12. 2017-12-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  13. 2017-09-19
    📄
    change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
    accounts · AA01
  14. 2016-09-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  15. 2016-01-12
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  16. 2014-04-03
    ➕
    SWINSON, Sarah Malpas appointed
    director
  17. 2014-04-03
    ➖
    TOBIN, Edward James resigned
    director
  18. 2006-10-26
    ➕
    SWINSON, Alexander Charles Sheridan appointed
    director
  19. 2004-03-12
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
  20. 2003-12-09
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As AARDVARK BOOKS LIMITED
  21. 2003-12-09
    ➕
    SWINSON, Alexander Charles Sheridan appointed
    secretary
  22. 2003-12-09
    ➕
    WATERLOW SECRETARIES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  23. 2003-12-09
    ➖
    WATERLOW SECRETARIES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  24. 2003-12-09
    ➕
    TOBIN, Edward James appointed
    director
  25. 2003-12-09
    ➕
    WATERLOW NOMINEES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  26. 2003-12-09
    ➖
    WATERLOW NOMINEES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

84/100
Critical — business is the founder

The business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.

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 20 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 64 — approaching natural succession window.
  • +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.

Succession & seller-readiness

79/100
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 64. 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 20 years.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 22 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

1 active beneficial owner
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Alexander Charles Sheridan Swinson
Individual · British · DOB 07/1962 · age 64
50–75%
—50-75% shares06/04/2016

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 →

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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
Incorporated2003-12-09
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC47610 — SIC 47610

Registered office

Little Rodd Little Rodd
The Rodd
Presteigne
Herefordshire
LD8 2LL
United Kingdom

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-01-21
Last: 2026-01-07

Officers (3 active · 3 resigned)

SWINSON, Alexander Charles Sheridan→
secretary · appointed 2003-12-09
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
SWINSON, Alexander Charles Sheridan→
director · ~64y · appointed 2006-10-26
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
SWINSON, Sarah Malpas→
director · ~63y · appointed 2014-04-03
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
WATERLOW SECRETARIES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2003-12-09 · resigned 2003-12-09
Resigned
TOBIN, Edward James→
director · ~73y · appointed 2003-12-09 · resigned 2014-04-03
Resigned
WATERLOW NOMINEES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2003-12-09 · resigned 2003-12-09
Resigned

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
TypeProperties
outstanding
Barclays
Barclays Bank PLC
Debenture1 property12/03/2004—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (67 total)

change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2026-05-05
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-01-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-12-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-01-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-02-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-01-08
change-account-reference-date-company-previous-extended
accounts · AA01
2023-11-02
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-01-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-11-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-01-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-11-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-01-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-01-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-01-08