BERLIN FOOD COMPANY (EDINBURGH) LTD
Opportunity 73/100 (strong), bankability 80/100. 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: distressed disposal / insolvency (65/100).
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 7.0y
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 7.0 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: high (81/100)Strong data coverage across all sections. AI outputs should be trusted with minimal caveats.
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredKey financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsHover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2024-11-30 | 2023-11-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £784.3k | £327.9k |
| Current assets | £438.2k | £271.1k |
| Cash | £21.3k | £10.1k |
| Debtors | £369.0k | £230.9k |
| Net assets | £-175.5k | £-223.8k |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
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
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Corporate timeline (18 events)Click to expand
- 2025-03-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-08-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-12-18📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-extendedaccounts · AA01
- 2023-06-06📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-03-07📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortenedaccounts · AA01
- 2022-05-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-05-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-10-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2020-08-12📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortenedaccounts · AA01
- 2019-11-06📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2019-07-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2019-05-22📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2019-05-10🔒Charge registered #1Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
- 2019-01-30📄resolutionresolution · RESOLUTIONS
- 2018-03-27📄resolutionresolution · RESOLUTIONS
- 2017-11-08🏢Company incorporatedAs BERLIN FOOD COMPANY (EDINBURGH) LTD
- 2017-11-08➕MCWHINNIE, Colin appointeddirector
- 2017-11-08📄incorporation-companyincorporation · NEWINC
Owner dependency
The business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
- +No director turnover: Company is 8 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
Some succession indicators present. Worth watching; approach if sector/strategy fits.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
Red flags
cleanShareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Colin Mcwhinnie Individual · British · DOB 02/1969 · age 57 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 08/11/2017 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Radial SVG graph showing every company connected via shared directors, colour-coded by status.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
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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 →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
Registered office
Filing status
Officers (1 active · 0 resigned)
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Lloyds Banking Group The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC | A registered charge | — | 10/05/2019 | — |