CLAIRE MACDONALD FOODS LIMITED
Opportunity 63/100 (worth a look), bankability 70/100. Strong seller-intent signal (78/100, director aged 79). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Resolve: Company dissolved. Company has been dissolved — it no longer legally exists. Any diligence here is historical only. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (78/100)Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.
Mixed signal. Worth opening the full target workup before deciding to pursue.
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsHover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2024-12-31 | 2023-12-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 0 | — |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
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
- • 1 gazette
- • 1 gazette
- • 2 gazette
- • 1 dissolution
Corporate timeline (21 events)Click to expand
- 2026-04-07📄gazette-dissolved-voluntarygazette · GAZ2(A)
- 2026-04-07🏁Company dissolved
- 2026-01-20📄gazette-notice-voluntarygazette · GAZ1(A)
- 2026-01-08📄dissolution-application-strike-off-companydissolution · DS01
- 2025-09-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2025-02-19📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2024-05-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2023-06-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2022-07-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2020-12-20📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2020-12-20📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2020-11-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2019-05-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2018-08-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2017-07-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2016-07-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2006-12-07🏢Company incorporatedAs CLAIRE MACDONALD FOODS LIMITED
- 2006-12-07➕MACDONALD, Godfrey, Lord appointedsecretary
- 2006-12-07➕MACDONALD, Claire, Lady appointeddirector
- 2006-12-07➕MACDONALD, Godfrey, Lord appointeddirector
Owner dependency
The business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.
- +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
- +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "MACDONALD" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 19 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 79 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
- +No director turnover: Company is 19 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
- primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 79 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 19 years.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 19 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
1 high ·Company has been dissolved — it no longer legally exists. Any diligence here is historical only.
Evidence: Dissolved on 2026-04-07
Shareholders & ownership
2 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Lord Godfrey Macdonald Individual · British · DOB 11/1947 · age 79 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 06/04/2016 |
Lady Claire Macdonald Individual · British · DOB 01/1948 · age 78 | 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.
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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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 (0 active · 0 resigned)
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