A popular UK bar chain is set to close up to 25 venues around the country, after already closing eleven branches. The Revolution Bars Group has been a mainstay of many high streets for years, but has since reached an agreement with the courts for a restructuring plan. The chain closed eight sites in January 2024, with a further 11 closing over the weekend on Sunday, August 11, reported the Daily Star.
Revolution Bars Group secured High Court approval for its restructure, which could keep it out of insolvency, but close up to 25 branches. The restructuring plan will involve ending the leases of several loss-making venues, leaving the group with fewer bars across the UK. The group owns Revolution Bars, Revolucion de Cuba, Peach Pubs, and Founders & Co.
Once the restruce has been implemented, the company said it will operate 27 Revolution Bars, 15 Revolucion de Cuba bars, 22 Peach Pubs and one Founders & Co site - leaving it with 65 venues in total. At the end of the 2023 financial year, the group had 89 sites including 46 Revolution Bars. One of the biggest closures which occurred over the weekend was at Deansgate Locks in Manchester city centre.
Other venues which also shut up shop included Blackpool, Chester, Edinburgh, Inverness, Leadenhall, Loughborough, Norwich, Hockley, Stafford and King Street Wigan. Closures were announced back in April alongside the plan for a restructure. The business had been suffering due to the rising cost of living and rent prices.
Individual bars also reported a significant drop in footfall from customers with less people spending money. The. London Stock Exchange also suspended their shares in the business in April after Revolution delayed publishing their yearly financial results.
Rob Pitcher, the group’s chief executive, said on the High Court approval: "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." If you want ideas and inspiration to plan your next UK adventure plus selected offers and competitions, sign up for our 2Chill weekly newsletter here.
.
