Propel Morning Briefing Mast HeadAccess Banner  
Propel Morning Briefing Mast Head Propel's LinkedIn LinkPaul's Twitter Link Paul's X Link

Brewdog Banner
Morning Briefing for pub, restaurant and food wervice operators

Fri 9th Aug 2024 - Revolution received six offers separate to Nightcap including £16m for Peach business
Revolution received six offers separate to Nightcap including £16m for Peach business, secures High Court approval for restructuring plan: Revolution Bars Group – the operator of the Revolution, Revolución de Cuba and Peach Pubs brands – received six offers for the business during its sales process separate to the Nightcap proposal, it has been revealed. The best of these were £16m cash for the Peach Group and £10m cash for profit-making sites and assets within Revolution Bars and the Revolución de Cuba brand. But it was decided that the proposals could not be delivered in the time available and would deliver worse returns to creditors than restructuring the business. Revolution Bars Group rejected an acquisition proposal from Nightcap – owner of the Cocktail Club, the Adventure Bar Group, Dirty Martini and the Barrio Familia group of 46 bars – after concluding it was “incapable of being delivered”. The details were revealed as a High Court judge approved Revolution Bars Group’s restructuring plan, after arguing it was needed to save the business from collapsing into insolvent administration. Part of the group – Revolution Bars – is “heavily loss-making” and “deeply unprofitable”, the court was told. Lawyers for the business said it was forecast to “run out of cash” in August. At a hearing in London yesterday (Thursday, 8 August), Mr Justice Richards approved the plan, concluding it was “not unfair” to creditors, landlords and shareholders. The restructuring scheme will amend Revolution’s obligations under a fully drawn £30m revolving credit facility with NatWest and extend the time to pay its tax debt, its legal team told the judge. It will also feature the “right-sizing” of a portfolio of leases “in order to create a sustainable business”. Revolution Bars holds 48 leases linked to 43 sites across the UK, six of which – Southend, Torquay, Beaconsfield, Derby, Wilmslow and Liverpool St Peter’s Square – were no longer trading. Revolution Bars was “balance sheet insolvent” with assets of £49.6m but total liabilities of £118.7m, the judge was told. The business “continued to perform poorly” and when the restructuring plan was launched was forecasting a loss of £15m in the financial year to 29 June 2024. It is also £48.1m in debt to sister firm Inventive Service Company. Tom Smith KC, representing Revolution Bars, said: “With an unprofitable business and no cash, unless the restructuring is successful, the group companies will, save for the Peach Group, collapse into insolvency processes.” He said the plan would see £4m owed to NatWest written off and a repayment date extended from October 2025 to October 2028. Revolution Bars Group will have an “interest holiday” in 2024, while NatWest will receive warrants over 10% of the enlarged share capital of the parent company. A payment of £2m in HM Revenue & Customs tax debt will also be deferred to 6 September 2024. Smith said proposals to issue new shares in Revolution Bars Group had raised around £12.5m, but this was conditional on the completion of the restructuring plan. Smith said “a small number” of landlords had voted against the plan, adding that there had been “no attempt to articulate any reasons for their opposition” and “no reason has been advanced before the court as to why the plan should not be approved”. He added the restructuring plan received “overwhelming” support from creditors who cast votes at meetings in July. Following completion of the restructuring, the group will operate 27 Revolution, 15 Revolución de Cuba, 22 Peach Pubs and one Founders & Co site. Revolution Bars Group stated: “The refinancing, fundraising and the plan are expected to stabilise the group, reduce leverage, and allow the recommencement of the normal refurbishment cycle and the flexibility to explore new opportunities as they become available. As anticipated, trading during the latter part of the year ending June 2024 was undoubtedly impacted by the uncertainty and distraction of the restructuring process, the now concluded formal sale process, refinancing and fundraising collectively, which have been the main focus for the group’s board. However, we are pleased to be able to confirm the expected Ebitda outturn at the FY24 financial year end of circa £3.0m (under IAS 17 – after rental charges) and net bank debt as of 8 August of £23.8m, excluding lease liabilities and before the receipt of the net proceeds of the fundraising.” Chief executive Rob Pitcher said: “The group is now well diversified across the key brands, providing a more secure financial base and we look forward to the future with improved optimism. We know this has been a very difficult period for all of our teams both in our sites and in our support office and I’d like to thank them for their support and resilience. I would also like to thank the group’s wider stakeholders for their support, including our secured lender, current shareholders, our new and existing shareholders who have participated in the fundraising and all our advisors who have assisted us in the development of the plan.”

