23 AUTOMOTIVE LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
06853745 · ltd · incorporated 2009-03-20
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 Mar 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Other business support service activities n.e.c.
Sector: Administrative & support services
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 72-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 72). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
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
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
2 officers (2 active, 2 linked, 2 with DOB)
90
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
41 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 | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 500 | 500 |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
Recent activity
Last 30 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 90 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (18 events)Click to expand
- 2025-05-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-05-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-04-10📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2024-04-06➕SMITH, Geoffrey appointeddirector
- 2024-01-18📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2023-06-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-07-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-06-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-07-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-06-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-12-06📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2018-11-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-07-10📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2017-04-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-10-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-03-24📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2009-03-20🏢Company incorporatedAs 23 AUTOMOTIVE LIMITED
- 2009-03-20➕SMITH, Paul appointeddirector
Owner dependency
96/100
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 17 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 72 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
- +No director turnover: Company is 17 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
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 70+: Senior director is approximately 72 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 17 years.
- 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Paul Smith Individual · British · DOB 05/1977 · age 49 | 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.
🔒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 · Trade services · NN postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 008 RACING LTD→ 12171226 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| 14 BARBER TIME LTD→ 16521668 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1441 HAIR LTD→ 07049165 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 16y | — | — |
| 17 VERDE LIMITED→ 10049793 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| 1ST REACTION SECURITY LIMITED→ 03883037 · est 1999 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 26y | — | — |
| 2 EXCEL AVIATION LIMITED→ 05391365 · est 2005 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 21y | — | — |
| 20 WATKIN TERRACE (NORTHAMPTON) FREEHOLD LIMITED→ 12825086 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| 2K SAFETY LIMITED→ 14077824 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| 3 BUFFALO SECURITY SERVICES LTD→ 13071300 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| 3 LIONS SECURITY LTD→ 09793050 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| 357 MANAGEMENT LTD→ 15840608 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| 360 HOTELS AND RESORTS LTD→ 04861049 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 22y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2009-03-20
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC82990 — Other business support service activities n.e.c.
Registered office
Headway
Great Oakley
Corby
Northants
NN18 9EZ
United Kingdom
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-02-26
Last: 2026-02-12
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
SMITH, Geoffrey→
Activedirector · ~72y · appointed 2024-04-06
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (41 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-04-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-05-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-02-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-05-09
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2024-04-10
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-02-26
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2024-01-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-06-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-02-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-07-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-03-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-06-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-03-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-07-09
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-03-06