Block Admission Application

Loungers PLC

04 May 2023

 

Loungers plc 

("Loungers" or the "Company")

Issue of Equity

Block Admission Application

Loungers, a leading operator of all day café/bar/restaurants across the UK under the Lounge, Cosy Club and Brightside brands, announces that it has allotted and issued 359,000 ordinary shares of 1 pence each in the Company ("Ordinary Shares") following the vesting of awards made to 718 Company employees pursuant to the Company's Employee Share Plan (the "ESP Ordinary Shares"). The Employee Share Plan rewards team members who are based predominantly in Lounges and Cosy Clubs across the UK, with share awards based upon length of service.

The Company has made an application to the London Stock Exchange for the ESP Ordinary Shares to be admitted to trading on AIM ("ESP Admission"). ESP Admission is expected to become effective at 8.00 a.m. on 9 May 2022.

Following  ESP Admission, the Company will have 103,691,033 Ordinary Shares in issue, each with voting rights, which figure may then be used by shareholders in the Company as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in, the share capital of the Company under the Financial Conduct Authority's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules. The Company does not hold any Ordinary Shares in Treasury.

Loungers also announces that a block admission application has been made to the London Stock Exchange for the admission to trading on AIM of a further 477,962 Ordinary Shares (the "RSP Ordinary Shares") to be issued from time to time in response to the exercise of options granted to 54 senior managers under the Loungers plc Senior Management Restricted Share Plan 2020 (the "RSP"). It is expected that admission of the RSP Ordinary Shares will also become effective on 9 May 2023 and that the RSP Ordinary Shares will top up the Company's existing Block Admission with regards the RSP.

The RSP Ordinary Shares will, when issued, be credited as fully paid and will rank pari passu in all respects with the Ordinary Shares already in issue (the "Existing Ordinary Shares").

The Company will continue to make regular announcements of the utilisation of the Block Admission with regards the RSP in line with its obligations under Rule 29 of the AIM Rules for Companies.

 At the date of this announcement, there are 103,332,033 Existing Ordinary Shares in issue.

For further information please contact:

Loungers plc Nick Collins, Chief Executive Officer Gregor Grant, Chief Financial Officer		Via Powerscourt
Houlihan Lokey UK Limited (Financial Adviser and NOMAD) Sam Fuller / Tim Richardson		Tel: [phone]
Liberum Capital Limited (Joint Broker) Andrew Godber / John Fishley		Tel: [phone]
Peel Hunt LLP (Joint Broker) Dan Webster / Andrew Clark		Tel:  [phone]
Powerscourt (Financial Public Relations) Rob Greening / Nick Hayns / Elizabeth Kittle	Tel: [phone]

About Loungers

Loungers operates through its two complementary brands - Lounge and Cosy Club - in the UK hospitality sector.  A Lounge is a neighbourhood café/bar combining elements of coffee shop culture, the British pub and dining.  There are 187 Lounges nationwide.  Lounges are principally located in secondary suburban high streets and small town centres.  The sites are characterised by informal, unique interiors with an emphasis on a warm, comfortable atmosphere, often described as a "home from home".

Cosy Clubs are more formal bars/restaurants offering reservations and table service but share many similarities with the Lounges in terms of their broad, all-day offering and their focus on hospitality and culture.  Cosy Clubs are typically located in city centres and large market towns.  Interiors tend to be larger and more theatrical than for a Lounge, and heritage buildings or first-floor spaces are often employed to create a sense of occasion.  There are 35 Cosy Clubs nationwide.

Loungers launched its third brand, a roadside dining concept called Brightside, in November 2022. The first Brightside location opened on the A38, south of Exeter, in February 2023, with a further two to open in summer 2023.

www.loungers.co.uk

 

END