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“This is where all the cruising happened.”
Jonathan Bailey and I are standing in Pershing Square on a bright, blustery spring afternoon, nearing the end of a homemade queer history tour of downtown L.A.: One Magazine, Cooper Do-Nuts/Nancy Valverde Square, the Dover bathhouse, the Biltmore Hotel and this, the city’s former Central Park, a haven, since before World War I, for “fairies” and “sissy boys,” servicemen on leave and beatniks on the road.
“Is it still happening now?” he asks.
“Probably not as much,” I venture.
“Well, you let me know if it’s happening,” he teases, a mischievous smile lighting up his face.
Bailey understands the uses of the charm offensive. As Sam, the handsome Lothario of Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s delightful pre-”Fleabag” curio, “Crashing”; Anthony, the romantic hero of “Bridgerton’s” second season; and John, the jerk of a protagonist in Mike Bartlett’s love triangle play “Cock,” the English actor, 36, has swaggered up to the precipice of superstardom. With roles in such studio tentpoles as “Wicked” and “Jurassic World” on the horizon, he may just break through. Yet he delivers career-best work in Showtime’s queer melodrama “Fellow Travelers,” as anti-Communist crusader-turned-gay rights activist Tim Laughlin, by leaving behind the self-assured rakes and tapping a new wellspring: soft power.
Tim may be, as Bailey puts it, “an open nerve,” but as it turns out, the devout Catholic and political naïf — who falls for suave State Department operative Hawkins “Hawk” Fuller (Matt Bomer) just as Sen. Joseph McCarthy tries to purge the federal government of LGBTQ people — is formidable indeed.
Stretching from the Lavender Scare to the depths of the AIDS crisis, in scenes of tenderness, cruelty and toe-curling sex, Bailey’s performance communicates that little-spoken truth of relationships: It takes more strength to submit than it does to control. The former demands discipline, courage, trust; the latter requires only force.
“In ‘Bridgerton,’ [Bailey] is like a Hawkins Fuller character — he is very sexy and has lots of power, has that kind of confident charisma that absolutely is not Tim at all,” says “Fellow Travelers” creator Ron Nyswaner.
But any doubt about Bailey’s ability to mesh with Bomer, who boarded the project early in development, was put to bed with the actors’ virtual rehearsal of a meeting on a park bench in the pilot. “‘Well, that’s a first,’” Nyswaner recalls an executive texting him. “I cried in a chemistry read.”
‘Am I inviting people in?’
Bailey grew up in a musical family in the Oxfordshire countryside outside London, and this, coupled with an appreciation for the morning prayers, choir practice and Mass he attended as a scholarship student at the local Catholic school, fed his precocious talents. (“I loved the performance of it,” he laughs. “Not to diminish the celebration of religious process, but I did love the idea of wearing a gown.”) By age 10, he’d appeared in the West End, playing Gavroche in a production of “Les Misérables,” an experience he now recognizes as an encounter with a queer found family — albeit one shadowed by the toll of the AIDS crisis, which peaked in the U.K. in the mid-1990s.
“When I’m asked about my childhood, there’s so much I don’t remember, and I think that’s true of anyone who’s been in fight or flight for 20 years,” he says. “I would have been in a cast of people whose friends would have died in the last seven years. I think of where I was seven years ago. I had all my gay friends then. It’s only retrospectively that I can retrofit a real gay community around me [in the theater], that I just wasn’t aware of [then].”
During the late 1990s and early 2000s, American and British culture presented queer adolescents with a bewildering array of mixed signals. As beloved celebrities came out in growing numbers, and the battle for marriage equality became a central locus of LGBTQ political organizing, the media continued to propagate harmful stereotypes of gay men as miserable, lonely, perverted or worse — and, Bailey remembers, callously turned George Michael, arrested on suspicion of cruising in a Beverly Hills restroom in 1998, and Irish pop star Stephen Gately, who revealed his sexuality in 1999, fearful he was about to be outed, into tabloid spectacles.
No wonder Bailey, like many LGBTQ people of his generation, should feel the “chemical” thrill of “validation and acceptance” during London Pride at age 18, then embark on a two-year relationship with a woman in his 20s.
“Dangerously, if you’re not exposed to people who can show you other examples of happiness, you think that’s the easiest way to live,” Bailey says. “It’s funny. You look back and you can tell the story in one way, which is that I always knew who I was and my sexuality and my identity within that. But obviously at times, it was really tough. I compromised my own happiness, for sure. And compromised other people’s happiness.”
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Disclosures about his personal life have become particularly thorny for the actor since the premiere of “Bridgerton,” the blockbuster bodice-ripper from executive producer Shonda Rhimes.
