Revolution Bars is to close over a quarter of its UK sites in a last ditch effort to save the troubled brand. The Supreme Court has approved the chain’s restructuring plan which will see 24 venues across Revolution, Revolucion de Cuba, Peach Pubs and Founders & Co close.
It is hoped that the review will help restore the hotel industry’s finances after a difficult few years following the Covid pandemic. The plan involves terminating the leases for several loss-making arenas and focusing on those that bring in the most money.
By the end of fiscal year 2023, the brand had 89 sites including 46 Revolution bars. Following the shake-up, they will operate 27 Revolution Bars, 15 Revolucion de Cuba bars, 22 Peach Pubs and a Founders & Co site – giving it a total of 65 locations.
There are currently Revolution Bars locations in most major UK cities, including London’s Revolution on Leadenhall Street. It is not currently known which sites will be saved from closure, meaning the London site could be at risk.
As well as the impact of the lockdown, Revolution says its bars were hit by the cost of living crisis which squeezed consumers’ finances and regular train strikes which affect its younger customers.
“We know this has been a very difficult period for all of our teams”
Revolution said its trading in recent months was “undoubtedly affected by the uncertainty and distraction of the restructuring process”, which had been the main focus of its board. But they hit their target of £3m in EBITDA at the end of June.
Chief executive Rob Pitcher said: “The group is now well diversified across key brands, providing a more secure financial base and we look to the future with enhanced optimism.
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