ACME BARS LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
05206883 · ltd · incorporated 2004-08-16
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
—
year to Nov 2024
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
75/100
Strong
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What this business does
Primary activity: Other business support service activities n.e.c.
Sector: Administrative & support services
Investor take
Pursue
Strong 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: 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
6 officers (1 active, 6 linked, 3 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
72 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.

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
£0£0£0£0£0£0Nov 2023Nov 2024

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2024-11-302023-11-30
Average employees191700

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
0
filings
Last 180 days
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (27 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-08-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-09-06
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  3. 2024-09-06
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  4. 2024-05-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2023-08-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2022-09-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2022-05-27
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  8. 2021-06-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2020-08-21
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  10. 2020-08-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2019-08-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2018-08-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2017-12-02
    📄
    gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
    gazette · DISS40
  14. 2017-11-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  15. 2017-10-31
    📄
    gazette-notice-compulsory
    gazette · GAZ1
  16. 2015-12-12
    ➖
    RETNAM, Neil resigned
    secretary
  17. 2015-12-12
    ➖
    RETNAM, Neil resigned
    director
  18. 2007-08-01
    ➕
    CLARKE, Peter Julian appointed
    director
  19. 2007-07-17
    ➖
    HUBNER, Ruldolph Richard resigned
    director
  20. 2004-08-16
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As ACME BARS LIMITED
  21. 2004-08-16
    ➕
    RETNAM, Neil appointed
    secretary
  22. 2004-08-16
    ➕
    APEX COMPANY SERVICES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  23. 2004-08-16
    ➖
    APEX COMPANY SERVICES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  24. 2004-08-16
    ➕
    HUBNER, Ruldolph Richard appointed
    director
  25. 2004-08-16
    ➕
    RETNAM, Neil appointed
    director
  26. 2004-08-16
    ➕
    APEX NOMINEES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  27. 2004-08-16
    ➖
    APEX NOMINEES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

85/100
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 19 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.

Succession & seller-readiness

68/100
Strong succession signal

Multiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.

SIGNALS
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 19 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 · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Peter Julian Clarke
Individual · British · DOB 01/1969 · age 57
75–100%
75–100%board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control06/04/2016

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

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
Incorporated2004-08-16
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC82990 — Other business support service activities n.e.c.

Registered office

4th Floor 399-401 Strand
London
WC2R 0LT
United Kingdom

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-08-31
Last made up to: 2024-11-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-08-30
Last: 2025-08-16

Officers (1 active · 5 resigned)

CLARKE, Peter Julian→
director · ~57y · appointed 2007-08-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
RETNAM, Neil→
secretary · appointed 2004-08-16 · resigned 2015-12-12
Resigned
APEX COMPANY SERVICES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2004-08-16 · resigned 2004-08-16
Resigned
HUBNER, Ruldolph Richard→
director · ~63y · appointed 2004-08-16 · resigned 2007-07-17
Resigned
RETNAM, Neil→
director · ~66y · appointed 2004-08-16 · resigned 2015-12-12
Resigned
APEX NOMINEES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2004-08-16 · resigned 2004-08-16
Resigned

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

Recent filings (72 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-08-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-08-18
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2024-09-06
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2024-09-06
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-09-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-05-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-08-30
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-08-29
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-09-28
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-09-20
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2022-05-27
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-08-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-06-18
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-09-15
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2020-08-21