BROWN MCFARLANE LIMITED
- · Lifecycle stage drifting downward
- · Currently "declining"
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), 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: Discharge stale live charges. 1 live charge(s) created 15+ years ago — likely paid but undischarged. Clean register. Most likely exit: strategic trade sale (78/100).
Refinance opportunity
2 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 29.2y
Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.
- · Oldest live charge is 29.2 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
- · Legal-friction score 30/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.
Data confidence
Overall: high (81/100)Strong data coverage across all sections. AI outputs should be trusted with minimal caveats.
Sector-multiple EBITDA, turnover, and NAV-proxy valuation range with confidence tier — derived from extracted iXBRL financials.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Strong composite across quality, acquirability, and risk. High-priority target — progress to serious diligence.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 102Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsHover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Profit before tax | £1.76M | £3.19M |
| Average employees | 92 | 9100 |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
3 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
- • 1 accounts
Corporate timeline (57 events)Click to expand
- 2025-12-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-12-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-12-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-12-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-12-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-01-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-01-03📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-12-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-11-30➖MALEY, Martin David resigneddirector
- 2018-11-30📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2018-07-25📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2017-07-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-12-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-08-17📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2016-08-15➕O'REILLY, Anthony Michael appointeddirector
- 2016-08-10📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2016-08-10🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2015-12-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2015-09-30➖BROWN, Kenneth Edward Lindsay resigneddirector
- 2015-03-31➖KEIZER, Alan resigneddirector
- 2014-09-16➖RIDDELL, John George resigneddirector
- 2014-09-08➕MALEY, Martin David appointeddirector
- 2013-12-31➖WEBSTER, Andrew resigneddirector
- 2013-08-01➕BROWN, Peter Kenneth appointedsecretary
- 2013-08-01➖HEY, Robert Derek resignedsecretary
- 2013-07-31➖MORSE, Barry Leslie resigneddirector
- 2013-05-31➕BROWN, Peter Kenneth appointeddirector
- 2013-05-31➖EATON, Susan Elizabeth resignedsecretary
- 2013-05-31➕HEY, Robert Derek appointedsecretary
- 2013-05-31➖EATON, Susan Elizabeth resigneddirector
- 2010-03-31➖BRIERLEY, John resigneddirector
- 2008-09-01➕RIDDELL, John George appointeddirector
- 2008-08-04🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Hsbc Bank PLC
- 2007-08-01➕WEBSTER, Andrew appointeddirector
- 2006-08-29➕BROWN, Richard Thomas appointeddirector
- 2006-08-29➕EATON, Susan Elizabeth appointedsecretary
- 2006-08-29➕KEIZER, Alan appointeddirector
- 2006-07-21➖HIGGINS, David resignedsecretary
- 2006-07-21➖HIGGINS, David resigneddirector
- 2004-04-08➕MORSE, Barry Leslie appointeddirector
- 2003-09-01➕EATON, Susan Elizabeth appointeddirector
- 2002-06-30➕HIGGINS, David appointedsecretary
- 2002-06-30➖SHAW, David Stewart resignedsecretary
- 2002-06-30➖SHAW, David Stewart resigneddirector
- 2000-10-06➖STEELE, Thomas Richard Wilson resigneddirector
- 2000-02-15➖CRAWFORD, Robert resigneddirector
- 2000-01-12➕HIGGINS, David appointeddirector
- 1997-02-24🔒Charge registered #1Lender: The Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland
- 1996-04-01➕BRIERLEY, John appointeddirector
- 1993-07-12➖MILLAR, Sydney Alexander resigneddirector
Owner dependency
The business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.
- +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "BROWN" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 20 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 60 — approaching natural succession window.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
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.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 20 years.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 36 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
- supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.
Red flags
cleanGroup structure
A.R. Brown Mcfarlane & Company Limited is the ultimate parent — holding 75%+ shares. This company sits inside their group.
Parent relationships inferred from Persons with Significant Control filings. Full subsidiary tree requires reverse-lookup (coming).
Shareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
A.R. Brown Mcfarlane & Company Limited Corporate entity | 75–100% | — | 75-100% shares | 06/04/2016 |
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.
See pricing →Similar companies
Active · Manufacturing · ML postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J.A.G. AUTO ENGINEERS LIMITED→ SC398392 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| J.B.R. PLANT & TRUCK SERVICES LIMITED→ SC507044 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| J.C. MINING LTD.→ SC224794 · est 2001 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 24y | — | — |
| JACOBS SPECIALIST WATER & CIVIL ENGINEERING LTD→ SC488947 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| JAMES COWIE GROUP LIMITED→ SC413543 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| JERWIN COATINGS LTD→ SC206767 · est 2000 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 25y | — | — |
| JM SERVICES (SCOTLAND) LIMITED→ SC309530 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| KILTMAKER & CO LIMITED→ SC614716 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| KINETIC MACHINE TOOL SERVICE & REPAIR LTD→ SC366632 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 16y | — | — |
| KNOWEHEAD CONTROLS LIMITED→ SC553046 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| KOOLKARE REFRIGERATION LIMITED→ SC464355 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
| KP MOBILE WELDING SERVICES LIMITED→ SC784303 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
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 (4 active · 17 resigned)
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | HSBC Hsbc Bank PLC | Floating charge | 1 property | 04/08/2008 | — | |
| satisfied | Lloyds Banking Group The Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland | Bond & floating charge | 1 property | 24/02/1997 | 10/08/2016 |