FORBES BLINDS LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
SC257785 · ltd · incorporated 2003-10-17
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.
Why now
Window steady · low confidence
Steady and stalled — no momentum either way. Needs an approach trigger.
What changed my view
Last 30 days

No material changes in the last 30 days.

Last 90 days

No snapshot from 90 days ago — start tracking from today.

Last 180 days

No snapshot from 180 days ago — start tracking from today.

🔒Estimated value
—
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Turnover
—
year to Jan 2025
Net worth
£107
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Retail sale of furniture, lighting, and similar (not musical instruments or scores) in specialised stores
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
Pursue
Strong opportunity: active trading company with exceptional profile and bankable structure.

Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 59). 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 (73/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

1 live charge · oldest 22.1y

45/100
under pressure

Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.

  • · Oldest live charge is 22.1 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
  • · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.

Data confidence

Overall: medium (77/100)

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
6 officers (2 active, 6 linked, 3 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
58 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 declared
Positive net assets
Net assets £107
Cash YoY
+11%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£1k
↑ 11% YoY
Net Worth
£107
↑ 98% YoY
Current Assets
£2k
↓ 69% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£1k£3k£4k£5k£7kJan 2024Jan 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-01-312024-01-31
Total assets£11.8k£18.2k
Current assets£2.0k£6.5k
Cash£1.3k£1.2k
Debtors£721£4.3k
Net assets£107£54

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
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (27 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-01-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-01-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2023-12-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2022-10-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2022-01-14
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2021-01-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2019-06-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2018-07-10
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2017-10-02
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  10. 2017-04-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2016-08-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  12. 2015-09-29
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  13. 2015-09-02
    📄
    change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH03
  14. 2015-09-02
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  15. 2015-09-02
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  16. 2007-09-21
    ➖
    PROSSER, Sheila Arbuthnot resigned
    secretary
  17. 2007-09-21
    ➖
    PROSSER, Forbes resigned
    director
  18. 2007-09-21
    ➖
    PROSSER, Sheila Arbuthnot resigned
    director
  19. 2007-09-01
    ➕
    PROSSER, Nicola Mary appointed
    secretary
  20. 2007-09-01
    ➕
    PROSSER, Shaun Forbes appointed
    director
  21. 2004-05-07
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company
  22. 2003-10-17
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As FORBES BLINDS LIMITED
  23. 2003-10-17
    ➕
    PROSSER, Sheila Arbuthnot appointed
    secretary
  24. 2003-10-17
    ➕
    OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  25. 2003-10-17
    ➖
    OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  26. 2003-10-17
    ➕
    PROSSER, Forbes appointed
    director
  27. 2003-10-17
    ➕
    PROSSER, Sheila Arbuthnot 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 19 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 59 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

78/100
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 59. Early succession window.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 19 years.
  • 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

clean
No 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%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mrs Nicola Mary Prosser
Individual · British · DOB 04/1971 · age 55
75–100%
75–100%board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control06/04/2016

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
Incorporated2003-10-17
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC47599 — Retail sale of furniture, lighting, and similar (not musical instruments or scores) in specialised stores

Registered office

4 Tortorston Road
Blackhills
Peterhead
Aberdeenshire
AB42 3LG

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-10-31
Last made up to: 2025-01-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-10-13
Last: 2025-09-29

Officers (2 active · 4 resigned)

PROSSER, Nicola Mary→
secretary · appointed 2007-09-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
PROSSER, Shaun Forbes→
director · ~59y · appointed 2007-09-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
PROSSER, Sheila Arbuthnot→
secretary · appointed 2003-10-17 · resigned 2007-09-21
Resigned
OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2003-10-17 · resigned 2003-10-17
Resigned
PROSSER, Forbes→
director · ~88y · appointed 2003-10-17 · resigned 2007-09-21
Resigned
PROSSER, Sheila Arbuthnot→
director · ~87y · appointed 2003-10-17 · resigned 2007-09-21
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
Virgin Money
Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company
Standard security1 property07/05/2004—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (58 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-01-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-10-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-01-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-10-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-12-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-10-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-10-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-09-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-01-14
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-10-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-01-18
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-09-30
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-09-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-06-24
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2018-10-03