Nightcap acquires Dirty Martini
Nightcap, which was co-founded by former Dragons’ Den investor Sarah Willingham, raised £5m through a subscription of more than 19.5m shares in conjunction with the acquisition.
Dirty Martini operates 11 sites including Tuttons, across 10 leases with five in London and five outside the capital.
The total estate generated unaudited site level revenue and earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of £23.7m and £3.9m respectively for 2022.
Multiple brands in clusters
Through the acquisition, Nightcap will operate:
Dirty Martini, Bishopsgate
Dirty Martini, St Pau’s
Dirty Martini, Hanover Square
Dirty Martini, Monument
Dirty Martini, Covent Garden
Dirty Martini, Cardiff
Dirty Martini, Brimingham
Dirty Martini, Bristol
Dirty Martini, Manchester
Dirty Martini, Leeds
Tuttons British Brasserie, Covent Garden
Nightcap, which took home a plethora of gongs at this year's Publican Awards, said the Dirty Martini bars and brand were complementary to its offer and had significant potential for roll out.
The company CEO Sarah Willingham said she couldn’t be happier to welcome Dirty Martini to the family.
She added: “These are long-established, well-run bars that fit well with our existing portfolio and our model of running multiple brands in clusters in London and around the country.
“Dirty Martini’s late-night bars operate in a similar way to ours. They have great bars in excellent locations with impressive fitouts, following more than £10m of capital investment.
“We will embed the Dirty Martini site operations into our existing head office infrastructure and expect to see synergies across the business as we continue to grow.”
Strategic step
The acquisition is Nightcap’s fourth in less than three years and Willingham said it marked a strategic step towards building the UK’s leading bar group.
“While the rail strikes have been detrimental to our current year performance, we are extremely proud of Nightcap’s successful new openings, the growth we have achieved and the foundation we have built for the future.
“Without the impact of rail strikes, we would have had an exceptional year, which bodes well for next year.
“With the acquisition of Dirty Martini, we have a sizable late-night bar group with significant potential for further growth in the years ahead and we therefore look forward to the 2024 financial year with increased confidence.”
