ALFORD COMMERCIAL SERVICES LTD
🌳Matureactive
08680144 · ltd · incorporated 2013-09-06
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 Sept 2025
Net worth
£594.4k
book net assets
Opportunity
78/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Other business support service activities n.e.c.
Sector: Administrative & support services
Investor take
PursueAsset-holding vehicle with a 85-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 78/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 85). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
Data confidence
Overall: high (80/100)Strong data coverage across all sections. AI outputs should be trusted with minimal caveats.
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
2 connected companies via shared directors
51
Filing history
27 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
78/100Strong
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
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £594,435
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
£594k
Current Assets
£469k
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-09-30 | 2024-09-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £594.4k | — |
| Current assets | £468.8k | — |
| Net assets | £594.4k | — |
| Average employees | — | 200 |
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
- 2025-12-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-11-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-04-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-01-05📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-11-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-11-01📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2021-05-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-09-14📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2019-11-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2018-11-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-11-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-01-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2016-03-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2015-10-06📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2014-12-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2013-09-06🏢Company incorporatedAs ALFORD COMMERCIAL SERVICES LTD
- 2013-09-06➕ALFORD, James Frederick appointeddirector
- 2013-09-06➕ALFORD, Josephine Helen appointeddirector
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
- +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 "ALFORD" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 85 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
- +No director turnover: Company is 13 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
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 85 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 13 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 James Frederick Alford Individual · British · DOB 08/1943 · age 83 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 06/04/2016 |
Mrs Josephine Helen Alford Individual · British · DOB 12/1941 · age 85 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 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
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A&I PROPERTY GROUP LIMITED→ 10333022 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| AGT SOLUTIONS LIMITED→ 08384631 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 13y | — | — |
| AIRPORT EQUIPMENT CONSULTANTS LTD→ 12481451 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| AJMT SERVICES LTD→ 14983292 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ALAN EVANS COACHING LIMITED→ 13781994 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| ALEX NAILS AND BEAUTY LIMITED→ 13639368 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| ALEX'S WINDOW CLEANING LTD→ 10863468 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| ALICORN LEARNING LTD→ 16118133 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ALIEN8 LTD→ 12409418 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| ALL ABOUT PACKAGING LIMITED→ 11571956 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| ALL ABOUT THE BUILDINGS LIMITED→ 11806378 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| ALL IN ONE SOLUTIONS PVT LTD→ 17025556 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
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
Incorporated2013-09-06
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC82990 — Other business support service activities n.e.c.
Registered office
Golden House
Stoney Cross
Lyndhurst
SO43 7GP
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-06-30
Last made up to: 2025-09-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-09-20
Last: 2025-09-06
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
ALFORD, James Frederick→
Activedirector · ~83y · appointed 2013-09-06
View their other companies + combined net worth →
ALFORD, Josephine Helen→
Activedirector · ~85y · appointed 2013-09-06
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (27 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-12-09
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-09-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-11-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-09-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-04-30
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-10-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-01-05
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-10-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-11-11
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2021-11-01
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-10-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-05-25
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2020-09-14
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-09-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2019-11-26