“The Netflix effect does knock you off center completely,” he says, recalling the experience of finding a paparazzo waiting outside his new flat before he’d even moved in. “Suddenly, you do start having nightmares about people climbing in your windows... Even now, talking about it makes me feel like, ‘Am I inviting people in?’”
He is also critical of the media for churning out headlines about the smallest details of celebrities’ private lives, often detached from their original context. In an interview with the London Evening Standard published in December, Bailey described a harrowing encounter in a Washington, D.C., coffee shop in which a man threatened his life for being queer — and, in recounting the experience, offhandedly mentioned the “lovely man” he’d called, shaken, after it happened. Although Bailey acknowledges that the original story handled the subject with aplomb, he felt dismayed that more attention wasn’t paid to the intended warning about rising anti-LGBTQ sentiment: “The only thing that got syndicated from that story was that I had a boyfriend, and it wasn’t true,” he sighs. “It was kind of depressing, if I’m honest.”
Still, Bailey, who once turned down a role in a queer-themed TV series because it would have required him to speed along revelations about his personal life he wasn’t ready to make, is prepared to embrace the power of vulnerability when it feeds the work. Although a member of his inner circle expressed doubts about “Fellow Travelers’” steamy sex scenes, for instance, the actor intuited that they were what made the project worth doing: “I was like, ‘I’m telling you, they are the reason why this is going to be brilliant.’”
‘He’s changed my trajectory in my own life’
To those who would complain about the state of sex in film and TV, “Fellow Travelers” is the perfect riposte. All of it matters, from Tim’s first flirtation with Hawk to the finale’s closing minutes, because the series, at its core, is about the importance of soft power: the strength required to bend, but not break; to adapt, but not abandon oneself; to survive without shrinking to nothing in the process. And depicting that through sex, specifically gay sex, makes “Fellow Travelers” radical indeed.
Bailey understands that baring so much comes with certain risks. When I tell him that research for the story has filled my algorithmic “For You” feed on X (formerly Twitter) with speculation that his onscreen relationship with Bomer has a real-life element, he notes that “shipping” fictional couples and costars alike has long been part of Hollywood fantasy. But he bristles at the implication that he and Bomer are anything but skilled actors at work.
“I would love for people to know that the success of our chemistry isn’t based on us f—. It’s actually about us leaning into the craft,” he says. “It’s a vulnerable situation to be in, talking about it on record. I don’t want to rob people of their thoughts. But I do have a set of values, and as an artist, you don’t need to be f— to tell that love story.”
Underlying that craft, Bailey adds, is the confidence to speak up, as with one scene in “Fellow Travelers” that was adjusted because he said, “I don’t want to be naked today.” He learned to use his voice the hard way: In his early 20s, he recalls, he was once “bullied” on set when “someone was threatened” by him and vowed to himself, “I’m never going to do that to someone. I’m never going to allow that to happen."
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This impulse to direct his influence in support of others has blossomed further with “Fellow Travelers.” On the day of our interview, Bailey enthuses about an upcoming meeting with legendary gay rights activist Cleve Jones and shares his idea for a docuseries recording the stories of elders in the LGBTQ+ community while they are still here to tell them. He describes lying in a hospital bed on set on World AIDS Day, in character as Tim, surrounded by gay men who had lost friends and lovers during the crisis, and finding himself thinking, “What do I want to leave behind?”
“I think he’s changed my trajectory in my own life,” Bailey says.
This is, perhaps, the most common reaction I know to diving deep into queer history — the understanding that we, like our forerunners, are responsible for shaping the queer future, whether in politics, society or art. No one is going to do it on our behalf.
As we stand on the nondescript corner now named for her, I relate the story of the late queer activist Nancy Valverde, who was arrested repeatedly while a barber school student in the 1950s on suspicion of “masquerading” because of her preference for short hair and men’s clothing, and later successfully challenged her harassment by the police in court.
“What a hero!” Bailey exclaims, wondering at Valverde’s bravery. “The thing that’s so interesting with power battles is, ultimately, identity is the thing that gives you the most strength and power in your life, isn’t it?
“Because that’s one thing people can’t take away from you: who you are and how you express yourself."

