ZM ARCHITECTURE LTD.

🌳Matureactive
SC209407 · ltd · incorporated 2000-07-24
Investment thesis
Well-run mature business — low negotiation leverage; premium likely.
Why interesting: Textbook target; clean filings, stable trading.
Why risky: No pressure on seller; any deal likely at full price.
Opportunity decay
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
  • · Oldest live charge 21.5y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Oct 2024
Net worth
£353.6k
book net assets
Opportunity
83/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Architectural activities
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 64-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 83/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 64). 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: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

1 live charge · oldest 21.5y

65/100
clean up first

Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.

  • · Oldest live charge is 21.5 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
  • · Legal-friction score 25/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.

Data confidence

Overall: medium (79/100)

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
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
7 officers (3 active, 7 linked, 2 with DOB)
76
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
4 connected companies via shared directors
57
Filing history
67 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
83/100Exceptional
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
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declared
Positive net assets
Net assets £353,633
Cash YoY
+9%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£299k
↑ 8.7% YoY
Net Worth
£354k
↑ 7.1% YoY
Current Assets
£409k
↑ 1.1% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£82k£164k£245k£327k£409kOct 2023Oct 2024

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2024-10-312023-10-31
Total assets£353.6k£330.3k
Current assets£408.8k£404.2k
Cash£298.6k£274.8k
Debtors£110.1k£129.3k
Net assets£353.6k£330.3k

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
0
filings
Last 180 days
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (28 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-07-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-07-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2023-07-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2022-07-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2021-04-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2020-07-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2019-04-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2018-02-12
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2017-02-01
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  10. 2016-03-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  11. 2015-08-13
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  12. 2015-06-10
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  13. 2014-08-11
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  14. 2014-03-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  15. 2013-08-07
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  16. 2004-11-09
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: The Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland
  17. 2004-09-09
    ➕
    BLAIR, Nicholas Alexander appointed
    director
  18. 2003-07-31
    ➕
    RICHARDSON, Mercedes Louise appointed
    secretary
  19. 2003-07-31
    ➖
    BARRATT, Walter resigned
    secretary
  20. 2002-08-02
    ➕
    BARRATT, Walter appointed
    secretary
  21. 2002-08-02
    ➖
    RICHARDSON, Mercedes Louise resigned
    secretary
  22. 2000-07-24
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As ZM ARCHITECTURE LTD.
  23. 2000-07-24
    ➕
    RICHARDSON, Peter Foster appointed
    director
  24. 2000-07-24
    ➕
    RICHARDSON, Mercedes Louise appointed
    secretary
  25. 2000-07-24
    ➕
    BRIAN REID LTD. appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  26. 2000-07-24
    ➖
    BRIAN REID LTD. resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  27. 2000-07-24
    ➕
    STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD. appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  28. 2000-07-24
    ➖
    STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD. resigned
    corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

76/100
High — earn-out structure required

Material founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.

FACTORS
  • +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 26 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 64 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

86/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 64. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
  • secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 26 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 26 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
Mr Peter Foster Richardson
Individual · British · DOB 12/1962 · age 64
50–75%
—50-75% shares24/07/2016
Mr Nicholas Alexander Blair
Individual · British · DOB 10/1970 · age 56
25–50%
—25-50% shares24/07/2016

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 →

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Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions

6 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
Incorporated2000-07-24
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC71111 — Architectural activities

Registered office

62 Albion Street
Glasgow
Lanarkshire
G1 1NY

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-07-31
Last made up to: 2024-10-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-08-07
Last: 2025-07-24

Officers (3 active · 4 resigned)

RICHARDSON, Mercedes Louise→
secretary · appointed 2003-07-31
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BLAIR, Nicholas Alexander→
director · ~56y · appointed 2004-09-09
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
RICHARDSON, Peter Foster→
director · ~64y · appointed 2000-07-24
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BARRATT, Walter→
secretary · appointed 2002-08-02 · resigned 2003-07-31
Resigned
RICHARDSON, Mercedes Louise→
secretary · appointed 2000-07-24 · resigned 2002-08-02
Resigned
BRIAN REID LTD.→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2000-07-24 · resigned 2000-07-24
Resigned
STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD.→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2000-07-24 · resigned 2000-07-24
Resigned

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

Mortgages & charges

1
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
The Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland
Bond & floating charge1 property09/11/2004—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (67 total)

confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-09-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-07-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-08-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-07-29
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-08-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-07-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-08-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-07-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-08-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-04-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-07-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-07-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-07-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-04-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2018-08-27