CARTERS LTD
🌳Matureactive
SC328589 · ltd · incorporated 2007-08-01
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 17.9y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Aug 2024
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Take-away food shops and mobile food stands
Sector: Accommodation & food service
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 63-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 63). 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 17.9y
65/100
clean up first
Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.
- · Oldest live charge is 17.9 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
3 officers (2 active, 3 linked, 2 with DOB)
83
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
69 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.
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2024-08-31 | 2023-08-31 |
|---|
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
- 2025-05-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2024-10-12📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2024-10-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2024-09-13📄dissolved-compulsory-strike-off-suspendeddissolution · DISS16(SOAS)
- 2024-08-06📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2023-05-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2022-11-24📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2022-11-10📄dissolved-compulsory-strike-off-suspendeddissolution · DISS16(SOAS)
- 2022-10-18📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2022-06-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2021-06-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2021-06-24📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2021-06-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2021-05-06📄dissolved-compulsory-strike-off-suspendeddissolution · DISS16(SOAS)
- 2021-04-20📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2020-11-06📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2020-10-20📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2019-05-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2014-10-31➖CARTER, Mclain resignedsecretary
- 2008-06-09➕CARTER, James Thomas appointeddirector
- 2008-06-09🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Clydesdale Bank PLC
- 2007-08-01🏢Company incorporatedAs CARTERS LTD
- 2007-08-01➕CARTER, Lorraine appointeddirector
- 2007-08-01➕CARTER, Mclain appointedsecretary
Owner dependency
99/100
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
- +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
- +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "CARTER" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 19 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 63 — approaching natural succession window.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
Succession & seller-readiness
79/100
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 63. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 19 years.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 19 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mrs Lorraine Carter Individual · British · DOB 11/1963 · age 63 | 75–100% | — | 75-100% shares | 31/07/2016 |
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 →Similar companies
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUNCHREW CARAVAN PARK LIMITED→ SC295539 · est 2006 | — | — | £1.43M | — | 20y | 83 | 71y |
| CEILIDH PLACES LIMITED→ SC164338 · est 1996 | — | — | £55.0k | — | 30y | 83 | 88y |
| HARRIS HOTEL (2002) LTD.→ SC230177 · est 2002 | — | — | £200.2k | — | 24y | 83 | 93y |
| LOCH TORRIDON HOTEL LIMITED→ SC192961 · est 1999 | — | — | £959.8k | — | 27y | 83 | 85y |
| THE LOCH NESS COFFEE COMPANY LIMITED→ SC221691 · est 2001 | — | — | £174.1k | — | 24y | 83 | 68y |
| BRAESIDE LIMITED→ SC267916 · est 2004 | — | — | £3.10M | — | 21y | 82 | 65y |
| CHIMES (FORRES) LTD.→ SC259959 · est 2003 | — | — | — | 0 | 22y | 82 | 70y |
| CLUBHOUSE SCOTLAND LIMITED→ SC386878 · est 2010 | — | — | — | 0 | 15y | 82 | 81y |
| DRAWMAJOR LIMITED→ SC130628 · est 1991 | — | — | £433.2k | — | 35y | 82 | 73y |
| EOLAS CONSULTANTS LIMITED→ SC183507 · est 1998 | — | — | — | 100 | 28y | 82 | 71y |
| G & A R LIMITED→ SC309130 · est 2006 | — | — | £4.1k | — | 19y | 82 | 62y |
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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
Incorporated2007-08-01
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC56103 — Take-away food shops and mobile food stands
Registered office
41a Montrose Avenue
Auldearn
Nairn
Highland
IV12 5TT
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-05-31
Last made up to: 2024-08-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-08-15
Last: 2025-08-01
Officers (2 active · 1 resigned)
CARTER, James Thomas→
Activedirector · ~63y · appointed 2008-06-09
View their other companies + combined net worth →
CARTER, Lorraine→
Activedirector · ~63y · appointed 2007-08-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
CARTER, Mclain→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2007-08-01 · resigned 2014-10-31
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 | 09/06/2008 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (69 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-10-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2025-05-30
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2024-10-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2024-10-10
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-10-10
dissolved-compulsory-strike-off-suspended
dissolution · DISS16(SOAS)
2024-09-13
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2024-08-06
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-08-31
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2023-05-31
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2022-11-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-11-23
dissolved-compulsory-strike-off-suspended
dissolution · DISS16(SOAS)
2022-11-10
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2022-10-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2022-06-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-09-06