BILL STEPHEN MOTORS LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
SC235937 · ltd · incorporated 2002-08-27
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
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
- · Oldest live charge 5.1y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
not disclosed
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 45200
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
PursueActive trading company. Family succession underway — not a classic acquisition target.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Same-surname younger director in place — likely family handover, not open to sale. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 5.1y
85/100
ready
Refinance conversation should be productive — structure clean and timing right.
- · Oldest live charge is 5.1 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Legal-friction score 15/100 — clean.
Data confidence
Overall: low (50/100)Sparse data coverage. Treat AI-generated outputs as preliminary. Manual diligence essential.
Company profile
address, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
No iXBRL financials extracted
0
Lenders & charges
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
7 officers (4 active, 7 linked, 3 with DOB)
79
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
No filing history
0
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.
Corporate timeline (12 events)Click to expand
- 2022-09-01➕STEPHEN, Gareth appointeddirector
- 2021-02-26🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Clydesdale Bank PLC (Trading as Both Clydesdale and Yorkshire Bank) (Company Number SC001111)
- 2011-12-01➕STEPHEN, Gareth appointedsecretary
- 2011-12-01➕STEPHEN, Kathleen appointeddirector
- 2011-12-01➖STEPHEN, Kathleen resignedsecretary
- 2002-08-27🏢Company incorporatedAs BILL STEPHEN MOTORS LIMITED
- 2002-08-27➕STEPHEN, William appointeddirector
- 2002-08-27➕STEPHEN, Kathleen appointedsecretary
- 2002-08-27➕FIRST SCOTTISH SECRETARIES LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2002-08-27➖FIRST SCOTTISH SECRETARIES LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2002-08-27➕FIRST SCOTTISH INTERNATIONAL SERVICES LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-director
- 2002-08-27➖FIRST SCOTTISH INTERNATIONAL SERVICES LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-director
Owner dependency
98/100
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
- +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "STEPHEN" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 24 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 70 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
Succession & seller-readiness
50/100
Moderate signalSome succession indicators present. Worth watching; approach if sector/strategy fits.
SIGNALS
- primaryFamily succession underway: Not a takeover target — STEPHEN, Gareth (same surname) appointed 2022-09-01. Pattern consistent with intra-family handover.
- primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 70 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 24 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 24 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
1 active beneficial owner| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr William Stephen Individual · Scottish · DOB 02/1958 · age 68 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 25/08/2016 |
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.
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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.
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See pricing →Company details
Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated2002-08-27
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC45200 — SIC 45200
Registered office
Golf View
Cookston Road
Brechin
DD9 7QU
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-09-22
Last: 2025-09-08
Officers (4 active · 3 resigned)
Active
STEPHEN, Gareth→
Activedirector · ~40y · appointed 2022-09-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
STEPHEN, Kathleen→
Activedirector · ~70y · appointed 2011-12-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
STEPHEN, William→
Activedirector · ~68y · appointed 2002-08-27
View their other companies + combined net worth →
STEPHEN, Kathleen→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2002-08-27 · resigned 2011-12-01
FIRST SCOTTISH SECRETARIES LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2002-08-27 · resigned 2002-08-27
FIRST SCOTTISH INTERNATIONAL SERVICES LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-director · appointed 2002-08-27 · resigned 2002-08-27
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
1
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Virgin Money Clydesdale Bank PLC (Trading as Both Clydesdale and Yorkshire Bank) (Company Number SC001111) | A registered charge | — | 26/02/2021 | — |
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