Revolution Bars FY sales hit by pandemic closures

In the 53 weeks to 3 July, total sales tumbled to £39.4m from £110.1m the year before due to lockdowns and restrictions. Meanwhile, statutory pre-tax losses narrowed to £26.3m from £31.7m the year before. Revolution noted that the previous year included a "significant" exceptional impairment taken during the start of the pandemic.

On a brighter note, the company - which owns the Revolution and Revolucion de Cuba brands - said trade was now picking up where it left off before the Covid crisis and that after the first 14 weeks of FY22, it had already exceeded the total revenue generated in FY21.

Revenue is currently 137% of FY21 levels, with FY22 LFL revenue since 19 July, when restrictions were fully relaxed in England, up 14% on the comparable period in FY20.

Chief executive Rob Pitcher said: "We are very excited to be back trading and doing what we do best. As we had hoped and expected, our young guest base was ready to return to our bars and we continue to be pleased with our level of trade, reflecting the fun and memorable experiences our teams create for our guests.

"Whilst the disruption caused by Covid has set back our timescales for expansion, we believe that post Covid, our market place and the competitive landscape will be fundamentally different and there will be good opportunities for our brands to expand their estates at a much lower level of investment."