Be At One, the cocktail bar chain, has agreed a new £4m banking facility and secured three new sites, including its first outside the capital, M&C Report understands.
The 13-strong group, which is backed by Piper Private Equity, will open on the site of the former Fluid bar in Smithfield Market at the end of January and the former Slug and Lettuce on Fenchurch St in the City, in February.
The group, which is led by Steve Locke, Rhys Oldfield and Leigh Miller, has secured the Sahara site in Reading city centre for its debut outside the capital.
It has also reached agreement on a further site in London, which will take its estate to 17 sites by the middle of end of the first quarter and further towards its goal of growing to up to 30 sites within the next three years.
The ambitious growth plan over the next six months will be supported by the new £4m banking facility which was agreed with Lloyds Bank in December.
The chain saw like-for-like growth of 8% for the first nine months of its current financial year to the end of March, with EBITDA forecast to reach £1.7m for the full year, up from £1.1m, while turnover will reach £11m, up from £9m. It saw a 12% like-for-like growth for the five weeks of December.
Locke said: “In the last year, we have really been able to focus the business to prepare a rapid growth plan. Our fantastic sales from last year are a reflection of how hard everyone has worked to concentrate on the quality of the existing business in order to organise ourselves for growth. We are very excited about moving outside of London as well as opening more sites within the city.”
Greg Brown, Be At One’s relationship manager at Lloyds Bank says, “We’re delighted to support Be At One and their growth strategy using the Funding for Lending Scheme. They are a solid business with a clear strategy and a passionate and professional management team who truly understand the sector in which they operate”.
Comment by M&C Report editor Mark Wingett
One the sweet spots for investors in 2011 when it came to looking at Be At One was the combination of the great customer proposition, with attractive financial characteristics. Also it was and is in Locke, Oldfield and Miller, run by people who know how to make great drinks, create a fantastic atmosphere and operate with very high standards.
Since Piper injected £8m into the business at the end of 2011 valuing it in excess of £20m, the group has taken stock but also geared up for the next stage of its development. One site was opened last year, in Gresham Street, but during the same period a permanent finance director was appointed, a food offer was piloted, and a new corporate look was developed and rolled out.
The four planned openings over the next three months will test the foundations the group has worked hard to build up, as will testing the brand outside the capital. The group’s track record points to Reading being a success, which will undoubtedly open up further possibilities along the M4 and in key cities such as Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool and Birmingham. It is also set to appoint an operations manager for the capital as it starts to look further afield.
As Paul Hemming, partner at Zolfo Cooper, pointed out over 12 months ago, this is a business that has retained its authenticity and credibility, one that can deliver excellent returns from relatively small sites, with a great culture of service. All keys touch points as it gets ready to stretch its legs again.
