Nick Leslau’s Prestbury Holdings has paid £76.8m for 20 properties owned by nightclub operator Luminar.
The deal, announced to the London Stock Exchange this morning, will enable Luminar to be restructured with a new focus on operating branded destination dancing venues.
The 19 freeholds and one long leasehold are being leased back to a new company, currently called NewCo, formed by Luminar, the management team of Luminar's entertainment division and Prestbury. Their shareholdings in NewCo will be 49%, 31% and 20% respectivel
Luminar will sell the businesses operating from the properties to NewCo for £19m in loan notes. The businesses include 54 Chicago Rock Cafes, 13 Jumpin Jaks and 31 unbranded nightbclubs, which Luminar considers to be unsuitable for conversion into destination dancing venues.
NewCo will be largely managed by Luminar's existing management team, and both Luminar and Prestbury will have board representation.
Luminar chief executive Steve Thomas said the deal ‘will allow Luminar to accelerate its strategy, which is focused on building its position as the leading developer and operator of high-quality branded destination dancing venues. The brands which are being developed and rolled out as part of this strategy are Oceana, Lava & Ignite and Liquid.'