By james art 
It comes after the London-focused group hailed strong festive trade in the city and strong sales from its recently acquired pubs.
Company bosses welcomed the recent trading as it reported record profits and revenue for the last full financial year.
The premium hospitality business, which now operates 53 pubs, bars and restaurants, reported a 16% rise in turnover to £60.5m for the year to April 2024, with like-for-like sales up 4%.
The company told the PA news agency that since then comparable sales have accelerated as it moves forward with its growth strategy.
Chris Hill, group managing director, said: “We blew the doors off at Christmas.
“We saw 16% year-over-year comparable growth versus what we thought was a strong performance a year earlier.
“We’re really happy with the way we’re trading right now, especially given the current environment.”
Mr Hill told the PA he believed he was capitalizing on his London-focused customers, which he said had remained relatively resilient despite the pressure on household budgets.
It said it had also benefited from investment in its pubs and the acquisition of new sites.
Since April last year, the group has snapped up 10 additional pubs after buying former Antic pubs following the smaller rival’s administration.
Urban has already confirmed three new openings for 2025, including The George & Dragon in Wanstead, The London Fields in Hackney and a new site in Covent Garden for its Bat and Ball concept.
Mr Hill said there was still scope for new openings and acquisitions amid recent positive trading.
“We have a solid pipeline and are well positioned to open and buy new sites,” he said.
“But we have to be flexible and it’s more important for us to buy two more brilliant sites than a dozen that aren’t quite right.”
“We’re really pleased with how the ones we’ve bought are performing and how sales are going after the revamp.”
The company’s growth plans will be supported by a recently secured revised funding agreement with lender Barclays, which will increase available facilities to £30m.
The increased funding plan will allow it to “accelerate” expansion plans and take advantage of deal opportunities in London’s pub and restaurant market.
Jim Turner, relationship director at Barclays Corporate Banking, said: “We are proud of our long-term relationship with Urban Pubs & Bars and are delighted to support them with this increased lending as they continue to build their fortunes.
“We are actively looking to help UK corporates to invest and grow and this deal further underlines our ongoing commitment to this important sector.”