CROSSANS BUTCHERS LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
SC440876 · ltd · incorporated 2013-01-22
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.
Why now
Window steady · low confidence
Steady and stalled — no momentum either way. Needs an approach trigger.
What changed my view
Last 30 days

No material changes in the last 30 days.

Last 90 days

No snapshot from 90 days ago — start tracking from today.

Last 180 days

No snapshot from 180 days ago — start tracking from today.

🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Jan 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
71/100
Strong
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What this business does
Primary activity: Retail sale of meat and meat products in specialised stores
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)
Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.

Opportunity 71/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Resolve: Confirmation statement overdue. Annual confirmation statement not filed on time. Required statutory filing — overdue is a strong discipline signal. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

1 live charge · oldest 10.5y

45/100
under pressure

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

  • · Oldest live charge is 10.5 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
  • · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.

Data confidence

Overall: medium (78/100)

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
1 officers (1 active, 1 linked, 1 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
28 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
71/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.

Business quality
60
Adequate — check latest filings for context.
Acquirability
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
67
Some moderate concerns — review flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
£0£0£0£0£0£0Jan 2024Jan 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2025-01-312024-01-31
Average employees300300

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

Recent activity

Last 30 days
1
filing
  • • 1 gazette
Last 90 days
1
filing
  • • 1 gazette
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • • 1 gazette
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (20 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-05-05
    📄
    gazette-notice-compulsory
    gazette · GAZ1
  2. 2025-04-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2025-01-10
    📄
    mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
    mortgage · MR04
  4. 2025-01-10
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #1
  5. 2024-02-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2023-03-16
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2022-03-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2021-04-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2020-09-02
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2019-03-06
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2018-03-15
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2017-04-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2016-03-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  14. 2016-01-28
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  15. 2015-11-23
    📄
    mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
    mortgage · MR01
  16. 2015-11-12
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
  17. 2015-02-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  18. 2015-01-30
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  19. 2013-01-22
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As CROSSANS BUTCHERS LIMITED
  20. 2013-01-22
    ➕
    CROSSAN, John appointed
    director

Owner dependency

100/100
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.
  • +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "CROSSAN" — strong identity link between founder and business.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 61 — approaching natural succession window.
  • +No director turnover: Company is 13 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.

Succession & seller-readiness

63/100
Strong succession signal

Multiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.

SIGNALS
  • secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 61. 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 13 years.

Red flags

1 high ·
Confirmation statement overdue
high

Annual confirmation statement not filed on time. Required statutory filing — overdue is a strong discipline signal.

Evidence: Next due: 2026-02-05

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr John Crossan
Individual · British · DOB 10/1965 · age 61
75–100%
—75-100% shares22/01/2017

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

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Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
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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.

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Company details

Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated2013-01-22
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC47220 — Retail sale of meat and meat products in specialised stores

Registered office

17 Flowerhill Street
Airdrie
Lanarkshire
ML6 6AP

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-10-31
Last made up to: 2025-01-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-02-05OVERDUE
Last: 2025-01-22

Officers (1 active · 0 resigned)

CROSSAN, John→
director · ~61y · appointed 2013-01-22
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active

Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.

Mortgages & charges

1
Total charges
0
Outstanding
0
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
TypeProperties
satisfied
Lloyds Banking Group
The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
A registered charge—12/11/201510/01/2025

Recent filings (28 total)

gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2026-05-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-04-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-31
mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
mortgage · MR04
2025-01-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-02-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-02-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-03-16
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-02-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-03-09
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-02-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-04-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-02-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-09-02
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-01-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-03-06