LAWRIE (FURNISHINGS) LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
SC285388 · ltd · incorporated 2005-05-26
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 Mar 2025
Net worth
£491.0k
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
🔔
Follow this company (free)
Email alerts on filings, charges, director changes, gazette notices. No account needed.

Unsubscribe any time from any email. GDPR-respectful.

🔒Generate AI memo →🔒Outreach pack →🔒Corporate story →📑 Reports →Sign in to watch
What this business does
Primary activity: Wholesale of furniture, carpets and lighting equipment
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 62-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 62). 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 20.9y

45/100
under pressure

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

  • · Oldest live charge is 20.9 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
  • · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.

Data confidence

Overall: medium (79/100)

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
5 officers (2 active, 5 linked, 2 with DOB)
78
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
2 connected companies via shared directors
51
Filing history
55 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 · accounting standard not declared
Positive net assets
Net assets £490,968
Cash YoY
+73%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£342k
↑ 73% YoY
Net Worth
£491k
↑ 131% YoY
Current Assets
£869k
↑ 89% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£174k£348k£522k£695k£869kMar 2024Mar 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-03-312024-03-31
Total assets£792.4k£259.9k
Current assets£869.2k£460.7k
Cash£342.3k£197.7k
Debtors£490.1k£227.9k
Net assets£491.0k£213.0k

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
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (26 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-09-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-08-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2023-08-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2022-08-15
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2021-11-01
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2020-12-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2020-03-05
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  8. 2019-11-19
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  9. 2019-10-07
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2018-09-10
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2017-08-14
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2016-06-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  13. 2016-06-03
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  14. 2015-06-19
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  15. 2015-06-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  16. 2014-06-16
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  17. 2011-03-31
    ➕
    MURPHY, Catherine appointed
    secretary
  18. 2011-03-31
    ➕
    MURPHY, William Farrell appointed
    director
  19. 2011-03-31
    ➖
    CARRICK KERR & CO resigned
    corporate-secretary
  20. 2011-03-31
    ➖
    EDWARDS, James resigned
    director
  21. 2005-06-28
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: The Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland
  22. 2005-05-26
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As LAWRIE (FURNISHINGS) LIMITED
  23. 2005-05-26
    ➕
    CARRICK KERR & CO appointed
    corporate-secretary
  24. 2005-05-26
    ➕
    OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  25. 2005-05-26
    ➖
    OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  26. 2005-05-26
    ➕
    EDWARDS, James appointed
    director

Owner dependency

93/100
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.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 15 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 62 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

78/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

SIGNALS
  • secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 62. Early succession window.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 15 years.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 21 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

2 active beneficial owners
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr William Farrell Murphy
Individual · British · DOB 10/1964 · age 62
——sig. influencesignificant influence26/05/2017
Mrs Catherine Elizabeth Murphy
Individual · British · DOB 03/1963 · age 63
——sig. influencesignificant influence26/05/2017

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

Active · Wholesale & distribution · PA postcode area
CompanyEst. valueTurnoverNet worthStaffAgeOppDirector
SPRINGBANK DISTILLERS LIMITED→
SC041205 · est 1964
£5.47M
£4.10M–£6.83M
——2461y8390y
WILLIAM CADENHEAD LIMITED→
SC052072 · est 1972
———1153y8390y
BATHROOM ELEGANCE LIMITED→
SC137829 · est 1992
——£1.73M—34y8263y
CMC (SHIP CHANDLERS) LIMITED→
SC110574 · est 1988
———20038y8259y
CUMBRAE SUPPLY COMPANY LIMITED→
SC298312 · est 2006
——£136.4k—20y8274y
D MCNAIR & SON LTD.→
SC394139 · est 2011
——£3.04M—15y8261y
JOHN SCOTT MEAT (PAISLEY) LIMITED→
SC100408 · est 1986
——£3.21M—39y8265y
NAPIER & CRAIG LIMITED→
SC025896 · est 1947
——£96.8k—78y8287y
SCOTJET LIMITED→
SC190195 · est 1998
——£1.35M—27y8270y
SEALING SYSTEMS (SCOTLAND) LIMITED→
SC385524 · est 2010
——£175.4k—15y8263y
T BARBOUR LIMITED→
SC318804 · est 2007
———50019y8280y
TEMPRITE (EUROPE) LIMITED→
SC175754 · est 1997
———029y8262y
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
Incorporated2005-05-26
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC46470 — Wholesale of furniture, carpets and lighting equipment

Registered office

8 Unit 4 Maritime Court
8 Cartside Avenue
Inchinan
Renfrew
PA4 9RX
Scotland

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-06-09
Last: 2025-05-26

Officers (2 active · 3 resigned)

MURPHY, Catherine→
secretary · appointed 2011-03-31
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
MURPHY, William Farrell→
director · ~62y · appointed 2011-03-31
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
CARRICK KERR & CO→
corporate-secretary · appointed 2005-05-26 · resigned 2011-03-31
Resigned
OSWALDS OF EDINBURGH LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2005-05-26 · resigned 2005-05-26
Resigned
EDWARDS, James→
director · ~67y · appointed 2005-05-26 · resigned 2011-03-31
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 Governor and Company of the Bank of Scotland
Bond & floating charge1 property28/06/2005—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (55 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-09-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-05-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-08-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-06-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-08-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-06-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-08-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-06-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-11-01
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-06-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-12-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-06-03
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2020-03-05
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2019-11-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-10-07