THE DESIGN CHAIN LIMITED

⚰️Wound downdissolved
05041871 · ltd · incorporated 2004-02-12
Investment thesis
Company dissolved — not a live target.
Why interesting: Historical record only; useful for precedent research.
Why risky: Not transactable.
Opportunity decay
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
  • · Oldest live charge 22.1y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
not disclosed
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
64/100
Worth a look
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What this business does
Primary activity: Other service activities n.e.c.
Sector: Other service activities
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)
Distressed unclear — structural issues outweigh the discount.

Opportunity 64/100 (worth a look), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (65/100, director aged 59). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Resolve: Company dissolved. Company has been dissolved — it no longer legally exists. Any diligence here is historical only. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

1 live charge · oldest 22.1y

65/100
clean up first

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

  • · Oldest live charge is 22.1 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: low (53/100)

Sparse data coverage. Treat AI-generated outputs as preliminary. Manual diligence essential.

Company profile
address, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
No iXBRL financials extracted
0
Lenders & charges
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
5 officers (2 active, 5 linked, 1 with DOB)
74
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
57 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
64/100Worth a look
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Mixed signal. Worth opening the full target workup before deciding to pursue.

Business quality
30
Concerning — overdue filings or status flags present.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
67
Some moderate concerns — review flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.

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 (29 events)Click to expand
  1. 2024-04-16
    📄
    gazette-dissolved-compulsory
    gazette · GAZ2
  2. 2024-04-16
    🏁
    Company dissolved
  3. 2024-01-30
    📄
    gazette-notice-compulsory
    gazette · GAZ1
  4. 2023-05-30
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  5. 2023-02-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  6. 2021-11-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  7. 2021-02-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  8. 2019-11-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  9. 2018-11-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  10. 2017-11-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  11. 2016-11-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  12. 2016-02-16
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  13. 2015-11-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  14. 2015-03-24
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  15. 2014-10-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  16. 2014-03-07
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  17. 2013-10-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  18. 2013-03-11
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  19. 2012-11-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  20. 2007-02-15
    ➕
    BAKER, Emma Justine appointed
    secretary
  21. 2007-02-15
    ➖
    BAKER, Edward Matthew Scott resigned
    secretary
  22. 2004-11-08
    ➕
    BAKER, Edward Matthew Scott appointed
    secretary
  23. 2004-11-08
    ➖
    COBBETTS (SECRETARIAL) LIMITED resigned
    corporate-secretary
  24. 2004-04-19
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
  25. 2004-02-24
    ➕
    BAKER, Timothy George appointed
    director
  26. 2004-02-24
    ➖
    COBBETTS LIMITED resigned
    corporate-director
  27. 2004-02-12
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As THE DESIGN CHAIN LIMITED
  28. 2004-02-12
    ➕
    COBBETTS (SECRETARIAL) LIMITED appointed
    corporate-secretary
  29. 2004-02-12
    ➕
    COBBETTS LIMITED appointed
    corporate-director

Owner dependency

93/100
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
  • +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 22 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 59 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

85/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

SIGNALS
  • secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 59. Early succession window.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 22 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • 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

1 high ·
Company dissolved
high

Company has been dissolved — it no longer legally exists. Any diligence here is historical only.

Evidence: Dissolved on 2024-04-16

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Timothy George Baker
Individual · British · DOB 06/1967 · age 59
75–100%
—75-100% shares12/02/2017

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

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 →
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Available from the Pro tier upwards.

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Company details

Statusdissolved
Typeltd
Incorporated2004-02-12
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC96090 — Other service activities n.e.c.

Registered office

Suite 3, 22e West Station Yard
Spital Road
Maldon
CM9 6TS
England

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: —
Last made up to: 2022-02-28
Confirmation statement
Next due: —
Last: —

Officers (0 active · 3 resigned)

BAKER, Emma Justine→
secretary · appointed 2007-02-15
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BAKER, Timothy George→
director · ~59y · appointed 2004-02-24
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BAKER, Edward Matthew Scott→
secretary · appointed 2004-11-08 · resigned 2007-02-15
Resigned
COBBETTS (SECRETARIAL) LIMITED→
corporate-secretary · appointed 2004-02-12 · resigned 2004-11-08
Resigned
COBBETTS LIMITED→
corporate-director · appointed 2004-02-12 · resigned 2004-02-24
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 property19/04/2004—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (57 total)

gazette-dissolved-compulsory
gazette · GAZ2
2024-04-16
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2024-01-30
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2023-05-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-02-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-02-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-02-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-11-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-02-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-02-12
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-02-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2019-11-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-02-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2018-11-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2018-02-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2017-11-28