CHARLIE ESSON LTD.
💤Zombieactive
SC251514 · ltd · incorporated 2003-06-20
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 Jun 2025
Net worth
£15.3k
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Other business support service activities n.e.c.
Sector: Administrative & support services
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 69-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 69). 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).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 14.5y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 14.5 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (76/100)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
4 officers (2 active, 4 linked, 1 with DOB)
75
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
56 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
82/100Exceptional
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
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £15,263
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
£15k
↑ 1658% YoY
Current Assets
£24k
↑ 3.5% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-06-30 | 2024-06-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £24.4k | £20.0k |
| Current assets | £24.4k | £23.6k |
| Net assets | £15.3k | £868 |
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
0
filings
Last 180 days
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (24 events)Click to expand
- 2025-10-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-11-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-11-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-11-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-10-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-11-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-10-01📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2018-10-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2018-01-05📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-06-28📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2017-06-05📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2017-02-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-06-21📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-10-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2015-06-22📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-03-02📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2011-10-24🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Clydesdale Bank PLC
- 2003-06-20🏢Company incorporatedAs CHARLIE ESSON LTD.
- 2003-06-20➕ESSON, Doris Lena appointedsecretary
- 2003-06-20➕ESSON, Charles appointeddirector
- 2003-06-20➕BRIAN REID LTD. appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2003-06-20➖BRIAN REID LTD. resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2003-06-20➕STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD. appointedcorporate-nominee-director
- 2003-06-20➖STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD. resignedcorporate-nominee-director
Owner dependency
100/100
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 name in company name: Company name contains director surname "ESSON" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 23 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 69 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
95/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 69. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 23 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 23 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
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Charles Esson Individual · British · DOB 04/1957 · age 69 | 75–100% | — | 75-100% shares | 06/04/2017 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DRDB ENTERPRISES LTD→ SC835635 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| DREAMIER HAIR LTD→ SC726200 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| DRM CORROSION SERVICES LTD→ SC450945 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
| DSM RADIOLOGY SERVICES LTD→ SC479000 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| DUNWILCO (194) LIMITED→ SC121527 · est 1989 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 36y | — | — |
| DYCE AESTHETICS LIMITED→ SC859577 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| DYCE BARBER LIMITED→ SC803323 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| DYNAMIC WAVES LTD→ SC848303 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| DYNAMICAL SYSTEMS LTD→ SC553370 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| E & J WEST LTD→ SC776165 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| EAST COAST BOILERS LTD→ SC551227 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| EASY CLEAN (ABERDEEN) LTD→ SC635937 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
8 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
Incorporated2003-06-20
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC82990 — Other business support service activities n.e.c.
Registered office
West Powlair
Finzean
Banchory
AB31 6PH
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-03-31
Last made up to: 2025-06-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-06-30
Last: 2025-06-16
Officers (2 active · 2 resigned)
Active
ESSON, Charles→
Activedirector · ~69y · appointed 2003-06-20
View their other companies + combined net worth →
BRIAN REID LTD.→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2003-06-20 · resigned 2003-06-20
STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD.→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-director · appointed 2003-06-20 · resigned 2003-06-20
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
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Virgin Money Clydesdale Bank PLC | Floating charge | 1 property | 24/10/2011 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (56 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-10-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-06-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-11-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-06-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-11-16
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-06-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-11-07
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-07-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-10-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-07-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-11-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-06-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2019-10-01
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-07-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2018-10-18