EMPIRICAL IN-CAR LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
SC346569 · ltd · incorporated 2008-08-04
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 Aug 2024
Net worth
£400.4k
book net assets
Opportunity
75/100
Strong
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 45310
Sector: Wholesale & retail
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
  • 45320Retail trade of motor vehicle parts and accessories
Investor take
Pursue
Strong opportunity: asset-holding vehicle with strong profile and bankable structure.

Opportunity 75/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. 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 (58/100).

Data confidence

Overall: medium (69/100)

Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.

Company profile
address, 2 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
1 year of iXBRL accounts extracted (no YoY comparison) + narrative notes parsed
50
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
2 officers (1 active, 2 linked, 1 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
50 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
75/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
60
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 105 (micro)
Positive net assets
Net assets £400,381

Key financials

1 year extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
£400k
Current Assets
£361k
Current Liabilities
—

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 105 (micro)
Metric2024-08-31
Total assets£400.4k
Current assets£361.0k
Net assets£400.4k

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 (19 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-08-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-09-13
    📄
    accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AAMD
  3. 2024-05-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  4. 2023-05-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  5. 2022-05-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  6. 2022-05-19
    ➖
    COUNTING ZEBRAS LIMITED resigned
    corporate-secretary
  7. 2022-05-19
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  8. 2022-05-19
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  9. 2021-04-15
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  10. 2020-05-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  11. 2019-05-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  12. 2018-06-07
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
    accounts · AA
  13. 2017-05-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
    accounts · AA
  14. 2016-09-01
    📄
    gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
    gazette · DISS40
  15. 2016-08-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  16. 2016-08-09
    📄
    gazette-notice-compulsory
    gazette · GAZ1
  17. 2008-08-04
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As EMPIRICAL IN-CAR LIMITED
  18. 2008-08-04
    ➕
    THOMSON, Douglas William appointed
    director
  19. 2008-08-04
    ➕
    COUNTING ZEBRAS LIMITED appointed
    corporate-secretary

Owner dependency

85/100
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 18 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.

Succession & seller-readiness

68/100
Strong succession signal

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

SIGNALS
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 18 years.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 18 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 Douglas William Thomson
Individual · Scottish · DOB 11/1973 · age 53
75–100%
—75-100% shares07/05/2016

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
Incorporated2008-08-04
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC45310 — SIC 45310

Registered office

Unit 212 25 Clydesmill Road
Clydesmill Industrial Estate
Glasgow
G32 8RE
Scotland

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-05-31
Last made up to: 2024-08-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-06-02
Last: 2025-05-19

Officers (1 active · 1 resigned)

THOMSON, Douglas William→
director · ~53y · appointed 2008-08-04
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
COUNTING ZEBRAS LIMITED→
corporate-secretary · appointed 2008-08-04 · resigned 2022-05-19
Resigned

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

Recent filings (50 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-08-28
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-06-27
accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AAMD
2024-09-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-05-31
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-05-31
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-05-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-05-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-05-20
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-05-19
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2022-05-19
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2022-05-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-08-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-04-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-08-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-05-28