HAND TOOLS UK LTD
Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 71). 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: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (78/100)Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.
Strong composite across quality, acquirability, and risk. High-priority target — progress to serious diligence.
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsHover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2024-11-30 | 2023-11-30 |
|---|
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
Recent activity
Corporate timeline (23 events)Click to expand
- 2025-08-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2024-08-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2023-08-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2022-06-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2021-08-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2020-05-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2019-04-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2018-08-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2017-08-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2016-06-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2016-05-12📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-08-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2015-08-19📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2015-08-19📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2015-04-30📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2014-08-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2003-04-30➕STUART, Laura Jane appointedsecretary
- 2003-04-30➕STUART, William Lumsden appointeddirector
- 2003-04-30➖FORM 10 SECRETARIES FD LTD resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2003-04-30➖FORM 10 DIRECTORS FD LTD resignedcorporate-nominee-director
- 2003-04-25🏢Company incorporatedAs HAND TOOLS UK LTD
- 2003-04-25➕FORM 10 SECRETARIES FD LTD appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2003-04-25➕FORM 10 DIRECTORS FD LTD appointedcorporate-nominee-director
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.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 23 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 71 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
- primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 71 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 23 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 23 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
cleanGroup structure
Lumsden Stuart Limited is the ultimate parent — holding 75%+ shares. This company sits inside their group.
Parent relationships inferred from Persons with Significant Control filings. Full subsidiary tree requires reverse-lookup (coming).
Shareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Lumsden Stuart Limited Corporate entity | 75–100% | — | 75-100% shares | 06/04/2016 |
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.
See pricing →Similar companies
Active · Holding company · G postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ELLISLAND PROPERTIES LIMITED→ SC230498 · est 2002 | £3.39M £2.88M–£3.89M | — | £3.39M | — | 24y | 82 | 72y |
| KCM HOLDINGS (SCOTLAND) LTD.→ SC378862 · est 2010 | £1.97M £1.67M–£2.26M | — | £1.97M | — | 16y | 82 | 64y |
| SCOTWELD GROUP SERVICES LIMITED→ SC183317 · est 1998 | £1.85M £1.58M–£2.13M | — | £1.85M | — | 28y | 83 | 74y |
| JACDAW HOLDINGS LIMITED→ SC389903 · est 2010 | £1.13M £960.3k–£1.30M | — | £1.13M | — | 15y | 82 | 69y |
| COOLEY PROPERTIES LIMITED→ SC300204 · est 2006 | £765.3k £650.5k–£880.1k | — | £765.3k | — | 20y | 82 | 72y |
| MOULDED FOAMS (SCOTLAND) LTD→ SC311076 · est 2006 | £435.6k £370.2k–£500.9k | — | £435.6k | — | 19y | 83 | 62y |
| MMA GROUP LIMITED→ SC179750 · est 1997 | £384.4k £326.8k–£442.1k | — | £384.4k | — | 28y | 82 | 64y |
| A FORSYTH HOLDINGS LTD.→ SC249579 · est 2003 | £328.7k £279.4k–£378.0k | — | £328.7k | — | 23y | 82 | 63y |
| FLAGSHIP HOTELS LIMITED→ SC230503 · est 2002 | £234.4k £199.2k–£269.5k | — | £234.4k | — | 24y | 82 | 72y |
| ALEX MURRAY HOLDINGS LIMITED→ SC286427 · est 2005 | £87.4k £74.3k–£100.5k | — | £87.4k | — | 20y | 82 | 86y |
| THE BUSINESS INCENTIVES GROUP LIMITED→ SC347368 · est 2008 | £55.7k £47.4k–£64.1k | — | £55.7k | — | 17y | 82 | 69y |
| C SPARKS ELECTRICAL LIMITED→ SC242376 · est 2003 | £30.0k £25.5k–£34.5k | — | £30.0k | — | 23y | 82 | 63y |
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 →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 (2 active · 2 resigned)
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.