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Cafe-bar and restaurant chain Loungers created more than 900 jobs in the year it quit the London Stock Exchange’s AIM, it has been revealed.
The Bristol-headquartered business delisted in February last year after being acquired by Fortress Investment Group for £338m.
The Cosy Club and Brightside owner was founded in 2002 by Alex Reilley, David Reid and Jake Bishop and has now published its first results since going private.
According to the new accounts, filed with Companies House, Loungers increased its headcount from 8,631 to 9,557 in the year to 20 April, 2025.
Its revenue also grew from £353.4m to £406.3m but its pre-tax profit was cut from £11.4m to £3.7m.
Loungers operated 291 locations in England and Wales at the end of the financial year and has plans to more than double that total.
Loungers targets profit boost
A statement signed off by the board said: “Our sales performance throughout the year was once again strong, achieving sales growth of 15 per cent… through a combination of organic growth in our existing sites, the full-year impact of sales from the 34 sites launched in FY24 and the sales of the 35 new sites opened in the year.”
Loungers added: “Our strong cash conversion continues to allow us to find our growth through internally generated profits.
“We remain confident in our ability to deliver strong top line performance through our compelling all-day coffer in our existing and new sites.
“Whilst the impact of the increased National Living Wage and National Insurance contributions in April 2025 has improved a significant additional cost burden on all hospitality businesses, we are confident we can improve profitability over the medium term.
“As a result, we see significant potential to continue our strong growth trajectory over the coming years.”
Chairman quit Labour Taskforce
In August 2025, Loungers chairman Alex Reilley quit a government hospitality taskforce after facing pressure over his criticism of Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ tax agenda.
He exited the Hospitality Sector Council (HSC) after receiving backlash from civil servants for publicly criticising Labour’s economic policies.
Reilley had joined the HSC earlier that year in a bid to help rejuvenate high streets across the country.
Despite still supporting the group, he said Labour was not taking concerns seriously enough.
Reilley also hit out at the government’s plans to create “hospitality zones” to fast-track al fresco dining applications.