Report bugs here and earn rewards: https://pubgmobile.live/support

PUBG MOBILE will begin pushing out the update on 5/13 at 2:00 (UTC+0). Service will not be interrupted. To ensure a quick and smooth update, please be in a good network environment and make sure you have enough available storage on your device.
Update Reward: Update the game between 5/13–5/27 (UTC+0) to get 3,000 BP, 100 AG, and a Mecha Warship Theme (3d).

Key Updates

1. New Themed Mode "Mecha Fusion": Engage in thrilling battles in a brand new battleship themed area with new mecha vehicles!
2. World of Wonder Updates: Bring your competitive experience to the next level with new mecha gameplay!
3. Firearm and Vehicle Updates: P90 and Skorpion have been rebalanced. QBZ added to Erangel and Miramar. Select vehicles now have a delayed explosion mechanic. Experience a different kind of battle!
4. Collection System: The Collection System is here! Start growing your collection today!
5. Home: The mysterious Elegant Ancient Capital resource pack is coming soon! Build your dream Home and show off your creativity in the Home Competition!

New Themed Mode: Mecha Fusion

Available: 2024/5/13 at 2:00 (UTC+0)–2024/7/9 at 20:59 (UTC+0)
Supported Maps: Erangel, Livik, and Miramar (Ranked and Unranked)
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New Mecha Vehicles

• Strider: A two-seater vehicle with the ability to jump. It's armed with missiles that can be used to bombard designated areas. Missiles can be replenished at the Repair Station in the Assembly Base.
• Levitron: A special vechile that can switch between a speed form and a magnetic form. Serves as the upper-body component that combines with a Strider to form the Armamech.
  • In speed form, the maximum speed and hover height will be increased, and the vehicle gains a "collision acceleration" ability: it will not slow down when it hits an obstacle. Instead, it will accelerate using the stored magnetic energy.
  • In magnetic form, the maximum speed and hover height will be reduced, but it can activate a "Magnetize" ability to grab and toss characters, vehicles, and specific objects.
• Armamech: A four-seater vehicle combined from a Levitron and a Strider. It can also be directly summoned from the Steel Ark.
  • It possesses 2 weapons that it can freely switch between: the Strider's missiles, and the Levitron's "Magnetize" ability.
  • It has a boosted jump that enables it to leap high and far with the assistance of jets.
  • Bring a Levitron and a Strider close together to combine them. After combining, the pilot of the Levitron becomes the pilot of the Armamech. It can also be separated at any time.

Brand New Environments

• Steel Ark:
  • A giant space battleship that will land on the map at the start of a match. You can enter it and explore inside. The core of the Steel Ark is a platform where you can summon the Armamech from the skies! You can launch yourself into the air in this mecha for everyone to see.
  • The ark consists of many areas. You can find all kinds of supplies and Supply Crates at the Command Post, Dormitory, Warehouse, and more.
  • From the landing pad, you can board an evacuation Wingman, which will take you straight to the Playzone!
  • You can use elevators and ziplines in the ark to get around.
  • Steel Ark Air Drop: A Steel Ark loaded with supplies will fly around during the match and drop supplies consisting of an Air Drop Crate and several Supply Crates at specific drop points.
• Assembly Base:
  • The Assembly Base contains a Mecha Repair Station. Approach it in a mecha to replenish the mecha's health, fuel, and missiles.
  • On the top floor of the Assembly Base, there is a detector that can determine the location of crates within the Assembly Base. An Access Card can be found in one of the crates, which can be used to open the door to the Secret Room and get loads of supplies.

