GORDON SHANKS LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
SC471444 · ltd · incorporated 2014-03-03
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 Mar 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
73/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Landscape service activities
Sector: Administrative & support services
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 73/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (58/100).
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
2 connected companies via shared directors
51
Filing history
30 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
73/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
50
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
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 · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | — | £16.6k |
| Current assets | — | £41.4k |
| Net assets | — | £1.6k |
| Average employees | 1200 | — |
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
3
filings
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 miscellaneous
- • 1 address
Last 180 days
4
filings
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 miscellaneous
- • 1 address
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (18 events)Click to expand
- 2026-04-08📄legacymiscellaneous · RPCH01
- 2026-03-13📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2025-12-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2025-04-07📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2024-12-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-12-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-12-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-09-22📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2022-04-06📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2021-09-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-09📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2021-02-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-07-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2018-10-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-11-01📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2014-03-03🏢Company incorporatedAs GORDON SHANKS LIMITED
- 2014-03-03➕SHANKS, Gordon appointeddirector
- 2014-03-03➕SHANKS, Kerry appointeddirector
Owner dependency
86/100
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 "SHANKS" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
- +No director turnover: Company is 12 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
49/100
Moderate signalSome succession indicators present. Worth watching; approach if sector/strategy fits.
SIGNALS
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 12 years.
- 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 Gordon Shanks Individual · British · DOB 08/1977 · age 49 | 50–75% | 50–75% | board control50-75% shares · 50-75% voting · board control | 06/04/2016 |
Mrs Kerry Shanks Individual · Scottish · DOB 11/1980 · age 46 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting · trust interest · firm interest | 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 · Trade services · KA postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MAXI GROUP LIMITED→ SC081671 · est 1983 | £13.75M £10.31M–£17.18M | — | — | 1000 | 43y | 83 | 82y |
| EMERGENCY ONE (U.K.) LIMITED→ SC319443 · est 2007 | £11.21M £8.41M–£14.01M | — | — | 250 | 19y | 88 | 66y |
| FAIRLIE COMMUNITY TRUST→ SC334426 · est 2007 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 18y | 83 | 90y |
| GWF GENERATORS LIMITED→ SC383281 · est 2010 | — | — | £605.0k | — | 15y | 83 | 71y |
| KELVIN TOP-SET LIMITED→ SC342121 · est 2008 | — | — | — | 1200 | 18y | 83 | 80y |
| RICHARD HEALEY REMOVALS LIMITED→ SC275306 · est 2004 | — | — | £433.7k | — | 21y | 83 | 78y |
| SLS MEDICAL AESTHETICS LIMITED→ SC617555 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| STALKER'S HAIR STUDIO LIMITED→ SC423131 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 13y | — | — |
| THE BRIDE BIBLE LTD→ SC866613 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| THE COAST CLINIC LIMITED→ SC391117 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 15y | — | — |
| TOUCH-LESS HYGIENE UK LTD→ SC282870 · est 2005 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 21y | — | — |
| VLR RAIL LTD→ SC810481 · 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
Incorporated2014-03-03
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC81300 — Landscape service activities
Registered office
Dykehead Cottage Fiveways
Hurlford
Kilmarnock
KA1 5JR
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-03-17
Last: 2026-03-03
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
SHANKS, Gordon→
Activedirector · ~49y · appointed 2014-03-03
View their other companies + combined net worth →
SHANKS, Kerry→
Activedirector · ~46y · appointed 2014-03-03
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (30 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-04-09
legacy
miscellaneous · RPCH01
2026-04-08
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2026-03-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-12-16
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2025-04-07
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-03-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-12-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-03-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-12-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-04-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-12-19
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2022-09-22
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2022-04-06
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-04-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-09-23