Eclectic Clubs & Bars, the Avanti Capital-backed bar group, has reported an increase in full-year EBITDA and said that it had secured additional banking facilities from Barclays Bank comprising a new three-year Revolving Loan Facility of £1.5m, which is available for both the refit of existing sites and for new acquisitions.
The Po Na Na and Lola Lo operator, which took on the management of 33 restaurants, bars and nightclubs on behalf of PBR Leisure earlier this year, reported sales of £19.6m (2010: £15.5m), site EBITDA of £4.8m (2011: £4.1m) and company EBITDA of £2.9m (2010: £2.2m) in the year to the end of June.
During the year, the 49-strong company opened new Lola Lo sites in Bournemouth, Edinburgh, Reading and Lincoln, bringing the total to eight sites under the brand and is looking to acquire a further three to four sites a year.
It said: “Since the year end, new funding has been put in place with Barclays Bank to enable the business to acquire three to four sites a year. A further exciting development since the year-end has been the announcement that the company has entered into a management contract to operate 33 restaurants, bars and nightclubs on behalf of PBR Leisure Limited. PBR Leisure owns The Living Room, a leading premium bar and restaurant brand, operating 14 sites, and a portfolio of 19 other bar, nightclub and hotel businesses operated across the UK. This now brings the total number of sites operated by Eclectic to 49 sites.
“The management are optimistic about the upcoming year, with like for like sites expected to continue to grow over prior years and the full effect of new sites and refits continuing to contribute to the company’s performance.”
In the past 15 months, the group has acquired two new venues and refurbished a further three.
Avanti said that its investment, which is predominantly in the form of a secured loan, has a book value of £7.3m (2011: £7.4m), equating to 91p per share (2011 – 92p per share).