New Items

• Jetpack: Pick it up and equip it to increase movement speed. It possesses the ability to hover in the air for a short duration. It consumes Energy rapidly when lifting off. Energy will only be replenished when you reach the ground. The Jetpack has a Health bar that protects you from damage to your back and arms. It will be destroyed after taking a certain amount of damage. When reaching a certain speed while moving forward, it can switch to a speed form. You will perform a special action when you tap "Lift Off" as it switches to the speed form. The Jetpack comes with the "Magnetize" ability, but you will not be able to fly fast when using it.
• Personal AED: If you have this item, you can tap self-rescue after being knocked down. Once successful, you will recover from the knocked down state. Each player can only carry one of these items. Self-rescuing will be interrupted if you move while using this item.
• Magnet Gun: This is a downgraded version of the Levitron's "Magnetize" ability in gun form. Switch to it by tapping on the firearm bar. It works the same as the Levitron's "Magnetize", but with reduced values.
• Respawn Beacon: Throw the beacon on the ground to mark a location that the plane will pass over. Recalled teammates can parachute into the match again at the cost of a respawn chance. Teammates who have used up all their respawn chances cannot respawn.
• Quick Parachute: When parachuting, a quick parachute button will appear at a certain height in the air. Tap it to immediately deploy the parachute which can also be freely put away.
• Repair Station: Approach the Repair Station in a mecha to replenish its health, fuel, and missiles.

New Legendary Pilot Challenge

Get themed items, special vehicle cosmetics, Armamech dance emotes, special Elimination Broadcasts, and more by completing this difficult themed mode challenge.

World of Wonder

Available: Releases with the version
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World of Wonder Updates

• Fuzzy search is now supported. You can search for maps by creation ID, creator UID, creation name, and description.
• Added the friends tab to check what creations your friends have made at a glance.
• Gift Access Point: You can now send Space Gifts from the creation details page and the creator's profile page.
• You can view your play data and creation data in WOW on your player information page.
• Ranking Improvements: Added support for more variables. Matches will now announce when a ranking player is in the match.
• Copied Creations Limit: The number of copied creations you can have (including creations that are already published or those under review) is limited based on your Creator Level. When the limit is reached, you can only publish original creations unless you take down an existing copied creation.
• Improved map recommendations and showcasing. Updated the WOW Creator page.

New Gameplay Devices

• Contested Object Device: Use this device to spawn a contested object, which players can hold in their hands similar to "capture the flag".
• Contested Object Handover Device: Contested objects can be handed over to this device for rewards.
• Defensive Tower Device: Use this device to generate a fixed defense tower and configure its weapon type.

Gameplay Device Improvements

• PvE Enemy Spawn Device: Supports spawning PvE enemies at random, configuring the PvE enemy's type, and randomizing their weight. You can also configure the PvE enemy's team.
• Random Action Device: Supports storing the result of a random integer in a custom variable.
• Special Vehicle Device: Added mechas.
• Map Indicator Device: Supports real-time display of icons and text in the game.
• Area Trigger Device: The action of the specific object entering the zone can be detected by the Area Trigger Device.
• Overall Action Device: The action of players leaving the match can be detected.
• Humanoid Enemy Spawn Device: Can now add buffs to spawned humanoid enemies.
• Grouped Object Action Device: Supports configuring grouped objects. Loading any one of them automatically removes the others.
• Item Issuance Device, Item Spawn Device, Custom Shop Device: Added 5.7mm ammo and the MG3.

New Interactive Objects

• Target Dummy: A target dummy from the single-player training stage that shows damage numbers when hit and has several poses.
• Soccer Ball: A soccer ball that moves upon contact.

Interactive Object Improvements

• New Dynamic Moving Object Actions: Every new movement method for moving objects has a corresponding action. They can be activated by the detectable actions of other devices.
• Guiding Lines: Launch pads and trampolines have guiding lines that show the trajectory of the player being launched into the air.

