SPACE AUTOMATION LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
SC398849 · ltd · incorporated 2011-05-04
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
hardening · 12-months
Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.
- · Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to May 2025
Net worth
£13.2k
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
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
PursueAsset-holding vehicle with a 64-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 64). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
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
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
2 officers (2 active, 2 linked, 2 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
4 connected companies via shared directors
57
Filing history
43 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
80/100Exceptional
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
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 105 (micro)Positive net assets
Net assets £13,244
Net assets shrinking
Down £16,753 YoY
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
£13k
↓ 56% YoY
Current Assets
£13k
↓ 61% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 105 (micro)| Metric | 2025-05-31 | 2024-05-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £13.2k | £30.0k |
| Current assets | £13.1k | £33.4k |
| Net assets | £13.2k | £30.0k |
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
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 90 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (19 events)Click to expand
- 2025-09-24📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2025-09-24📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2025-08-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2025-01-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-02-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-02-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-09-20📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2022-09-20📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2021-11-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-02-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-06-19📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2020-02-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-10-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2018-04-05➕HANSEN, Erik appointeddirector
- 2018-04-05📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2018-04-05📄capital-allotment-sharescapital · SH01
- 2017-10-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2011-05-04🏢Company incorporatedAs SPACE AUTOMATION LIMITED
- 2011-05-04➕PATERSON, Ian appointeddirector
Owner dependency
81/100
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.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 15 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 64 — approaching natural succession window.
- +No director turnover: Company is 15 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
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 64. 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 15 years.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 15 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
2 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Erik Hansen Individual · British · DOB 11/1981 · age 45 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 20/09/2022 |
Mr Ian Paterson Individual · British · DOB 01/1962 · age 64 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 06/04/2016 |
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
Active · Retail · EH postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TARTAN SPARTAN LTD→ SC859997 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| TAVERNOFTALES LTD→ SC871071 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| THE BROUGHTON MARKET LIMITED→ SC699004 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| THE DOGMA DOG SERVICES LTD→ SC656538 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| THE GOOD GUT COMPANY LTD→ SC565649 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| THE HIVE SCOTLAND LTD→ SC777708 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| THE HOODED REALM LIMITED→ SC842422 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| THE HUB ON THE HIGH STREET LTD→ SC616464 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| THE KILT STUDIO LIMITED→ SC797940 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| THE KNIGHTS VAULT LTD→ SC363604 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 16y | — | — |
| THE QUEEN STREET ART STUDIO LTD→ SC696993 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| THE WALLPAPER COMPANY LIMITED→ SC818601 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2011-05-04
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC47599 — Retail sale of furniture, lighting, and similar (not musical instruments or scores) in specialised stores
Registered office
The Old Bakehouse
77a High Street
Linlithgow
EH49 7ED
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-02-28
Last made up to: 2025-05-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-05-18
Last: 2026-05-04
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
HANSEN, Erik→
Activedirector · ~45y · appointed 2018-04-05
View their other companies + combined net worth →
PATERSON, Ian→
Activedirector · ~64y · appointed 2011-05-04
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (43 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-05-13
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2025-09-24
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2025-09-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-08-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-05-14
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-01-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-05-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-02-08
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-05-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-02-09
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2022-09-20
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2022-09-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-05-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-11-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-05-13