Tue, 04 Jul 2023 | BUSINESS NEWS
Hospitality and pub group Heartwood Collection is preparing to embark on an acquisitive growth plan after securing £100 million in additional funding. The group, which currently has more than 30 sites across the UK, is aiming to grow its portfolio to more than 60 pubs and close to 500 rooms by June 2027.
The group, formerly known as Brasserie Bar Co, was founded by Raymond Blanc and Mark Derry and trades under the brands Brasserie Blanc and White Brasserie Company. Currently, the group operates 20 pubs and 14 Brasserie Blanc restaurants.
The company was rebranded as Heartwood Collection following its acquisition by private equity group Alchemy Partners in 2022. Over the past year, the group has acquired 11 freehold pubs and has a further five under offer that are due to be acquired over the summer.
As part of its expansion into the UK’s pubs with rooms market, the group has now secured an additional £100 million in funding to finance its ongoing growth strategy. The funding comprises a new £50 million banking facility with Oaknorth Bank and £50 million in funds advised by its owner Alchemy Partners. Heartwood adds that it expects Alchemy Partners to invest a further £50 million for its growth plans.
Heartwood is targeting acquisitions of freehold pubs and pubs with rooms across the UK as part of its expansion plan, saying it is seeking opportunities to acquire “characterful” pubs in the “right UK locations”.
Heartwood Collection chairman Mark Derry commented: “This new funding will be deployed for acquiring additional freehold sites, and it will underpin our target of reaching over 60 sites and 500 rooms over the next four years.”
"While ambitious, we are confident that our combination of highly skilled chefs, warm hospitality and character-filled pubs leaves us ideally placed within a market which is considerably underserved.”
Heartwood’s managing director Richard Ferrier added that the funding was “testament to the strength of the business” that the group is building and that it would “enable us to build on our success to date as we focus on growing Heartwood Collection into the UK’s leading premium pubs and pubs-with-rooms business.”
Oaknorth Bank Head of Debt Finance Ben Barbanel called the group’s brands “some of the finest the UK hospitality sector has to offer” and said that the company was set for future growth in spite of “ongoing economic challenges” affecting the UK hospitality sector and wider economy.
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