Controls & Interaction

• Guiding Lines When Placing Objects In Midair: When placing objects in the air, guiding lines that project the current object's position on the ground can be shown.
• Backpack Objects Can Be Interactized: You can take out interactized attachments such as a spinning ferris wheel from your backpack.
• Object Interactization—Collidable Interactization: Set whether interactized objects move when hit by characters, vehicles, bullets, or throwables.
• Object Interactization—Holding Interactization: Interactized objects can be held and tossed by characters.
• Coordinate Editing in Free Editing Mode: In Free Editing Mode, you can select an object directly and move, rotate, or resize it by modifying its coordinates.
• Object Editing Interface: Each object has an editing interface where you can directly edit the object's orientation, scaling, interactization type, or gameplay device parameters.
• Object Placement and Alignment Improvements: Improved the usability of object snap and area grid, as well as added more object alignment parameters.
• Auto Snap Option When Re-Editing: In the previous version, objects automatically snapped to their initial position when brought close to it during re-editing. This setting can now be toggled on and off in the editor's parameter settings interface, and is off by default.
• Object Movement and Rotation Increment: Added movement and rotation increment settings to the editor's parameter settings interface.
• Free Editing Top View Now Perfectly Flat: In Free Editing Mode, the previous top view editing was not perfectly flat, resulting in inaccurate positioning when placing objects from midair. Now, the editing view has been changed to be perfectly flat.
• Added temporary resources. They will be replaced with default resources when they expire.

Game Parameters

• Retaining Shop Tokens: Shop Tokens can now be kept during a match or across matches.
• Overall Action Management: Added tag customization and filter features. You can create tags for gameplay devices to classify and filter them based on the tags.
• Armed AI Customization Interface: Attributes for armed AI and defense towers can be customized, including health, attack, and more.
• Match Log Interface: In-game logs now include the save feature. You can save and view all logs generated during play tests.

Other Updates

• Group Editing: The team leader can edit the permissions of team members for better team management.
• Enchantopia Updates: You can invite friends to Enchantopia and edit your team there. Added more interesting gameplay to the stages.
• Cost Calculation Improvements: Fine-tuned how the system determines the cost of an object.
• New map templates.

Classic Updates

Livik Map Updates

• Added 4 new XT Upgrade Crates on top of the existing ones. New firearm upgrades are for the UMP45, SKS, DP-28, and M762. Upgrade Crates for these 4 firearms can be found in Livik or purchased from the Shop for 10 tokens.
  • UMP45 Upgrade: Reduced hip fire bullet spread by 20%.
  • SKS Upgrade: Faster recoil recovery after firing.
  • DP-28 Upgrade: Faster reload speed.
  • M762 Upgrade: Reduced muzzle shake.

Erangel Map Updates

• Improved the quality of models seen by players at high altitudes, and resolved the issue of buildings disappearing.

Home Updates

The Home System is permanently available, and will be updated each version with interesting gameplay and building cosmetics.

Home Competition

Submission Period: 2024/5/13 at 00:00–2024/6/1 at 8:59 (UTC+0)
Selection Period: 2024/6/1 at 9:00–2024/7/1 at 9:00 (UTC+0)

• You must reach at least 200 Home Prosperity before you can register for the Home Competition.
• If players miss the submission period, they can still register during the selection period. After registering, they will be placed in the next round's matchmaking pool.
• After registering, the selection criteria will be based on the current look of the player's Home.
• During the selection period, you'll be matched with players of similar Home Prosperity at random every 3 days, for 10 rounds in total.
• During the face-off, the player that obtains more votes wins. The winner gets to loot points from the loser.
• Participate in Home Face-Offs to win Home Points and increase your Home Face-Off Level. The higher the Home Face-Off Level, the better the rewards.
• Home Votes can be obtained by completing missions and by sending Home gifts. Note: Regular Popularity gifts do not grant Home Votes.
• Home gifts given during each face-off round of the selection period will count towards Home Votes. Home gifts given outside a face-off round will not count towards the number of votes.

