ARNOLD'S DESIGNS LTD
💤Zombieactive
13347215 · ltd · incorporated 2021-04-20
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
—
not disclosed
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
71/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Retail sale of furniture, lighting, and similar (not musical instruments or scores) in specialised stores
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 71/100 (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 (58/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (57/100)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
No iXBRL financials extracted
0
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
2 officers (1 active, 2 linked, 2 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
2 connected companies via shared directors
51
Filing history
21 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
71/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
65
Adequate — check latest filings for context.
Acquirability
50
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Recent activity
Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
2
filings
- • 2 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (20 events)Click to expand
- 2026-04-27📄change-account-reference-date-company-current-shortenedaccounts · AA01
- 2026-01-28📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortenedaccounts · AA01
- 2025-07-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2025-04-29📄change-account-reference-date-company-current-shortenedaccounts · AA01
- 2025-01-31📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortenedaccounts · AA01
- 2024-01-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-01-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-05-20📄resolutionresolution · RESOLUTIONS
- 2021-05-12📄resolutionresolution · RESOLUTIONS
- 2021-05-05➕ARNOLD, Antony appointeddirector
- 2021-05-05➖THORNTON, Bryan Anthony resigneddirector
- 2021-05-05📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2021-05-05📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2021-05-05📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2021-05-05📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2021-05-05📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2021-05-05📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2021-04-20🏢Company incorporatedAs ARNOLD'S DESIGNS LTD
- 2021-04-20➕THORNTON, Bryan Anthony appointeddirector
- 2021-04-20📄incorporation-companyincorporation · NEWINC
Owner dependency
90/100
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
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
- +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "ARNOLD" — strong identity link between founder and business.
Succession & seller-readiness
45/100
Moderate signalSome succession indicators present. Worth watching; approach if sector/strategy fits.
SIGNALS
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
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 Antony Arnold Individual · British · DOB 05/1986 · age 40 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 05/05/2021 |
2 historic (ceased) PSCs
- Mr Bryan Thorntonceased 05/05/2021· significant influence
- Cfs Secretaries Limitedceased 05/05/2021· 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control
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 · Retail · CO postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AMP RETAIL LTD→ 12298175 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| ANGLERNWA LTD→ 16812813 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ANGLING ESSENTIALS LIMITED→ 15250252 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ANOTHER WAY OF LIVING LTD→ 13067594 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| ANUTRA RETAIL HUB LTD→ 16862420 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| APEX OVERSEAS LIMITED→ 16392850 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| AQUACULTURE LIMITED→ 14873924 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ARCHER DISTRIBUTION LIMITED→ 08694855 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
| ARJUN TRADERS LIMITED→ 11084262 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| ARMZ-2024 LIMITED→ 15654724 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| AROOJANA RETAILS LTD→ 15578665 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ARSLAN ASSOCIATES LIMITED→ 16919949 · est 2025 · 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
Incorporated2021-04-20
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC47599 — Retail sale of furniture, lighting, and similar (not musical instruments or scores) in specialised stores
Registered office
Unit 6 And 7 Tey Brook Centre Brook Road
Great Tey
Colchester
CO6 1JE
United Kingdom
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-07-27
Last made up to: 2024-04-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-12-14
Last: 2025-11-30
Officers (1 active · 1 resigned)
ARNOLD, Antony→
Activedirector · ~40y · appointed 2021-05-05
View their other companies + combined net worth →
THORNTON, Bryan Anthony→
Resigneddirector · ~71y · appointed 2021-04-20 · resigned 2021-05-05
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (21 total)
change-account-reference-date-company-current-shortened
accounts · AA01
2026-04-27
change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
accounts · AA01
2026-01-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-01-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-07-29
change-account-reference-date-company-current-shortened
accounts · AA01
2025-04-29
change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
accounts · AA01
2025-01-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-01-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-01-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-12-01
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-11-30
resolution
resolution · RESOLUTIONS
2021-05-20
resolution
resolution · RESOLUTIONS
2021-05-12
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2021-05-05