Flight Club owners acquire £60m bank facility

Red Engine, the owners of Flight Club Darts and Electric Shuffle, has secured a £60m loan to support its global expansion plans.

The bank facility comes from Santander, HSBC and Barclays after the competitive socialising group posted sales of £67m last year from its owned and operated venues.

Red Engine has 17 owner-operated venues and eight further partner-owned sites by State of Play Hospitality, who run Flight Club in North America, and Night Owl, who run Flight Club in Australia.

Red Engine is set to increase its portfolio from 25 to 33 venues this year, with the eight additions due to be split between owned and partner-owned sites.

Electric Shuffle Manchester and New York and Flight Club Liverpool and Oxford are set to launch this year under Red Engine, while its franchise partners will open Flight Clubs across Philadelphia, Washington, Sydney and Melbourne.

Zelmari Geldenhuys, associate director – strategic debt solutions at Santander, said: "Red Engine continues to deliver impressive growth across multiple geographies. Santander has supported this growth since 2016 and we are delighted to be able to continue to do so at this important juncture in the Group's evolution."

Phil Richardson, hospitality and leisure director at Barclays, added: "Red Engine are a great example of an innovative business in the hospitality sector. We're proud to support them with lending to continue their growth, as they expand their business globally."

Red Engine launched Flight Club Darts in 2015 and Electric Shuffle in 2019.