Home Events

• Elegant Ancient Capital Style Event:
  • Available: 2024/5/18 at 2:00 (UTC+0)
  • Purchase Elegant Ancient Capital Home items during the event to get Style Points that can be redeemed for amazing rewards.
• Ancient Capital Theme Debut Celebration:
  • Available: 2024/5/18 at 00:00 (UTC+0)–2024/5/31 at 23:59 (UTC+0)
  • The Event Center is launching an event to celebrate Elegant Ancient Capital's arrival. Get a Congratulatory Ancient Capital Object Pack when you reach Home Lv. 3, and use it to build an Ancient Capital Style Home in an instant!
  • Visit your Home and upgrade your Home Level to get additional rewards, including Home Coins, Classic Crate Coupons, AG, Ancient Capital themed items, and more.

Home Building Updates

• Build With Blueprint & Group Editing:
  • Improved the process of building with blueprints. You can now go to More - Save Blueprint to copy and save the draft.
  • The Home Level required to build with blueprints and publish blueprints has been reduced to Lv. 3.
  • You can set the level of the blueprint you want to edit with a tap.
  • The Home Level required to access group editing has been reduced to Lv. 5. You can go to Blueprint Editing - More - Group Editing to invite your friends to build your Home together.
• Home Resource Updates:
  • The mysterious Elegant Ancient Capital resource pack will be coming soon, along with a surprise event that will reward the Elegant Ancient Capital doorplate and exclusive background music for a limited time.
  • Reach Home Lv. 3 to get a basic Elegant Ancient Capital object pack.

Home Resource & Content Updates

• Added an access point to the Home Shop in Home. Not only can you browse and edit freely in your Home, you can also enjoy the fun of shopping at any time.
• Added an access point to the Home Lucky Spin in the Home Shop, so you can more conveniently acquire your favorite items:
  • Upgraded the Lucky Spin event. There are now multiple Lucky Spins available at once, providing you with more diverse shopping options.
  • Elegant Ancient Capital themed items will be available in the Home Lucky Spin.
• The Elegant Ancient Capital themed items are now available in the Home Shop. Give your Home style a unique twist.
• Upgraded the Home's lighting effects so players can take more quality photos.
• Added customizable atmosphere modules that can be adjusted in visit mode.
• Added privacy settings so you can now control who has access to your Home. Additionally, after reaching Home Lv. 15, you can enable the private channel feature to enjoy private time with your friends.
• Improved object interactions. Added new facial expression changes after sitting down. Added new interactive objects: Smith Machine, Treadmill, Bathtub.
• Improved butler actions. Butlers can now turn around and look at the player when they are within a specific range.
• Home Tree Status Notification: When coins can be collected from the current Home Tree, you will see a notification icon on the Friends tab, the Enter My Home button, and the Home details page.

Metro Royale Updates

Available: 2024/5/15 at 1:00 (UTC+0)
Matchmaking: 2024/5/15 at 2:00 (UTC+0)

• Collectibles Cabinet Updates: New Chapter 20 Collectibles
• After obtaining specific Fabled collectibles, they can be displayed in the player's Personal Space.
• After obtaining specific Fabled collectibles, turn in collectibles to get certain Fabled collectible decorations for the Home.
• New Honor Rewards: Chapter 20 Elite Avatar, Chapter 20 Hero Avatar Frame, and Chapter 20 Legendary Name Tag. These rewards can be claimed after reaching the corresponding Honor level.
• New elite PvE enemy in Misty Port and Arctic Base: Strider.
• New firearms: P90 (Cobra), P90 (Steel Front).
• Player EXP can now be earned via Metro Royale matches.
• Companion EXP can be earned by bringing companions to Metro Royale matches.
• You can now tap to repair all items at once on the loadout page.
• You can now tap to open multiple inventory gift packs at once.
• Improved the firearm status at the preparation stage at the start of the match. Firearms will be reloaded by default and set to full auto firing mode.
• Fixed the issue of incorrect models for some drop items.

