OPTICAL EXPRESS LIMITED
📈Growthactive
SC161469 · ltd · incorporated 1995-11-03
Investment thesis
Growth-phase business — story-led; valuation sensitive to momentum.
Why interesting: Trading is scaling; acquirers paying for trajectory get disproportionate leverage.
Why risky: Price often leads fundamentals; dependency on founder often high.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Dec 2024
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Other human health activities
Sector: Human health & social work
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: leverage-led grower with exceptional profile and acceptable with review structure.
Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 67/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Consolidate lender relationships. 6 distinct lenders creates friction — refinance into single-lender structure for cleaner diligence. Most likely exit: strategic trade sale (88/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
7 live charges · 6 lenders · oldest 30.1y
45/100
clean up first
Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.
- · Oldest live charge is 30.1 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · 6 lenders named — inter-creditor friction likely.
- · Legal-friction score 25/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.
- · Profitable and stable/growing — lender coverage supportable.
Data confidence
Overall: high (83/100)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
7 charges (7/7 with lender, 7/7 with type)
90
Directors & officers
8 officers (4 active, 8 linked, 4 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
19 connected companies via shared directors
90
Filing history
117 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
🔒Estimated company valuation
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 →Opportunity Score
80/100Exceptional
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Strong composite across quality, acquirability, and risk. High-priority target — progress to serious diligence.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
85
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
77
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 102Profitable
Profit before tax £17,076,000
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 | 2024-12-28 | 2023-12-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Turnover | — | £93.18M |
| Gross profit | — | £78.15M |
| Operating profit | — | £13.99M |
| Profit before tax | £17.08M | £13.98M |
| Average employees | 54900 | 58200 |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
🔒Filing-note intelligence
2 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
Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (41 events)Click to expand
- 2025-09-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-11-01📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2024-09-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-10-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-06-30📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2022-10-05📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-10-30📄mortgage-alter-floating-charge-with-numbermortgage · 466(Scot)
- 2021-10-21📄mortgage-alter-floating-charge-with-numbermortgage · 466(Scot)
- 2021-10-07📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2021-10-04🔒Charge registered #8Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
- 2021-09-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-06-24📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2021-06-24📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2021-06-24🔓Charge satisfied #5
- 2021-06-24🔓Charge satisfied #4
- 2020-12-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-02-17📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2020-02-17📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2020-02-06➕HANNAN, Stephen James, Dr appointeddirector
- 2020-02-06➖FINLAYSON, June resigneddirector
- 2019-10-02📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-10-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-fullaccounts · AA
- 2015-11-02🔒Charge registered #7Lender: Dakota Trading B.V.
- 2015-10-07🔒Charge registered #6Lender: Dakota Trading B.V.
- 2009-06-11🔒Charge registered #5Lender: Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
- 2008-05-29➕MEIN, Stewart appointeddirector
- 2008-05-29➕FINLAYSON, June appointeddirector
- 2007-05-10🔓Charge satisfied #3
- 2007-05-04🔒Charge registered #4Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
- 2000-11-06🔓Charge satisfied #2
- 2000-10-31🔒Charge registered #3Lender: The Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland
- 1996-03-28🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company
- 1995-11-05➖COMBINED NOMINEES LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-director
- 1995-11-03🏢Company incorporatedAs OPTICAL EXPRESS LIMITED
- 1995-11-03➕MURDOCH, Graeme Ramsay appointedsecretary
- 1995-11-03➕MOULSDALE, David Charles appointeddirector
- 1995-11-03➕COMBINED SECRETARIAL SERVICES LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 1995-11-03➖COMBINED SECRETARIAL SERVICES LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 1995-11-03➕COMBINED NOMINEES LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-director
- 1995-11-03➕COMBINED SECRETARIAL SERVICES LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-director
- 1995-11-03➖COMBINED SECRETARIAL SERVICES LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-director
Owner dependency
68/100
High — earn-out structure requiredMaterial founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.
FACTORS
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 31 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 58 — approaching natural succession window.
Succession & seller-readiness
70/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 58. Early succession window.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 31 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 31 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
1 med ·Charge satisfaction-then-recreation pattern
mediumMultiple instances where a charge was satisfied and a new charge created within 6 months. Suggests active refinancing cycle.
Group structure
Dcm (Optical Holdings) Limited is the ultimate parent — holding 75%+ shares. This company sits inside their group.
