STIRLING & MAIR LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
SC261547 · ltd · incorporated 2004-01-07
Investment thesis
Established operating company — standard diligence applies, no dominant angle.
Why interesting: Live, filing, normal profile.
Why risky: No standout signals in either direction.
Opportunity decay
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
  • · Oldest live charge 12.9y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to May 2025
Net worth
£184.0k
book net assets
Opportunity
83/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Solicitors
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 61-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 83/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 61). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

2 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 12.9y

70/100
ready

Refinance conversation should be productive — structure clean and timing right.

  • · Oldest live charge is 12.9 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
  • · Legal-friction score 15/100 — clean.

Data confidence

Overall: high (80/100)

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
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
8 officers (3 active, 8 linked, 6 with DOB)
85
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
3 connected companies via shared directors
54
Filing history
75 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 · FRS 102
Positive net assets
Net assets £183,957
Net assets shrinking
Down £7,400 YoY
Cash YoY
+13%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£2.0m
↑ 13% YoY
Net Worth
£184k
↓ 3.9% YoY
Current Assets
£2.1m
↑ 7.4% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£413k£825k£1.2m£1.7m£2.1mMay 2024May 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2025-05-312024-05-31
Total assets£184.0k£203.5k
Current assets£2.06M£1.92M
Cash£2.00M£1.76M
Debtors£66.9k£158.0k
Net assets£184.0k£191.4k

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
1
filing
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
2
filings
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (33 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-11-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-01-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2023-10-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2022-10-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2021-10-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2021-04-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2019-12-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2019-08-02
    📄
    change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH03
  9. 2019-08-02
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  10. 2019-08-02
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  11. 2019-06-14
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  12. 2019-05-22
    ➖
    FERRIE, Paul Steven resigned
    director
  13. 2019-04-17
    📄
    mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
    mortgage · MR01
  14. 2019-04-15
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: Bank of Scotland PLC
  15. 2019-01-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  16. 2018-06-07
    📄
    appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP03
  17. 2018-06-01
    ➕
    MCLAUGHLAN, Lisa Marie appointed
    director
  18. 2018-06-01
    ➕
    FERRIE, Paul Steven appointed
    director
  19. 2018-06-01
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  20. 2018-06-01
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  21. 2018-06-01
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  22. 2018-05-31
    ➕
    BLACK, James appointed
    secretary
  23. 2018-05-31
    ➖
    NAISMITH, John Stuart resigned
    secretary
  24. 2018-05-31
    ➖
    NAISMITH, John Stuart resigned
    director
  25. 2017-09-15
    ➖
    MCCONNELL, Lorraine resigned
    director
  26. 2014-10-06
    ➕
    MCCONNELL, Lorraine appointed
    director
  27. 2013-06-14
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Clydesdale Bank PLC
  28. 2013-05-31
    ➖
    MILLER, William Alexander resigned
    director
  29. 2009-12-01
    ➕
    BLACK, James appointed
    director
  30. 2004-01-07
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As STIRLING & MAIR LIMITED
  31. 2004-01-07
    ➕
    NAISMITH, John Stuart appointed
    secretary
  32. 2004-01-07
    ➕
    MILLER, William Alexander appointed
    director
  33. 2004-01-07
    ➕
    NAISMITH, John Stuart appointed
    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 16 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 61 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

69/100
Strong succession signal

Multiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.

SIGNALS
  • secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 61. Early succession window.
  • secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
  • secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 16 years.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 22 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
Mr James Black
Individual · British · DOB 05/1965 · age 61
75–100%
75–100%board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control31/05/2018
1 historic (ceased) PSC
  • Mr John Stuart Naismithceased 31/05/2018· 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control

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
Incorporated2004-01-07
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC69102 — Solicitors

Registered office

28 High Street
Johnstone
Renfrewshire
PA5 8AH

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-02-28
Last made up to: 2025-05-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-01-18
Last: 2026-01-04

Officers (3 active · 5 resigned)

BLACK, James→
secretary · appointed 2018-05-31
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BLACK, James→
director · ~61y · appointed 2009-12-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
MCLAUGHLAN, Lisa Marie→
director · ~46y · appointed 2018-06-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
NAISMITH, John Stuart→
secretary · appointed 2004-01-07 · resigned 2018-05-31
Resigned
FERRIE, Paul Steven→
director · ~41y · appointed 2018-06-01 · resigned 2019-05-22
Resigned
MCCONNELL, Lorraine→
director · ~52y · appointed 2014-10-06 · resigned 2017-09-15
Resigned
MILLER, William Alexander→
director · ~73y · appointed 2004-01-07 · resigned 2013-05-31
Resigned
NAISMITH, John Stuart→
director · ~71y · appointed 2004-01-07 · resigned 2018-05-31
Resigned

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

Mortgages & charges

2
Total charges
2
Outstanding
2
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
Bank of Scotland PLC
A registered charge—15/04/2019—
outstanding
Virgin Money
Clydesdale Bank PLC
A registered charge1 property14/06/2013—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (75 total)

confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-11-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-01-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-02-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-10-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-02-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-10-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-02-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-10-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-04-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-03-31
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-01-14
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-12-17
change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH03
2019-08-02