ANDREW MATTHEWS LTD
💤Zombieactive
07020709 · ltd · incorporated 2009-09-16
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 Mar 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Other retail sale not in stores, stalls or markets
Sector: Wholesale & retail
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
- 74909Other professional, scientific and technical activities n.e.c.
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 66-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 66). 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: medium (76/100)Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.
Company profile
address, 2 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
3 officers (2 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
42 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 · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| 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 (19 events)Click to expand
- 2025-12-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-12-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-10-01📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2023-12-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-09-26📄change-corporate-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH04
- 2023-09-26📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2022-12-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-12-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-12-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-12-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-11-05📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-12-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-10-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-12-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2011-09-01➕JOHNSON & CO ACCOUNTANTS LIMITED appointedcorporate-secretary
- 2011-09-01➖JOHNSON, Nigel resignedsecretary
- 2009-09-16🏢Company incorporatedAs ANDREW MATTHEWS LTD
- 2009-09-16➕MATTHEWS, Andrew Robert Ellis appointeddirector
- 2009-09-16➕JOHNSON, Nigel appointedsecretary
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.
- +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "MATTHEWS" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 17 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 66 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
88/100
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 66. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- 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 Robert Matthews Individual · English · DOB 05/1960 · age 66 | 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 · Retail · CB postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A-TEAM LOCUM LIMITED→ 15365455 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| AJWA DELIGHTS LIMITED→ 16413521 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AL POMODORO D LTD→ 16199195 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ALBION EXOTICS LIMITED→ 15964579 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ALI SUPERMARKET LTD→ 06873968 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 17y | — | — |
| ALUNA HOME LTD→ 16646664 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AMBLESIDE LEISURE CORNER LTD→ 16341811 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| AMBRIT ENTERPRISES LIMITED→ 07850523 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| ANIBEL'S BRIDAL BOUTIQUE LTD→ 14576010 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| ANIL ANAND LTD→ 10655358 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| APR RETAIL LTD→ 09855021 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| APRIM LTD→ 16413039 · 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
Incorporated2009-09-16
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC47990 — Other retail sale not in stores, stalls or markets
Registered office
C/O Johnson And Co Accountants Ltd
9 New Cheveley Road
Newmarket
CB8 8BG
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-10-10
Last: 2025-09-26
Officers (2 active · 1 resigned)
JOHNSON & CO ACCOUNTANTS LIMITED→
Activecorporate-secretary · appointed 2011-09-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MATTHEWS, Andrew Robert Ellis→
Activedirector · ~66y · appointed 2009-09-16
View their other companies + combined net worth →
JOHNSON, Nigel→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2009-09-16 · resigned 2011-09-01
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (42 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-12-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-10-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-12-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-10-01
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2024-10-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-12-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-09-26
change-corporate-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH04
2023-09-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-09-26
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2023-09-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-12-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-10-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-12-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-10-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-12-30