ABC DESIGN AND COMMUNICATIONS LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
06922154 · ltd · incorporated 2009-06-02
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 Jun 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
75/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Other publishing activities
Sector: Information & communication
Investor take
PursueStrong 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: strategic trade sale (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
1 officers (1 active, 1 linked, 1 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
37 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 accountsCash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-06-30 | 2024-06-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 100 | 100 |
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 (18 events)Click to expand
- 2025-09-03📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-08-06📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-09-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-09-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-03-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-08-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-09-05📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2018-09-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-09-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2016-07-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-06-03📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2016-03-03📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2015-10-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-06-12📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2014-09-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2014-07-28📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2009-06-02🏢Company incorporatedAs ABC DESIGN AND COMMUNICATIONS LIMITED
- 2009-06-02➕COTHLIFF, Andrew Barrett appointeddirector
Owner dependency
90/100
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 17 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +No director turnover: Company is 17 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
68/100
Strong succession signalMultiple 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 17 years.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 17 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 Andrew Barrett Cothliff Individual · British · DOB 11/1971 · age 55 | 75–100% | — | 75-100% shares | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Technology · PR postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 101 NETWORKS LIMITED→ 10831804 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| 181 DIGITAL LTD→ 06815356 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 17y | — | — |
| 1ST BUSINESS CONNECTIONS LTD→ 12705037 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| 1ST DIRECT COMPUTER SERVICES LTD→ 06119030 · est 2007 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| 3141 LTD→ 16536225 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 6TH FLOOR GARAGE LTD→ 13411212 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| 7384 CONSULTING LIMITED→ 15837234 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| 8 BIT FILMS LIMITED→ 12070078 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| 95ULTRA LTD→ 16700187 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AARAV CONSULTANCY LIMITED→ 16311935 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| AASHAA LTD.→ 11038224 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| ABC VIDEO FACILITIES LIMITED→ 04880901 · 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
Incorporated2009-06-02
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC58190 — Other publishing activities
Registered office
Unit 10 80 Lytham Road
Fulwood
Preston
PR2 3AQ
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-03-31
Last made up to: 2025-06-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-06-16
Last: 2025-06-02
Officers (1 active · 0 resigned)
COTHLIFF, Andrew Barrett→
Activedirector · ~55y · appointed 2009-06-02
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (37 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-09-03
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-06-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-08-06
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-06-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-09-07
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-06-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-09-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-06-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-03-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-06-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-08-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-06-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2019-09-05
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-06-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2018-09-10