🏛️ultimate parent
Dcm (Optical Holdings) Limited
Corporate parent · holds 75-100% shares
⬇
OPTICAL EXPRESS LIMITED
This company · SC161469
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Dcm (Optical Holdings) Limited Corporate entity | 75–100% | 75–100% | 75-100% shares · 75-100% 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
Active · Healthcare & medical · G postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP MATTERS LIMITED→ SC424457 · est 2012 | £3.46M £2.49M–£4.43M | — | — | 500 | 13y | 85 | 61y |
| ASPIRE HOUSING & PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT SERVICES LIMITED→ SC231773 · est 2002 | — | — | £354.7k | — | 23y | 83 | 77y |
| BCERTA LTD.→ SC355831 · est 2009 | — | — | — | — | 17y | 83 | 67y |
| COMMONWEALTH DENTAL PRACTICE LTD.→ SC381148 · est 2010 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 15y | 83 | 58y |
| DAVID LIVINGSTONE INTERNATIONAL LIMITED→ SC118899 · est 1989 | — | — | £150.4k | — | 36y | 83 | 90y |
| DOON CARE LTD.→ SC262088 · est 2004 | — | — | £1.46M | — | 22y | 83 | 87y |
| DUNDONALD HOUSE NURSING HOME LIMITED→ SC296431 · est 2006 | — | — | — | — | 20y | 83 | 64y |
| FORWARD STEPS NURSERY LTD.→ SC235287 · est 2002 | — | — | £107.9k | — | 23y | 83 | 59y |
| MORNINGSIDE CAREHOMES (SCOTLAND) LTD.→ SC306303 · est 2006 | — | — | — | 7000 | 19y | 83 | 75y |
| WOODLAND PLAY LTD→ SC727278 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| WOODSIDE CAREHOMES LTD.→ SC306304 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| YEW TREE COUNSELLING LIMITED→ SC680809 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
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
Incorporated1995-11-03
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC86900 — Other human health activities
Registered office
200 St. Vincent Street
Glasgow
G2 5SG
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-28
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-11-21
Last: 2025-11-07
Officers (4 active · 4 resigned)
MURDOCH, Graeme Ramsay→
Activesecretary · appointed 1995-11-03
View their other companies + combined net worth →
HANNAN, Stephen James, Dr→
Activedirector · ~47y · appointed 2020-02-06
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MEIN, Stewart→
Activedirector · ~55y · appointed 2008-05-29
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MOULSDALE, David Charles→
Activedirector · ~58y · appointed 1995-11-03
View their other companies + combined net worth →
COMBINED SECRETARIAL SERVICES LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 1995-11-03 · resigned 1995-11-03
FINLAYSON, June→
Resigneddirector · ~62y · appointed 2008-05-29 · resigned 2020-02-06
COMBINED NOMINEES LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-director · appointed 1995-11-03 · resigned 1995-11-05
COMBINED SECRETARIAL SERVICES LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-director · appointed 1995-11-03 · resigned 1995-11-03
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
7
Total charges
3
Outstanding
2
Active lenders
Status:Lender:7 of 7 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Barclays Barclays Bank PLC | A registered charge | — | 04/10/2021 | — | |
| outstanding | Dakota Trading B.V. | A registered charge | 16 properties | 02/11/2015 | — | |
| outstanding | Dakota Trading B.V. | A registered charge | — | 07/10/2015 | — | |
| satisfied | Lloyds Banking Group Royal Bank of Scotland PLC | Bond & floating charge | 1 property | 11/06/2009 | 24/06/2021 | |
| satisfied | Lloyds Banking Group The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC | Floating charge | 1 property | 04/05/2007 | 24/06/2021 | |
| satisfied | Lloyds Banking Group The Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland | Floating charge | 1 property | 31/10/2000 | 10/05/2007 | |
| satisfied | Virgin Money Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company | Floating charge | 1 property | 28/03/1996 | 06/11/2000 |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (117 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-11-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-full
accounts · AA
2025-09-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-11-08
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2024-11-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-full
accounts · AA
2024-09-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-11-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-full
accounts · AA
2023-10-13
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2023-06-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-11-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-full
accounts · AA
2022-10-05
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-11-10
mortgage-alter-floating-charge-with-number
mortgage · 466(Scot)
2021-10-30
mortgage-alter-floating-charge-with-number
mortgage · 466(Scot)
2021-10-21
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2021-10-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-full
accounts · AA
2021-09-22