A.B.K. FURNISHINGS LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
07414084 · ltd · incorporated 2010-10-20
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
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
- · Oldest live charge 7.3y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Oct 2024
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Retail sale of furniture, lighting, and similar (not musical instruments or scores) in specialised stores
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 70-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 85/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 70). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 7.3y
85/100
ready
Refinance conversation should be productive — structure clean and timing right.
- · Oldest live charge is 7.3 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Legal-friction score 15/100 — clean.
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
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
5 officers (2 active, 5 linked, 5 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
51 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
82/100Exceptional
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
100
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 | 2024-10-31 | 2023-10-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 300 | 300 |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
🔒Filing-note intelligence
2 signals detected in this company's narrative notes — going-concern language, audit opinion, contingent liabilities, related-party transactions.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →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 (28 events)Click to expand
- 2025-07-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2025-07-10📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2025-07-10📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2024-12-04📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2024-10-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-12-15📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2023-12-15📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2023-12-15📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2023-07-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-05-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-07-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-04-22📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2021-04-22🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2020-07-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-07-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-02-07📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2019-02-06🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Blackrock Secured Finance Limited
- 2019-02-04➕HOWELL, Denise appointeddirector
- 2019-02-04📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2018-07-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2011-08-31➖VIRDI, Balwinder Singh resigneddirector
- 2011-08-31➖VIRDI, Karamjit Singh resigneddirector
- 2010-10-20🏢Company incorporatedAs A.B.K. FURNISHINGS LIMITED
- 2010-10-20➕HOWELL, Anthony James Geoffrey appointeddirector
- 2010-10-20➕HUGHES, Lynn appointeddirector
- 2010-10-20➖HUGHES, Lynn resigneddirector
- 2010-10-20➕VIRDI, Balwinder Singh appointeddirector
- 2010-10-20➕VIRDI, Karamjit Singh appointeddirector
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 16 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 70 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
Succession & seller-readiness
89/100
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 70 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 16 years.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 16 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 Anthony James Geoffrey Howell Individual · British · DOB 05/1956 · age 70 | 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.
Similar companies
Active · Retail · PE postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £1 PLUS SHOP LTD→ 15880638 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| 101 PAWS LTD→ 13007588 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| 147 CUESPORTS LTD→ 16154817 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| 15111559 LTD→ 15111559 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| 158 PERFORMANCE LIMITED→ 06943914 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 16y | — | — |
| 3000GT / GTO RESTORATION LTD→ 13454909 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| 3CDR TRADING LIMITED→ 10573152 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| 4PAWSLOVER LTD→ 14754783 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| 626 & DAUGHTERS TCG LTD→ 16421650 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 7 DAY DRIVE LTD→ 16404608 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| A CAMERON DISTRIBUTION LTD→ 14708719 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| A17 CARAVANS LTD→ 11266430 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2010-10-20
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC47599 — Retail sale of furniture, lighting, and similar (not musical instruments or scores) in specialised stores
Registered office
75 High Street
Boston
PE21 8SX
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-07-31
Last made up to: 2024-10-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-11-03
Last: 2025-10-20
Officers (2 active · 3 resigned)
HOWELL, Anthony James Geoffrey→
Activedirector · ~70y · appointed 2010-10-20
View their other companies + combined net worth →
HOWELL, Denise→
Activedirector · ~70y · appointed 2019-02-04
View their other companies + combined net worth →
HUGHES, Lynn→
Resigneddirector · ~67y · appointed 2010-10-20 · resigned 2010-10-20
VIRDI, Balwinder Singh→
Resigneddirector · ~60y · appointed 2010-10-20 · resigned 2011-08-31
VIRDI, Karamjit Singh→
Resigneddirector · ~59y · appointed 2010-10-20 · resigned 2011-08-31
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
1
Total charges
0
Outstanding
0
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| satisfied | Blackrock Secured Finance Blackrock Secured Finance Limited | A registered charge | 7 properties | 06/02/2019 | 22/04/2021 |
Recent filings (51 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-11-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-07-30
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2025-07-10
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-07-10
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2024-12-04
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-12-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-10-29
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2023-12-15
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2023-12-15
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2023-12-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-11-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-07-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-10-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-05-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-11-03