APPLIED DESIGN GRAPHICS LIMITED
Opportunity 76/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. 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 (73/100).
Data confidence
Overall: high (80/100)Strong data coverage across all sections. AI outputs should be trusted with minimal caveats.
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredKey financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsHover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £69.5k | £52.6k |
| Current assets | £44.7k | £34.0k |
| Cash | £4.4k | £5.5k |
| Debtors | £34.1k | £21.8k |
| Net assets | £69.5k | £52.6k |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
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
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Corporate timeline (12 events)Click to expand
- 2025-12-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-12-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-12-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-01-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-01-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-03-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-09-16📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2019-04-05📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2019-04-04📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2019-03-13🏢Company incorporatedAs APPLIED DESIGN GRAPHICS LIMITED
- 2019-03-13➕SHEPPARD, Michelle appointeddirector
- 2019-03-13📄incorporation-companyincorporation · NEWINC
Owner dependency
The business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 60 — approaching natural succession window.
- +No director turnover: Company is 7 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
Multiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
- secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 60. Early succession window.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
Red flags
cleanShareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Ms Michelle Sheppard Individual · British · DOB 01/1966 · age 60 | 75–100% | — | 75-100% shares | 13/03/2019 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Radial SVG graph showing every company connected via shared directors, colour-coded by status.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
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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 →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
Registered office
Filing status
Officers (1 active · 0 resigned)
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