ARTISAN WISHAW LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
SC336818 · ltd · incorporated 2008-01-28
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 Jan 2025
Net worth
£-211.0k
book net assets
Opportunity
77/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Licenced restaurants
Sector: Accommodation & food service
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.
Opportunity 77/100 (strong), bankability 80/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Cash flow review and working-capital discipline. Cash down -63% YoY — forensic review of receivables, stock turns, and creditor days. Most likely exit: distressed disposal / insolvency (65/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 16.8y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 16.8 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
2 officers (2 active, 2 linked, 1 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
43 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
77/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
60
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredNegative net assets
Liabilities exceed assets by £211,036
Cash draining
Cash down 63% YoY
Cash YoY
-63%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£1k
↓ 63% YoY
Net Worth
-£211k
↓ 19% YoY
Current Assets
£216k
↑ 18% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-01-31 | 2024-01-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £-177.3k | £-135.7k |
| Current assets | £215.7k | £183.1k |
| Cash | £1.2k | £3.1k |
| Debtors | — | £1.5k |
| Net assets | £-211.0k | £-177.5k |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
🔒Filing-note intelligence
2 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
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
2
filings
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (19 events)Click to expand
- 2025-10-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2024-10-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2023-10-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2022-10-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2022-03-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2022-02-09📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2022-01-04📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2021-08-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2020-01-22📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2020-01-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2020-01-11📄dissolved-compulsory-strike-off-suspendeddissolution · DISS16(SOAS)
- 2019-12-31📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2018-10-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2017-11-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2016-10-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2009-07-16🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
- 2008-01-28🏢Company incorporatedAs ARTISAN WISHAW LIMITED
- 2008-01-28➕MATHER, Fiona appointedsecretary
- 2008-01-28➕MATHER, Derek appointeddirector
Owner dependency
90/100
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
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 18 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +No director turnover: Company is 18 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
68/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 18 years.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 18 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
2 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Derek Mather Individual · British · DOB 11/1975 · age 51 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 06/04/2016 |
Mrs Fiona Mather Individual · British · DOB 01/1974 · age 52 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Hospitality · ML postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 224 DH LTD→ SC810870 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| 7 BROS LARKHALL LTD→ SC778376 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ABBVENTURES LTD→ SC868399 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ABSOLUTE FAST FOODS LIMITED→ SC755454 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| AF477 LIMITED→ SC862227 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ANJISH (GLASGOW) LTD→ SC404058 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| ARIANNA PROPERTIES LTD→ SC571752 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| AULD HOOSE PUB 30 LTD→ SC813888 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| BAO - HOA ENTERPRISE LTD→ SC779441 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| BARBOLI LTD→ SC785717 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| BAYHORSE39 LTD→ SC870418 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| BDL PUBCO LTD→ SC838842 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2008-01-28
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC56101 — Licenced restaurants
Registered office
26 Castledyke Road
Carstairs Village
Lanark
ML11 8SU
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-10-31
Last made up to: 2025-01-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-02-11
Last: 2026-01-28
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
Active
MATHER, Derek→
Activedirector · ~51y · appointed 2008-01-28
View their other companies + combined net worth →
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 | Lloyds Banking Group Royal Bank of Scotland PLC | Standard security | 1 property | 16/07/2009 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (43 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2025-10-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-02-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2024-10-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-02-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2023-10-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-02-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2022-10-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2022-03-08
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2022-02-09
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-02-08
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2022-01-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2021-08-10
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-03-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-01-31