Firearm & Vehicle Improvements

• Firearm Adjustments:
  • P90 damage adjustment.
  • QBZ added to Erangel and Miramar.
  • Skorpion Improvements: Base damage increased from 22 to 24, 15% faster reload time, 20% faster aim down sights time, 30% reduced bullet spread when moving, 10% less sway when shooting.
• Delayed Explosion Mechanic for Select Vehicles: When a vehicle's health reaches 0, it won't explode right away. Instead, its engine will stop working and it will catch on fire before exploding after 5 seconds. If the vehicle is damaged by an explosion during this period, it will explode immediately. (Some special vehicles aren't affected by this change.)
• Mobile Shop Vehicle Modification: Added a new item to the Mobile Shop in Erangel, Livik, Miramar, and Sanhok. Use Shop Tokens to purchase its key and turn the Mobile Shop into a drivable vehicle. Items can only be purchased from the Mobile Shop when it's parked. If the vehicle is destroyed, it can no longer be used as a shop.

General Improvements

• Victory Dance: The A7 Victory Dance comes with an exclusive camera view. Select it from Creation Mode's Victory Dance tab.
• In-game Mark: When marking supplies with universal mark/quick chat, the quantity of the marked supply will also be shown.
• Customize Buttons: When customizing controls, you can now quickly copy your Arena Mode layout to use in Classic Mode.
• Improved Highlights:
  • Companions that you bring into matches will now show in highlights.
  • When recording highlights, all emotes that meet the requirements will be recorded and displayed during playback.
  • Adjusted the retention priority of highlights and the recording conditions of some clips to make it easier to retain them.
  • Teammate numbers now show in highlights.
  • Smoke from exploding grenades now shows in highlights.
• Auto Pick Up: You can now choose whether to discard or put your previous melee weapon into your backpack after picking up a new one.
• Sprinting Interrupts Peek Mode: This new setting is enabled by default. When disabled, if you perform a sprint while peeking, it won't interrupt peek mode and you won't start sprinting.
• New Individual Companion Display: Players can now choose to display their companions, and companions added to the companion system will take turns showing off. This can be done in the Lobby or in a match.
• Device Update: 120 fps and 90 fps are now available for select devices for you to enjoy a smoother gaming experience.

System Improvements

• New Collection System: Collect firearms, finishes, and more to get awesome rewards.
• Themed Event Shop additions: Mecha themed gameplay cosmetics, social items, fun items, and more.
• Chat Room Feature Updates:
  • Improved the list of featured chat rooms and added filters for chat room type, language, and more.
  • Added Speaking Mode: In regular mode, the host's permission is required to speak. In free mode, any player can freely speak.
  • Added new discussion topics to the chat room. Share your thoughts to increase the interactive atmosphere.
  • Added new ways to send Space Gifts.
  • Added chat room status updates in the Friends List.
• Birthday Care System: You can now add your birthday to your Social Player Card as part of the new birthday care system. You'll receive surprise care rewards when you log in on your birthday.
• Synergy: Complete missions such as adding friends and teaming up during the event to get Synergy items and the Underworld Outlaw Set (time-limited).

New Season: Cycle 6 Season 18

Available: 2024/5/18 at 2:00 (UTC+0)–2024/7/15 at 23:59 (UTC+0)
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• Reward updates: New legendary items: C6S18 Glasses, C6S18 Set, C6S18 Mask, C6S18 Cover, C6S18 - DBS
• Season Token Event Shop Update: C6S18 - Parachute

All-Talent Championship S19

Available: 2024/5/20–2024/7/4 (UTC+0)

• New Event Shop Rewards: Pop Sensation Set (Epic), Elven Tracker Cover (Legendary), Elven Tracker Set (Legendary), Finest Flavors - QBZ (Epic)
• New All-Talent Championship S19 Crate Rewards: Pop Sensation Set (Epic), Elven Tracker Cover (Legendary), Elven Tracker Set (Legendary), Finest Flavors - QBZ (Epic), Labyrinth Scale - M24 (Epic), Inked Battleground Parachute (Epic)
• New First and Second Runner-Up Rewards: Ducky Fighter Set (Legendary), Ducky Fighter Cover (Legendary), Time Traveler - Kar98K (Legendary), Round Parachute (Camo) (Epic), Mr. Bronze Set (Epic)

Popularity Gift Events

New Redemption Shop

• Popularity Gift Redemption Shop: The Redemption Shop is permanently available and its rewards will be continuously updated. Use tokens earned from Popularity Battles and Team Popularity Battles to redeem rewards.

