CANAPE BOX LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
08150087 · ltd · incorporated 2012-07-19
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 Jul 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
75/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Manufacture of prepared meals and dishes
Sector: Manufacturing
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
- 56210Event catering activities
- 56290Other food services
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 75/100 (strong), bankability 80/100. 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: share sale to pe / searcher (58/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
2 live charges · oldest 0.1y
10/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Newest facility, 0.1 years old — likely still in initial term.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: high (80/100)Strong data coverage across all sections. AI outputs should be trusted with minimal caveats.
Company profile
address, 3 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 (1 active, 3 linked, 3 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
47 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
55
Some acquirability indicators.
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 | 2025-07-31 | 2024-07-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 8 | 700 |
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
2
filings
- • 2 mortgage
Last 90 days
3
filings
- • 3 mortgage
Last 180 days
6
filings
- • 3 mortgage
- • 1 accounts
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (26 events)Click to expand
- 2026-04-28📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2026-04-28🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2026-04-23📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2026-04-23🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Community Enable Funding Limited (Co. No. 16197578)
- 2026-03-31📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2026-03-31🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Community Enable Funding Limited (Co. No. 16197578)
- 2026-01-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2026-01-05📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2025-11-30➖MESSUM, Diane resigneddirector
- 2025-04-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-04-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-01-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-04-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-11-24📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2021-11-24📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2021-11-24📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2021-11-24📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2020-12-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-12-04📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2019-11-30➖ATKINS, Lauren Elizabeth resigneddirector
- 2019-11-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-06-12📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2019-05-01➕ATKINS, Lauren Elizabeth appointeddirector
- 2019-02-26➕MESSUM, Diane appointeddirector
- 2012-07-19🏢Company incorporatedAs CANAPE BOX LIMITED
- 2012-07-19➕MESSUM, Christopher Richard, Mr. appointeddirector
Owner dependency
75/100
High — earn-out structure requiredMaterial founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.
FACTORS
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
Succession & seller-readiness
58/100
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 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
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Christopher Messum Individual · British · DOB 04/1980 · age 46 | 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.
🔒Co-director network graph
Radial SVG graph showing every company connected via shared directors, colour-coded by status.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Similar companies
Active · Food & drink · SL postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AHURA VIRTUAL AUDIO (AVA) LIMITED→ 10258087 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| ANA'S BAKE STUDIO LTD→ 16042235 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ANANTA ELUXE LTD→ 16689913 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ANGLO FROZEN FOODS LTD→ 04001240 · est 2000 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 25y | — | — |
| BUONO&FRESH LIMITED→ 16445802 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| BUTT SWEETS & BAKERS LIMITED→ 16780677 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| CAKE & BAKE CLUB LIMITED→ 15424970 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| CAKES BY NAZ LTD→ 16128667 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| CHOCOTTONE LIMITED→ 14861842 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| COLCO COFFEE LTD→ 12501750 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| COLT DE RAI MEAT HOUSE LTD→ 15826636 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| CONSCIOUS CATERING LIMITED→ 12277092 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2012-07-19
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC10850 — Manufacture of prepared meals and dishes
Registered office
C/O Craufurd Hale Group Ground Floor, Arena Court
Crown Lane
Maidenhead
SL6 8QZ
United Kingdom
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-04-30
Last made up to: 2025-07-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-12-15
Last: 2025-12-01
Officers (1 active · 2 resigned)
MESSUM, Christopher Richard, Mr.→
Activedirector · ~46y · appointed 2012-07-19
View their other companies + combined net worth →
ATKINS, Lauren Elizabeth→
Resigneddirector · ~36y · appointed 2019-05-01 · resigned 2019-11-30
MESSUM, Diane→
Resigneddirector · ~47y · appointed 2019-02-26 · resigned 2025-11-30
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 | Community Enable Funding (Co. No. 16197578) Community Enable Funding Limited (Co. No. 16197578) | A registered charge | 2 properties | 23/04/2026 | — | |
| satisfied | Community Enable Funding (Co. No. 16197578) Community Enable Funding Limited (Co. No. 16197578) | A registered charge | 2 properties | 31/03/2026 | 28/04/2026 |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (47 total)
mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
mortgage · MR04
2026-04-28
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2026-04-23
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2026-03-31
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-01-22
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-01-05
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2026-01-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-04-28
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-12-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-04-15
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-01-09
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-12-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-04-28
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-12-08
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2021-11-24