ART BY DESIGN LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
05863900 · ltd · incorporated 2006-07-03
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
hardening · 12-months
Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.
- · Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Jul 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 99999
Sector: Extraterritorial bodies
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 68-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 68). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (78/100)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
4 officers (3 active, 4 linked, 2 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
2 connected companies via shared directors
51
Filing history
49 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.
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2025-07-31 | 2024-07-31 |
|---|
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
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 (20 events)Click to expand
- 2025-08-06📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2025-04-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2024-03-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2023-07-20📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2023-03-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2022-03-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2021-03-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2020-03-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2019-04-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2018-04-06📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2017-04-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2016-03-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2015-07-08📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-03-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2007-09-01➕POOLEY, David Henry appointeddirector
- 2006-07-03🏢Company incorporatedAs ART BY DESIGN LIMITED
- 2006-07-03➕POOLEY, David Henry appointedsecretary
- 2006-07-03➕POOLEY, Alexandra Margaret appointeddirector
- 2006-07-03➕SWIFT INCORPORATIONS LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2006-07-03➖SWIFT INCORPORATIONS LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
Owner dependency
91/100
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
- +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.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 68 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
Succession & seller-readiness
79/100
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 68. 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 20 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mrs Alexandra Margaret Pooley Individual · British · DOB 12/1958 · age 68 | 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.
🔒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 →Similar companies
Active · Other · TR postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 LOWER MARKET STREET LIMITED→ 09002412 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
| A2B FALMOUTH DOCKS LIMITED→ 10902969 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| ACTIVITY HUNTER LTD→ 09990636 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| ALL ELITE ESTATES LIMITED→ 15703926 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ALPACA CONSTRUCTION LTD→ 14192615 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| ANDREW MARTIN HANCOCK LIMITED→ 15643100 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ANTOINE VILLA LIMITED→ 00862060 · est 1965 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 60y | — | — |
| APEX SCIENCE AND CONSERVATION LLP→ OC457949 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| APOLLO CONSULT GROUP PC→ LP018941 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| ARCHITECTURAL SERVICES (SOUTH WEST) LLP→ OC367264 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| ARREN JAMES HYMAS LIMITED→ 15458185 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ARWYN PROPERTIES LLP→ OC404731 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2006-07-03
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC99999 — SIC 99999
Registered office
45 Lemon Street
Truro
TR1 2NS
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-04-30
Last made up to: 2025-07-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-08-02
Last: 2025-07-19
Officers (3 active · 1 resigned)
POOLEY, David Henry→
Activesecretary · appointed 2006-07-03
View their other companies + combined net worth →
POOLEY, Alexandra Margaret→
Activedirector · ~68y · appointed 2006-07-03
View their other companies + combined net worth →
POOLEY, David Henry→
Activedirector · ~68y · appointed 2007-09-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
SWIFT INCORPORATIONS LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2006-07-03 · resigned 2006-07-03
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (49 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2025-08-06
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-07-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2025-04-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-07-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2024-03-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-07-20
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2023-07-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2023-03-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-07-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2022-03-22
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-07-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-07-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2021-03-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-07-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2020-03-31