1ST CLASS TRADE LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
13737836 · ltd · incorporated 2021-11-11
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 Nov 2024
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
75/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Non-specialised wholesale trade
Sector: Wholesale & retail
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
- 96090Other service activities n.e.c.
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 66-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 75/100 (strong), bankability 70/100. Strong seller-intent signal (60/100, director aged 66). 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: medium (78/100)Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.
Company profile
address, 2 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
3 officers (1 active, 3 linked, 3 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
18 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
60
Adequate — check latest filings for context.
Acquirability
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
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 | 2024-11-30 | 2023-11-30 |
|---|
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
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
7
filings
- • 2 confirmation-statement
- • 2 persons-with-significant-control
- • 2 officers
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (19 events)Click to expand
- 2026-01-15➕STONES, Michael Joseph appointeddirector
- 2026-01-15➖COHEN, Neil Stuart resigneddirector
- 2026-01-15📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2026-01-15📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2026-01-15📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2026-01-15📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2025-11-07📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2025-10-24📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2025-10-24📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2025-10-24📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2025-10-24📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2025-08-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2024-08-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2023-08-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2021-11-11🏢Company incorporatedAs 1ST CLASS TRADE LIMITED
- 2021-11-11➕COHEN, Neil Stuart appointeddirector
- 2021-11-11➕SYMES, Darren appointeddirector
- 2021-11-11➖SYMES, Darren resigneddirector
- 2021-11-11📄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 age: Director aged approximately 66 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
65/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 66. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Michael Joseph Stones Individual · British · DOB 04/1960 · age 66 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 15/01/2026 |
2 historic (ceased) PSCs
- Neil Cohenceased 15/01/2026· 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control
- Mr Darren Symesceased 11/11/2021· 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.
Similar companies
Active · Wholesale & distribution · N postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 MOMENTS LTD→ 16757561 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1573 CIGARS LIMITED→ 14251253 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| 1ST CLASS MEAT LTD→ 15854594 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| 24 INVESTMENT ENTERPRISES LTD→ 16861955 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 3 DIMENSION DESIGN TECHNOLOGIES LTD→ 05579820 · est 2005 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 20y | — | — |
| 35TH STREET LIMITED→ 14256037 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| 382 CONSULTING LTD→ 14456199 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| 3A PHARMA LTD→ 14393797 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| 3MI UK LTD→ 16941605 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 3NV ENTERPRISES LIMITED→ 13193402 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| 3SQ LABS LTD→ 13821778 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| 455EMBLE WORKSHOP LTD→ 16547005 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
9 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
Incorporated2021-11-11
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC46900 — Non-specialised wholesale trade
Registered office
72 Halliwick Road
London
N10 1AB
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-08-31
Last made up to: 2024-11-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-02-18
Last: 2026-02-04
Officers (1 active · 2 resigned)
STONES, Michael Joseph→
Activedirector · ~66y · appointed 2026-01-15
View their other companies + combined net worth →
COHEN, Neil Stuart→
Resigneddirector · ~65y · appointed 2021-11-11 · resigned 2026-01-15
SYMES, Darren→
Resigneddirector · ~68y · appointed 2021-11-11 · resigned 2021-11-11
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (18 total)
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-04
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2026-01-15
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2026-01-15
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2026-01-15
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2026-01-15
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-11-27
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2025-11-07
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2025-10-24
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2025-10-24
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2025-10-24
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2025-10-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2025-08-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2024-08-14
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-21