London pub group handed lifeline after administration and closure woes
A London pub company that partly collapsed into administration earlier this year and closed a number of sites has agreed a £61m rescue deal.
RedCat Pub Company, which was founded and is chaired by former Greene King chief executive Rooney Anand, has completed a refinancing of its current debt facilities.
The £61m deal comprises debt funding from Barclays Bank and further equity from the group’s existing investors including funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management, L.P.
In a statement, the company said that the deal “demonstrates a vote of confidence in the strategy, team and future success of the business”.
RedCat Group chief Richard Lewis said: “This is a hugely positive step forward for the business, with backing from a major high street bank, alongside further support from our partners at Oaktree. The refinancing provides the business with the stability required to invest for growth.
“The deal will enable the team to build on the successes we are already seeing with recent investments in our portfolio across both RedCat and the Coaching Inn Group, whilst enabling us to look to the future with even greater confidence and excitement.”
The news comes after in was announced in March that a number of pubs across London were set to close after the company that operates them entered administration.
Nick Holloway and Steve Absolom of Interpath Advisory were appointed as joint administrators to RedCat Leased Pubs Limited (RCLP), a subsidiary of the RedCat Group.
RCLP operated 10 pubs across the UK while all other RedCat Group entities have continued to trade as normal.
According to Interpath, RCLP has been “impacted by the wider challenges facing the pub sector, notably, recovery since Covid-related lockdowns, changing consumer habits and the cost-of-living crisis“.
Administrators were appointed after the loss-making business was unable to meet its financial obligations, the firm added.