THE MUSTARD SEED (RESTAURANTS) LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
SC206532 · ltd · incorporated 2000-04-20
Investment thesis
Established operating company — standard diligence applies, no dominant angle.
Why interesting: Live, filing, normal profile.
Why risky: No standout signals in either direction.
Opportunity decay
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
- · Oldest live charge 24.6y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Sept 2024
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Licenced restaurants
Sector: Accommodation & food service
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 67-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 67). 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 (65/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
2 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 24.6y
50/100
clean up first
Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.
- · Oldest live charge is 24.6 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
- · Legal-friction score 25/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.
Data confidence
Overall: high (82/100)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
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
7 officers (3 active, 7 linked, 4 with DOB)
81
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
11 connected companies via shared directors
78
Filing history
97 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 · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2024-09-30 | 2023-09-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 4300 | 3700 |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
🔒Filing-note intelligence
3 signals 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 (32 events)Click to expand
- 2025-06-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-06-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-05-16📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2024-05-16🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2024-04-11📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2024-04-08➖ROBERTSON, Christine Margaret resigneddirector
- 2023-06-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-03-06📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2023-03-06📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2023-03-06📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2023-03-06📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2023-03-06📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2023-03-06📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2023-03-06📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2022-07-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-06-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-11-20📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-extendedaccounts · AA01
- 2020-01-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-04-08📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2018-01-01➕ROBERTSON, Christine Margaret appointeddirector
- 2007-12-31🔒Charge registered #2Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
- 2004-04-20➖MELLON, John Peter resigneddirector
- 2001-09-04🔒Charge registered #1Lender: The Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland
- 2001-06-14➕MELLON, John Peter appointeddirector
- 2001-04-19➖LEDINGHAM CHALMERS resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2000-12-19➕CAMERON, Catriona Elizabeth appointedsecretary
- 2000-12-19➕CAMERON, Catriona Elizabeth appointeddirector
- 2000-05-17➕LITTLEJOHN, Simon Howard appointeddirector
- 2000-05-17➖DURANO LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-director
- 2000-04-20🏢Company incorporatedAs THE MUSTARD SEED (RESTAURANTS) LIMITED
- 2000-04-20➕LEDINGHAM CHALMERS appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2000-04-20➕DURANO LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-director
Owner dependency
83/100
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 26 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 67 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
86/100
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 67. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 26 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 26 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 Simon Howard Littlejohn Individual · British · DOB 01/1959 · age 67 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 06/04/2016 |
Mrs Catriona Elizabeth Cameron Individual · British · DOB 09/1965 · age 61 | 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
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AYUB ND SONS LTD→ SC867177 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
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| BORESTONE BAR(2024) LIMITED→ SC800081 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| BOTTOMS UP SHOWBAR LIMITED→ SC289350 · est 2005 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 20y | — | — |
| BROOMHALL CASTLE HOTEL LIMITED→ SC777356 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| BRUCE BARS SCOTLAND LIMITED→ SC343040 · est 2008 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 17y | — | — |
| BRUCE GROUP SCOTLAND LIMITED→ SC236976 · est 2002 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 23y | — | — |
| BRUCE INNS LIMITED→ SC251516 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 22y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2000-04-20
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC56101 — Licenced restaurants
Registered office
Unit 9 Rfl House
Anderson Street
Dunblane
Stirlingshire
FK15 6AJ
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-06-30
Last made up to: 2024-09-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-04-21
Last: 2026-04-07
Officers (3 active · 4 resigned)
CAMERON, Catriona Elizabeth→
Activesecretary · appointed 2000-12-19
View their other companies + combined net worth →
CAMERON, Catriona Elizabeth→
Activedirector · ~61y · appointed 2000-12-19
View their other companies + combined net worth →
LITTLEJOHN, Simon Howard→
Activedirector · ~67y · appointed 2000-05-17
View their other companies + combined net worth →
LEDINGHAM CHALMERS→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2000-04-20 · resigned 2001-04-19
MELLON, John Peter→
Resigneddirector · ~63y · appointed 2001-06-14 · resigned 2004-04-20
ROBERTSON, Christine Margaret→
Resigneddirector · ~69y · appointed 2018-01-01 · resigned 2024-04-08
DURANO LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-director · appointed 2000-04-20 · resigned 2000-05-17
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
2
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Lloyds Banking Group The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC | Bond & floating charge | 1 property | 31/12/2007 | — | |
| satisfied | Lloyds Banking Group The Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland | Standard security | 1 property | 04/09/2001 | 16/05/2024 |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (97 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-04-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-06-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-04-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-06-24
mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
mortgage · MR04
2024-05-16
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-04-11
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2024-04-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-06-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-04-26
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2023-03-06
change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH03
2023-03-06
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2023-03-06
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2023-03-06
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2023-03-06
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2023-03-06