LEMON SYSTEMS DESIGN LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
SC165136 · ltd · incorporated 1996-04-23
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 Sept 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Information technology consultancy activities
Sector: Information & communication
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 61-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 61). 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 (75/100)

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
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
7 officers (2 active, 7 linked, 2 with DOB)
76
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
85 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
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
80
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 accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
£0£0£0£0£0£0Sept 2024Sept 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-09-302024-09-30
Average employees1100

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

🔒Filing-note intelligence

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

Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (30 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-03-11
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-03-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  3. 2025-01-28
    📄
    capital-name-of-class-of-shares
    capital · SH08
  4. 2025-01-20
    📄
    resolution
    resolution · RESOLUTIONS
  5. 2025-01-17
    📄
    capital-allotment-shares
    capital · SH01
  6. 2025-01-17
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  7. 2025-01-17
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  8. 2024-06-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  9. 2023-05-09
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  10. 2023-05-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2023-05-05
    📄
    change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH03
  12. 2023-04-26
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  13. 2022-06-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  14. 2021-06-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  15. 2020-06-05
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  16. 2019-02-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  17. 2018-06-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  18. 2014-02-27
    ➖
    JOHNSON, Robert resigned
    director
  19. 2005-10-01
    ➕
    BROWN, Susan appointed
    secretary
  20. 2005-06-20
    ➖
    COOPER, Fiona resigned
    secretary
  21. 2000-07-10
    ➕
    BROWN, Ewan Robert appointed
    director
  22. 1998-01-25
    ➕
    COOPER, Fiona appointed
    secretary
  23. 1998-01-25
    ➖
    JOHNSON, Robert resigned
    secretary
  24. 1997-07-24
    ➕
    JOHNSON, Robert appointed
    secretary
  25. 1997-07-24
    ➖
    MARTIN, Angela Helen resigned
    secretary
  26. 1996-04-23
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As LEMON SYSTEMS DESIGN LIMITED
  27. 1996-04-23
    ➕
    MARTIN, Angela Helen appointed
    secretary
  28. 1996-04-23
    ➕
    OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  29. 1996-04-23
    ➖
    OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  30. 1996-04-23
    ➕
    JOHNSON, Robert appointed
    director

Owner dependency

93/100
Critical — business is the founder

The 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.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 26 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 61 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

85/100
Likely off-market candidate

Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.

SIGNALS
  • secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 61. Early succession window.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 26 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 30 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

clean
No red flags detected from available public data. (This is not a clean bill of health — detailed accounts review still recommended.)

Shareholders & ownership

2 active beneficial owners
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mrs Susan Brown
Individual · Scottish · DOB 09/1966 · age 60
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting27/02/2018
Mr Ewan Robert Brown
Individual · British · DOB 05/1965 · age 61
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting06/04/2016

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

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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
Incorporated1996-04-23
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC62020 — Information technology consultancy activities

Registered office

4 Albert Place
Perth
PH2 8JE
Scotland

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-06-30
Last made up to: 2025-09-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-05-07
Last: 2025-04-23

Officers (2 active · 5 resigned)

BROWN, Susan→
secretary · appointed 2005-10-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BROWN, Ewan Robert→
director · ~61y · appointed 2000-07-10
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
COOPER, Fiona→
secretary · appointed 1998-01-25 · resigned 2005-06-20
Resigned
JOHNSON, Robert→
secretary · appointed 1997-07-24 · resigned 1998-01-25
Resigned
MARTIN, Angela Helen→
secretary · appointed 1996-04-23 · resigned 1997-07-24
Resigned
OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 1996-04-23 · resigned 1996-04-23
Resigned
JOHNSON, Robert→
director · ~64y · appointed 1996-04-23 · resigned 2014-02-27
Resigned

Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.

Recent filings (85 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2026-03-11
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-05-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-03-21
capital-name-of-class-of-shares
capital · SH08
2025-01-28
resolution
resolution · RESOLUTIONS
2025-01-20
capital-allotment-shares
capital · SH01
2025-01-17
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-01-17
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-01-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-06-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-05-14
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2023-05-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-05-08
change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH03
2023-05-05
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2023-04-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-04-25