Next edition of Propel Turnover & Profits Blue Book to be sent to Premium Club members today: The next edition of the Propel Turnover & Profits Blue Book will be sent to Premium Club members today (Friday, 9 August), at midday. The 958 companies in the database are turning over a total of £69.6bn. A total of 602 companies are making a profit while 356 are making a loss. The profit being made by sector companies is now outstripping losses by £2.02bn, an increase on the £1.78bn last month. The Blue Book shows the total profit of the 958 companies in the list is £4,454,118,405 and losses are £2,429,999,932. Meanwhile, 59 companies have had their figures updated. The Blue Book is updated each month and ranks companies by turnover, profit and profit conversion, listing directors' earnings for the past five years. Premium Club members also receive access to five other databases: the Multi-Site Database, produced in association with Virgate; the New Openings Database; the UK Food and Beverage Franchisor Database; the UK Food and Beverage Franchisee Database and the Who's Who of UK Hospitality. All Premium Clubs members will be offered a 20% discount on tickets to Propel paid-for events including the Talent and Training Conference (1 October), Restaurant Marketer and Innovator (two days in January 2025) and Excellence in Pub Retail (May 2025). Operators that are Premium Club members are also able to send up to four members of staff to each of our four Multi-Club Conferences for free. Premium Club members receive their daily Propel Info newsletter 11 hours earlier than standard subscribers, at 7pm the evening before. They also receive videos of presentations at eight Propel conference events two weeks after they are held. This represents around 100 videos of industry insight over the course of the year. Premium Club members will be sent a dedicated monthly newsletter that will highlight key updates in the sector and direct subscribers to all the vital content their membership offers. Premium Club members also receive exclusive opinion columns every Friday at 5pm, which include the thoughts of Propel group editor Mark Wingett and a host of industry leaders from across the sector. A Premium Club subscription costs an annual sum of £495 plus VAT for operators and £595 plus VAT for suppliers. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Premium Club for a year for £995 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or supplier. Email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com today to sign up.

Inquest into death of schoolgirl who died after drinking hot chocolate from Costa to open next week: An inquest will open next week into the death of a schoolgirl who had a severe dairy allergy that died after drinking a hot chocolate at Costa Coffee that she thought was made with soya milk. Hannah Jacobs, 13, had known of her allergy to dairy, egg, fish and wheat since she was a toddler and her family had managed the risk throughout her life. Her mother had ordered the takeaway drink in February last year and informed the barista of her daughter’s dairy allergy before they went to an appointment with their dentist, according to Leigh Day solicitors. But after the teenager took a sip from the drink in the waiting room, suspicions arose about whether the drink had been made with dairy milk by mistake. They sought help at a nearby pharmacy, where staff gave Hannah an EpiPen, a self-administered medication designed to relax the muscles in the airways to combat allergic reactions. An ambulance crew arrived shortly afterwards and attempts were made to save her life through resuscitation, but she was pronounced dead at 1pm. Hannah, of Barking, east London, had suffered a suspected severe anaphylactic reaction to the hot chocolate drink. An inquest into her death will begin at East London coroner’s court on Monday (12 August). Costa Coffee has been approached for comment. Following the death of 15-year-old Natasha Ednan-Laperouse in the summer of 2016 after an allergic reaction to a Pret A Manger baguette, the government announced the introduction of stricter laws aimed at safeguarding allergy sufferers. Natasha’s Law, which came into force in 2021, requires all food businesses to provide full ingredient lists and clear allergen labelling on pre-packaged foods made on the premises for direct sale. According to the Food Standards Agency, food businesses could face financial penalties if they fail to comply with the regulation.

Return to Archive Click Here to Return to the Archive Listing
 
Punch Taverns Link
Return to Archive Click Here to Return to the Archive Listing
Propel Premium
 
Square Kiosk Banner
 
McCain Banner
 
Tabology Banner
 
Access Banner
 
Lawrys Banner
 
Tevalis Banner
 
Contract Furniture Group Banner
 
Lactalis Banner
 
Tenzo Banner
 
Santa Maria Banner
 
Propel Banner
 
Zonal Banner
 
Christie & Co Banner
 
Sideways Banner
 
Venners Banner
 
Airship – Toggle Banner
 
Wireless Social Banner
 
Startle Banner
 
Deliverect Banner
 
CACI Banner
 
Meaningful Vision Banner
 
Growth Kitchen Banner
 
Zonal Banner
 
HGEM Banner
 
Accurise Banner