CENTRAL GARAGE (STIRLING) LTD
💤Zombieactive
SC378947 · ltd · incorporated 2010-05-21
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 Jul 2024
Net worth
£118.7k
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 45200
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 72-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 72). 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).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 11.4y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 11.4 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
33 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 102Positive net assets
Net assets £118,653
Cash YoY
+53%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£131k
↑ 53% YoY
Net Worth
£119k
↑ 50% YoY
Current Assets
£136k
↓ 5.6% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2024-07-31 | 2023-07-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £159.8k | £93.6k |
| Current assets | £135.5k | £143.6k |
| Cash | £130.6k | £85.4k |
| Debtors | £1.9k | £53.9k |
| Net assets | £118.7k | £78.9k |
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
0
filings
Last 180 days
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (20 events)Click to expand
- 2025-04-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-04-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-04-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-04-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-04-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-02-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-04-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-04-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-04-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-05-31📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2016-05-31📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2016-04-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-06-15📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-04-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2014-11-21📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2014-11-11🔒Charge registered #1Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
- 2014-06-03📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2010-05-21🏢Company incorporatedAs CENTRAL GARAGE (STIRLING) LTD
- 2010-05-21➕MCDIARMID, Stewart appointedsecretary
- 2010-05-21➕MCPAKE, James appointeddirector
Owner dependency
100/100
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 16 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 72 — succession pressure is live.
- +No director turnover: Company is 16 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
98/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 72 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 16 years.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 16 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 Jake Mcpake Individual · British · DOB 12/1954 · age 72 | 50–75% | — | 50-75% shares | 06/04/2016 |
Mr Stewart Mcdiarmid Individual · British · DOB 05/1969 · age 57 | 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.
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAMERON MOTORCYCLES LTD→ SC631337 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
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| CASTLE PAINT LTD→ SC706886 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| CASTLEHILL FILLING STATION LTD→ SC531159 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| CENTRAL SCOTLAND PERFORMANCE LTD→ SC834414 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| COLIN NIXON LIMITED→ SC407244 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| D & D BELL LIMITED→ SC304666 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| DETAILER.IO LTD→ SC611451 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| DG AUTO ELECTRICS LTD→ SC727255 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| DM VEHICLE REPAIRS LTD→ SC839484 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| DOUNE MOTORS DVS LTD→ SC445431 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 13y | — | — |
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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
Incorporated2010-05-21
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC45200 — SIC 45200
Registered office
23 Borestone Crescent
Stirling
FK7 9BG
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-04-30
Last made up to: 2024-07-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-06-04
Last: 2025-05-21
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
MCDIARMID, Stewart→
Activesecretary · appointed 2010-05-21
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MCPAKE, James→
Activedirector · ~72y · appointed 2010-05-21
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 The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC | A registered charge | — | 11/11/2014 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (33 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-05-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-04-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-05-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-04-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-06-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-04-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-06-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-04-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-06-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-04-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-06-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-02-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-05-31
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-04-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2018-06-04