A & K READ LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
07936813 · ltd · incorporated 2012-02-06
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 Feb 2025
Net worth
£30.6k
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Retail sale in non-specialised stores with food, beverages or tobacco predominating
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 70-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 70). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Cash flow review and working-capital discipline. Cash down -89% YoY — forensic review of receivables, stock turns, and creditor days. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
2 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 13.3y
30/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 13.3 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
- · Cashflow trend is negative — lender view likely cautious.
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
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
3 officers (2 active, 3 linked, 3 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
34 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
79/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £30,640
Cash draining
Cash down 89% YoY
Cash YoY
-89%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£2k
↓ 89% YoY
Net Worth
£31k
↑ 32% YoY
Current Assets
£38k
↓ 22% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-02-28 | 2024-02-29 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £39.6k | £26.8k |
| Current assets | £38.1k | £48.5k |
| Cash | £2.3k | £20.2k |
| Debtors | £7.2k | £4.5k |
| Net assets | £30.6k | £23.2k |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
🔒Filing-note intelligence
1 signal 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
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
2
filings
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (23 events)Click to expand
- 2025-11-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2024-09-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2023-11-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2023-06-03📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2023-06-03🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2022-11-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2021-11-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2020-12-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2019-11-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2018-11-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-11-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-11-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-02-16📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-11-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-02-24📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2014-11-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2013-02-14🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Donna Jane Crocker and Kerry Lewis
- 2013-01-14🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Lloyds Tsb Bank PLC
- 2012-02-07➕READ, Anthony Michael appointeddirector
- 2012-02-07➕READ, Karen Denise appointeddirector
- 2012-02-06🏢Company incorporatedAs A & K READ LIMITED
- 2012-02-06➕COWAN, Graham Michael appointeddirector
- 2012-02-06➖COWAN, Graham Michael resigneddirector
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.
- +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "READ" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +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
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 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 14 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
2 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Anthony Michael Read Individual · British · DOB 11/1956 · age 70 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 06/02/2017 |
Mrs Karen Denise Read Individual · British · DOB 12/1958 · age 68 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 06/02/2017 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
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| ACTIVE MOBILITY VEHICLES LIMITED→ 03286373 · est 1996 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 29y | — | — |
| ADORA CRAFTED LTD→ 15820766 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
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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
Incorporated2012-02-06
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC47110 — Retail sale in non-specialised stores with food, beverages or tobacco predominating
Registered office
Manchester House
High Street
Sturminster Newton
DT10 2LL
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-11-30
Last made up to: 2025-02-28
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-02-20
Last: 2026-02-06
Officers (2 active · 1 resigned)
READ, Anthony Michael→
Activedirector · ~70y · appointed 2012-02-07
View their other companies + combined net worth →
READ, Karen Denise→
Activedirector · ~68y · appointed 2012-02-07
View their other companies + combined net worth →
COWAN, Graham Michael→
Resigneddirector · ~83y · appointed 2012-02-06 · resigned 2012-02-06
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
2
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Donna Jane Crocker and Kerry Lewis | Rent deposit deed | 1 property | 14/02/2013 | — | |
| satisfied | Lloyds Banking Group Lloyds Tsb Bank PLC | Debenture deed | 1 property | 14/01/2013 | 03/06/2023 |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (34 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-03-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2025-11-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-02-14
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2024-09-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-02-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2023-11-23
mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
mortgage · MR04
2023-06-03
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-02-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2022-11-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-02-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2021-11-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-02-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2020-12-16
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-02-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2019-11-26