Revolution Bars owner appoints administrators as hospitality crisis deepens
Dozens of bars up and down the country could soon shut their doors for the last time as one of Britain’s best-known hospitality groups prepares to appoint administrators.
Revel Collective, which owns more than sixty venues comprising the Revolution Bars group as well as the Peach pub chain, said it expects to appoint administrators within ten days unless the firm could secure a last-minute rescue sale. A collapse would put 3,000 jobs at risk.
Shares in the AIM-listed company, which had initiated a sale process in October, were immediately suspended following the announcement.
“The business will continue to trade and the company will continue to work alongside advisers in order to preserve as much value as possible for all stakeholders as it advances a potential sale of all or parts of the business,” Revel Collective said in a statement to shareholders.
Hospitality under pressure
The firm’s collapse marks the latest sign of the crisis facing the hospitality industry, with more and more venues closing under the burden of increased taxes and higher operating costs.
According to consumer intelligence firm NIQ, there were 382 fewer licensed premises at the end of December than there were three months prior, equivalent to four closures per day.
Casual dining sites and restaurants were particularly hard hit, recording 241 closures over the period, while pubs of all varieties saw a fall in the number of sites.
NIQ noted that restaurants have been particularly hard hit by food inflation and higher labour costs, as a result of recent increases to the minimum wage and employers’ national insurance. The firm also pointed to suppressed consumer confidence as a key headwind for hospitality businesses.
Revel Collective pointed to increased National Insurance costs, higher minimum wages and higher duty on spirits as among the key costs pressures hammering the business, with the three measures thought to add as much as £4m in increased costs per year.
“The persistence of challenging economic conditions and the cumulative impact of government interventions in the last budget have combined to thwart the business’ ability to improve performance,” Revel said in an October update.
Revel’s revenue stood at £117.1m for the year to end June 2025, a life-for-like fall of 7.9 per cent compared to the previous year on the back of what it described as the “ongoing fragile consumer sentiment and market challenges.”
“Guests in our bars continue to face cost challenges and the late-night sector remains challenging for many participants,” said chief executive Rob Pitcher.
Revel, which acquired Peach Pubs in 2022 for £16.5m in a bid to diversify its operations, previously launched a sale process in May 2024 and received an approach from listed bar owner rival Nightcap.
But Nightcap later expressed “disappointment” after its merger proposal was rejected.