Wed 10th Oct 2018 - Revolution ends Deltic acquisition talks Revolution ends Deltic acquisition talks: Revolution Bars Group, the UK operator of 76 premium bars trading under the Revolution and Revolución de Cuba brands, has ended talks over its potential acquisition of The Deltic Group. It follows a statement last month confirming Revolution Bars Group was in early-stage discussions following press speculation over a potential transaction with The Deltic Group and movement in the company’s share price. Revolution Bars Group stated: “Revolution Bars Group announces, further to the announcement made on 7 September 2018, that discussions regarding a transaction involving a possible acquisition of The Deltic Group have been terminated. Following a period of engagement and due diligence, the board has concluded a transaction with Deltic would not be in the best interests of the company’s shareholders. The company will continue to focus on delivering the positively received strategy outlined in its preliminary results announcement made on 2 October 2018.” Those results showed reported sales increased 8.7% to £141.9m in the 52 weeks ended 30 June 2018, compared with £130.5m the previous year. Adjusted Ebitda was £15.0m (FY17 restated: £15.1m), in line with revised guidance. It made an operating loss of £3.0m (FY17 restated: operating profit £5.5m) impacted by exceptional costs of £11.1m. Like-for-like sales were down 0.6%. Following the results, chief executive Rob Pitcher told Propel its Revolution brand needed to “catch up” and the company had put in place a number of initiatives for its core brand, including extending delivery and “Instagrammable entertainment”. The Deltic Group, led by chief executive Peter Marks, made an approach for Revolution Bars Group in October last year. At the time, Revolution Bars Group was pursuing an ultimately unsuccessful £101m merger with Stonegate Pub Company. Both sides were restricted from re-entering talks with Revolution Bars Group for six months. After being rebuffed, The Deltic Group, which operates 57 venues, acquired a 3% stake in Revolution Bars Group. Marks pulled The Deltic Group out of the ashes of nightclub group Luminar in a £34m rescue deal in 2011. Earlier this year, The Deltic Group was reported to be revisiting plans for a potential float. The company put plans for a stock offering on hold last year citing “challenging trading conditions”.