Revolution ups credit facility to £30m
NatWest agreed to increase the facility to until 31 August 2020, after which it will be reduced to £24m.
The bank has also agreed to waive all financial covenant tests at March and June.
The bar operator had been engaged in reducing its debt, with its previous facility standing at £18m.
As a result of the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic, the group had net bank debt of £17.8m as of the end of last week (11 April 2020).
Meanwhile Revolution has saved £2.8m by renegotiating the completion terms of the transaction to surrender five leases to landlord Aprirose.
The completion payments have been reduced from £3.64m to £2.25m and deferred payment terms agreed for more than half of the reduced amount, which saved a cash outflow in March of £2.8m (includes VAT).
The group has reduced its costs to £400,000 a week, with more savings being sought.
The bar operator has furloughed 2,775 staff (98% of the group’s workforce).
The CEO, CFO and non-executive directors salaries have been reduced by 50% with significant salary reductions for senior employees remaining in work.
All PAYE and VAT payments from 18 March 2020 have been deferred for three months.
It has received assistance from suppliers regarding contract suspensions and extended credit and payment terms.
Negotiations with landlords regarding rent relief are ongoing.
“Prior to this crisis, we were delivering positive like-for-like sales, had significantly reduced our debt position, were generating strong capex returns, and were on track to meet our full year profit expectations," says Revolution Bars CEO Rob Pitcher.
“We welcome and are delighted with the additional support from NatWest at this difficult time. They have acted as a true partner to our business and this decisive action has enabled us to be another step closer to being well-positioned to emerge from this crisis.
“We are also very grateful to those other stakeholders, including our employees, suppliers and certain landlords who have approached this crisis in a similar manner, helping to secure the future of this great business.
“However, there is still more which needs to be done to ensure the protection of the 3.2m jobs in our sector along with the £39bn of direct tax receipts paid annually to the UK Government. Specifically, this includes more support in connection with property related costs during this enforced closure period and beyond, including support for landlords themselves and we encourage the UK Government to take swift action in this respect.”
