CLARKSON MOTORS LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
SC237353 · ltd · incorporated 2002-09-25
Investment thesis
Zombie company — trading but stalled; unlikely mover.
Why interesting: Quiet, steady; could be a succession or carve-out candidate with the right conversation.
Why risky: No growth signal; thin margin for error on price.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Sept 2025
Net worth
£94.9k
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 45112
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 68-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 68). 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 (73/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

1 live charge · oldest 23.5y

45/100
under pressure

Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.

  • · Oldest live charge is 23.5 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
  • · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.

Data confidence

Overall: medium (77/100)

Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.

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
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
4 officers (1 active, 4 linked, 2 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
68 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.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 105 (micro)
Positive net assets
Net assets £94,938

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
£95k
↑ 6.4% YoY
Current Assets
£107k
↑ 16% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£21k£43k£64k£85k£107kSept 2024Sept 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 105 (micro)
Metric2025-09-302024-09-30
Total assets£96.3k£90.5k
Current assets£106.6k£92.0k
Net assets£94.9k£89.2k

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
0
filings
Last 90 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (27 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-03-10
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-05-07
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  3. 2024-10-07
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  4. 2024-10-07
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  5. 2024-10-01
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  6. 2024-10-01
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  7. 2024-04-10
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  8. 2024-01-08
    📄
    capital-cancellation-shares
    capital · SH06
  9. 2024-01-08
    📄
    capital-return-purchase-own-shares
    capital · SH03
  10. 2023-12-16
    📄
    gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
    gazette · DISS40
  11. 2023-12-12
    📄
    gazette-notice-compulsory
    gazette · GAZ1
  12. 2023-06-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  13. 2022-10-03
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  14. 2022-10-03
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  15. 2022-06-17
    ➖
    CLARKSON, Alison Helen resigned
    secretary
  16. 2022-06-17
    ➖
    CLARKSON, Alison Helen resigned
    director
  17. 2022-02-11
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  18. 2021-06-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  19. 2019-12-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  20. 2019-03-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  21. 2002-10-25
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
  22. 2002-09-25
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As CLARKSON MOTORS LIMITED
  23. 2002-09-25
    ➕
    CLARKSON, Brian Tobias appointed
    director
  24. 2002-09-25
    ➕
    CLARKSON, Alison Helen appointed
    secretary
  25. 2002-09-25
    ➕
    OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  26. 2002-09-25
    ➖
    OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  27. 2002-09-25
    ➕
    CLARKSON, Alison Helen appointed
    director

Owner dependency

100/100
Critical — business is the founder

The business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.

FACTORS
  • +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
  • +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "CLARKSON" — 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 68 — succession pressure is live.

Succession & seller-readiness

95/100
Likely off-market candidate

Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 68. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • 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

clean
No 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
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Brian Tobias Clarkson
Individual · British · DOB 07/1958 · age 68
25–50%
—25-50% shares06/04/2016
1 historic (ceased) PSC
  • Mrs Alison Helen Clarksonceased 17/06/2022· 25-50% shares

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

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BORDER AUTOCARE & TYRE SERVICES LIMITED→
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———20025y8066y
J.E. DOUGLAS & SONS LIMITED→
SC272362 · est 2004 · no financials extracted
————21y——
LAMBERTON MOTORS LTD→
16658667 · est 2025 · no financials extracted
———————
R A OLIVER MOTOR MECHANIC LTD→
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————5y——
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions

8 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
Incorporated2002-09-25
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC45112 — SIC 45112

Registered office

Top Garage
Mill Street
Selkirk
Scottish Borders
TD7 5AD

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-06-30
Last made up to: 2025-09-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-10-09
Last: 2025-09-25

Officers (1 active · 3 resigned)

CLARKSON, Brian Tobias→
director · ~68y · appointed 2002-09-25
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
CLARKSON, Alison Helen→
secretary · appointed 2002-09-25 · resigned 2022-06-17
Resigned
OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2002-09-25 · resigned 2002-09-25
Resigned
CLARKSON, Alison Helen→
director · ~61y · appointed 2002-09-25 · resigned 2022-06-17
Resigned

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
TypeProperties
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
Bond & floating charge1 property25/10/2002—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (68 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2026-03-10
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-10-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-05-07
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-10-29
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2024-10-07
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2024-10-07
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2024-10-01
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2024-10-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-04-10
capital-cancellation-shares
capital · SH06
2024-01-08
capital-return-purchase-own-shares
capital · SH03
2024-01-08
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2023-12-16
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-14
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2023-12-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-06-27