A1 JAP SPARES LTD.
💤Zombieactive
05257244 · ltd · incorporated 2004-10-12
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.
Why now
Window steady · low confidence
Steady and stalled — no momentum either way. Needs an approach trigger.
What changed my view
Last 30 days
No material changes in the last 30 days.
Last 90 days
No snapshot from 90 days ago — start tracking from today.
Last 180 days
No snapshot from 180 days ago — start tracking from today.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
not disclosed
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Retail trade of motor vehicle parts and accessories
Sector: Wholesale & retail
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
- 47190Other retail sale in non-specialised stores
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 67-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 67). 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 (73/100).
Data confidence
Overall: low (53/100)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
3 officers (1 active, 3 linked, 1 with DOB)
77
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
61 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
80/100Exceptional
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
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 (21 events)Click to expand
- 2025-12-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-11-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-08-20📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2023-12-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-01-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-02-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-02-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-02-10📄accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AAMD
- 2019-11-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-10-17📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2018-11-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-11-06📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2018-11-06📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2018-11-06📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2017-11-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2016-12-06➖IERAM, Ramana resignedsecretary
- 2004-10-12🏢Company incorporatedAs A1 JAP SPARES LTD.
- 2004-10-12➕KHAN, Gustasaf appointeddirector
- 2004-10-12➕IERAM, Ramana appointedsecretary
- 2004-10-12➕CHETTLEBURGHS SECRETARIAL LTD appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2004-10-12➖CHETTLEBURGHS SECRETARIAL LTD resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
Owner dependency
100/100
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 22 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 67 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
95/100
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 67. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- 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
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Gustasaf Khan Individual · British · DOB 03/1959 · age 67 | 75–100% | 75–100% | 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Automotive · M postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AJ TRAILER SERVICES LTD→ 15194250 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ALLTRICKS AUTOMOTIVE LIMITED→ 15166507 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| AMBERDEAL LIMITED→ 02034774 · est 1986 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 39y | — | — |
| AN TUNE LIMITED→ 16527816 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ANDROID SYSTEMS LIMITED→ 15676287 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ANDY'S MOTORS LIMITED→ 10129767 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| ANGEL AUTOMOTIVE LIMITED→ 17095716 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ANTHRACITE MOTORS LTD→ 14739734 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| ANY JOB DONE AUTOS LTD→ 15638197 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ANYTIME PARTS LTD→ 16535863 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| APEX DEALER SOLUTIONS LTD→ 15878199 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| APEX INDUSTRIES KJ LTD→ 16708697 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
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 →🔒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
Incorporated2004-10-12
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC45320 — Retail trade of motor vehicle parts and accessories
Registered office
Mill Lane
Failsworth
Manchester
M35 0BJ
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-11-30
Last made up to: 2025-02-28
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-12-25
Last: 2025-12-11
Officers (1 active · 2 resigned)
KHAN, Gustasaf→
Activedirector · ~67y · appointed 2004-10-12
View their other companies + combined net worth →
IERAM, Ramana→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2004-10-12 · resigned 2016-12-06
CHETTLEBURGHS SECRETARIAL LTD→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2004-10-12 · resigned 2004-10-12
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (61 total)
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-12-23
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-11-26
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2024-08-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-12-18
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-08-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-01-16
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-07-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-02-21
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-07-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-02-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-12-18
accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AAMD
2020-02-10