3D.G DESIGN LTD
🌳Matureactive
07419141 · ltd · incorporated 2010-10-26
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 Oct 2024
Net worth
£813
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Specialised design activities
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
PursueAsset-holding vehicle with a 62-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 62). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
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
2 officers (2 active, 2 linked, 2 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 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
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.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £813
Net assets shrinking
Down £13,068 YoY
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
£813
↓ 94% YoY
Current Assets
£37k
↓ 23% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2024-10-31 | 2023-10-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £813 | £13.9k |
| Current assets | £37.4k | £48.7k |
| Net assets | £813 | £13.9k |
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
- 2025-07-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-07-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-07-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-07-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-12-14📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2021-07-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-10-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-07-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2018-06-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-07-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-07-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-11-04📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-08-26📄capital-name-of-class-of-sharescapital · SH08
- 2015-07-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2014-11-14📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2010-10-26🏢Company incorporatedAs 3D.G DESIGN LTD
- 2010-10-26➕SMALLWOOD, Robert John appointeddirector
- 2010-10-26➕TAYLOR, Christopher Alan appointeddirector
Owner dependency
81/100
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.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 62 — approaching natural succession window.
- +No director turnover: Company is 16 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
69/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 62. Early succession window.
- 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
2 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Christopher Alan Taylor Individual · British · DOB 11/1974 · age 52 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 06/04/2016 |
Mr Robert John Smallwood Individual · British · DOB 08/1964 · age 62 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
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| A.I. CHERRY LIMITED→ 02875075 · est 1993 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 32y | — | — |
| ACFALLON LIMITED→ 15409077 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ACWIRE LIMITED→ 08977244 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
| AD LAW LIMITED→ 08700052 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
| ADEPTLI LTD→ 14500981 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| ADKIRK LAW EMPLOYMENT SERVICES LIMITED→ 09878056 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| ADKIRK LAW INC LIMITED→ 09088903 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| ADLINGTON LAW LIMITED→ 07661677 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| AEQUALIS MANAGEMENT LIMITED→ 14037772 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
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Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
6 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
Incorporated2010-10-26
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC74100 — Specialised design activities
Registered office
13 Leyland House, Lancashire Business Park
Centurion Way
Leyland
Lancashire
PR26 6TY
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-07-31
Last made up to: 2024-10-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-11-09
Last: 2025-10-26
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
SMALLWOOD, Robert John→
Activedirector · ~62y · appointed 2010-10-26
View their other companies + combined net worth →
TAYLOR, Christopher Alan→
Activedirector · ~52y · appointed 2010-10-26
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (37 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-10-29
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-07-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-12-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-07-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-01-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-07-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-11-29
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-07-04
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2021-12-14
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-10-29
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-07-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-10-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-10-14
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-11-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2019-07-15