EAST COAST ARABLE SYSTEMS LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
SC465481 · ltd · incorporated 2013-12-09
Investment thesis
Well-run mature business — low negotiation leverage; premium likely.
Why interesting: Textbook target; clean filings, stable trading.
Why risky: No pressure on seller; any deal likely at full price.
Opportunity decay
hardening · 12-months
Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.
- · Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
not disclosed
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
75/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Growing of cereals (except rice), leguminous crops and oil seeds
Sector: Agriculture, forestry & fishing
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 79-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 75/100 (strong), bankability 57/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 79). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Consolidate lender relationships. 3 distinct lenders creates friction — refinance into single-lender structure for cleaner diligence. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
5 live charges · 3 lenders · oldest 11.0y
35/100
too messy
Refinance path is blocked by complexity. Rethink structure or expect bespoke, expensive terms.
- · Oldest live charge is 11.0 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · 3 lenders named — inter-creditor friction likely.
- · Legal-friction score 25/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (61/100)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
No iXBRL financials extracted
0
Lenders & charges
5 charges (5/5 with lender, 5/5 with type)
90
Directors & officers
4 officers (2 active, 4 linked, 4 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
11 connected companies via shared directors
78
Filing history
62 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
75/100Strong
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
82
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Recent activity
Last 30 days
3
filings
- • 2 other
- • 1 accounts
Last 90 days
4
filings
- • 2 other
- • 1 accounts
- • 1 mortgage
Last 180 days
6
filings
- • 2 other
- • 2 mortgage
- • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (33 events)Click to expand
- 2026-04-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2026-04-17📄legacyother · GUARANTEE2
- 2026-04-17📄legacyother · AGREEMENT2
- 2026-02-05📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2026-02-04🔒Charge registered #6Lender: Barclays Security Trustee Limited as Security Trustee for the Secured Parties
- 2026-01-07📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2025-12-22🔒Charge registered #5Lender: Barclays Security Trustee Limited (Crn: 10825314) as Security Trustee
- 2025-04-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2025-04-09📄legacyaccounts · PARENT_ACC
- 2025-04-09📄legacyother · GUARANTEE2
- 2025-04-09📄legacyother · AGREEMENT2
- 2024-06-18📄legacyother · AGREEMENT2
- 2024-04-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-04-11📄legacyaccounts · PARENT_ACC
- 2024-04-11📄legacyother · GUARANTEE2
- 2023-04-12📄legacyaccounts · PARENT_ACC
- 2023-04-12📄legacyother · AGREEMENT2
- 2023-04-12📄legacyother · GUARANTEE2
- 2023-04-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-04-01📄accounts-with-accounts-type-audit-exemption-subsiduaryaccounts · AA
- 2022-04-01📄legacyother · AGREEMENT2
- 2022-04-01📄legacyother · GUARANTEE2
- 2022-03-31📄legacyaccounts · PARENT_ACC
- 2020-11-07➖FORBES, Alistair Graham Milne resigneddirector
- 2018-12-11➕FORBES, Graham Alexander appointeddirector
- 2018-06-18➖FORBES, Robert Michael resigneddirector
- 2015-05-19🔒Charge registered #3Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
- 2015-05-06🔒Charge registered #4Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
- 2015-04-23🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
- 2013-12-09🏢Company incorporatedAs EAST COAST ARABLE SYSTEMS LIMITED
- 2013-12-09➕FORBES, John Inglis appointeddirector
- 2013-12-09➕FORBES, Alistair Graham Milne appointeddirector
- 2013-12-09➕FORBES, Robert Michael appointeddirector
Owner dependency
81/100
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
- +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 79 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
Succession & seller-readiness
79/100
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 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 12 years.
- supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.
Red flags
1 low5 live charges
lowHeavily leveraged with multiple live security positions — understand the capital structure before proceeding.
Group structure
East Coast Viners (Holdings) Limited is the ultimate parent — holding 75%+ shares. This company sits inside their group.
🏛️ultimate parent
East Coast Viners (Holdings) Limited
Corporate parent · holds 75-100% shares
⬇
EAST COAST ARABLE SYSTEMS LIMITED
This company · SC465481
Parent relationships inferred from Persons with Significant Control filings. Full subsidiary tree requires reverse-lookup (coming).
Shareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
East Coast Viners (Holdings) Limited Corporate entity | 75–100% | 75–100% | 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting | 06/04/2016 |
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 · Agriculture · AB postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A & R MCBAIN LIMITED→ SC803304 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ALEXANDER FARMS LIMITED→ SC141797 · est 1992 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 33y | — | — |
| ALEXANDER JACK (FISHING) LIMITED→ SC259254 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 22y | — | — |
| ANNOCHIE FARMS LTD→ SC761170 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| ARL FISHING COMPANY LIMITED→ SC242164 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 23y | — | — |
| ARNON FISHING LTD.→ SC311439 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| ASBS FISHING COMPANY LTD→ SC684476 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| BALMARA LTD→ SC776387 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| BBD FISHING LTD→ SC644064 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| BBP ROSE LTD→ SC629529 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| BERRYDEN FISHING LTD→ SC712622 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| BIOSCAPES LIMITED→ SC077210 · est 1982 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 44y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
9 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
Incorporated2013-12-09
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC01110 — Growing of cereals (except rice), leguminous crops and oil seeds
Registered office
Broadwood
Drumlithie
Stonehaven
Aberdeenshire
AB39 3XA
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-03-31
Last made up to: 2025-06-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-12-23
Last: 2025-12-09
Officers (2 active · 2 resigned)
FORBES, Graham Alexander→
Activedirector · ~57y · appointed 2018-12-11
View their other companies + combined net worth →
FORBES, John Inglis→
Activedirector · ~79y · appointed 2013-12-09
View their other companies + combined net worth →
FORBES, Alistair Graham Milne→
Resigneddirector · ~87y · appointed 2013-12-09 · resigned 2020-11-07
FORBES, Robert Michael→
Resigneddirector · ~84y · appointed 2013-12-09 · resigned 2018-06-18
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
5
Total charges
5
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:5 of 5 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Barclays Barclays Security Trustee Limited as Security Trustee for the Secured Parties | A registered charge | 1 property | 04/02/2026 | — | |
| outstanding | Barclays Barclays Security Trustee Limited (Crn: 10825314) as Security Trustee | A registered charge | 1 property | 22/12/2025 | — | |
| outstanding | Barclays Barclays Bank PLC | A registered charge | 1 property | 19/05/2015 | — | |
| outstanding | Barclays Barclays Bank PLC | A registered charge | 1 property | 06/05/2015 | — | |
| outstanding | Barclays Barclays Bank PLC | A registered charge | — | 23/04/2015 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (62 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-04-17
legacy
other · GUARANTEE2
2026-04-17
legacy
other · AGREEMENT2
2026-04-17
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2026-02-05
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2026-01-07
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-12-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-04-09
legacy
accounts · PARENT_ACC
2025-04-09
legacy
other · GUARANTEE2
2025-04-09
legacy
other · AGREEMENT2
2025-04-09
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-12-13
legacy
other · AGREEMENT2
2024-06-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-04-11
legacy
accounts · PARENT_ACC
2024-04-11
legacy
other · GUARANTEE2
2024-04-11