Popularity Battle Event

Registration Period: 2024/5/14 at 00:00–2024/5/19 at 8:59 (UTC+0)
Battle Period: 2024/5/19 at 9:00–2024/6/18 at 9:00 (UTC+0)

• Main Updates:
  • New widget tool: Popularity Battle progress can now be synced to your device.
  • New rewards: Popularity Coin, Stickers
  • Lowered the points required to reach each level so obtaining rewards is easier.
• Rules:
  • Register to participate in the Popularity Battle event. During the battle period, get randomly matched with a powerful opponent every 3 days for a popularity contest. Lasts 10 rounds in total.
  • During the battle period, the Popularity of both competitors will be compared. The one with the highest Popularity wins.
  • The winner can claim some of their opponent's points.
  • Participate in Popularity Battles to win Battle Points and increase Battle Level. The higher the Battle Level, the better the rewards.

Team Popularity Battle Event

Registration Period: 2024/6/17 at 00:00–2024/6/23 at 8:59 (UTC+0)
Battle Period: 2024/6/23 at 9:00–2024/7/9 at 9:30 (UTC+0)

• Main Content:
  • New widget tool: Popularity Battle progress can now be synced to your device.
  • New reward: Popularity Coin
  • Lowered the points required to reach each level so obtaining rewards is easier.
• Rules:
  • Matchmaking: There will be a total of 8 rounds. Teams of similar strength will be matched every 2 days. Players within each team will be ranked by Popularity through 1v1 Popularity Battles.
  • Battle: Both sides will compete to see who can gain the most Popularity during this phase.
  • The total score will be determined by the win-loss record of each player on the team. In the event of a tie (2:2), the total Popularity of both teams will be compared.
  • The team with the higher total score will be declared the winner, and can loot Battle Points from the defeated team.
  • If all players within a team have the same score, they can jointly claim the level rewards and ranking rewards.
  • Teams that have registered can have their team leader create an exclusive Nickname Badge for the team, which serves as a symbol of the close bond between team members and gift recipients.
  • Nickname Badges support custom text and are unique.
  • Players can obtain a Nickname Badge by registering a team or by completing gift missions.

Security & Game Environment Improvements

Account Security

• Players who are conducting video reviews will now show the status, "Reviewing Video", on the Friend List.
• You can now log in via QR code with accounts linked to certain platforms.
• Improved account protection system with better account linking and unlinking procedures, and improved security verification and abnormal login reminders. Enhanced in-game notifications for better player awareness on how accounts are stolen to minimize their occurrence.
• Improved account recovery tool to enhance account retrieval and self-unlinking, to help more account owners in retrieving their accounts.

Security Strategy Improvements

• Improved cheat detection for X-Ray vision, auto aim, no recoil, speed hacks, modified resource files, and more.
• Improved violation detection for unfair cooperation and teaming up with cheaters.
• Improved the in-game detection and countermeasures against account farming, prohibited transactions, escorting, botting and other violations to better regulate in-game behavior and improve players' gaming experience.
• Improved detection and penalties for inappropriate text, voice messages, avatars, and Home designs to better regulate in-game behavior.

The kitchen is on fire. Welcome to the final part of the Vapiano story where the tables are turning. In the first two episodes we followed Mark Korzilius' journey from setbacks to founding Vapiano, a groundbreaking restaurant concept, highlighting its fresh ingredients, dynamic atmosphere, and data-driven operations that drove rapid success. While achieving initial profitability and garnering attention from industry giants like McDonald's, Vapiano's global expansion has led to stellar revenue growth. However, it has also resulted in the emergence of numerous side projects (or distractions), operational challenges, increased costs, significant investments, and a notable accumulation of debt. This underscores the prioritization of top-line growth over profitable growth. We will continue on this thread and see how the story ends, but I would encourage you to read part one and two for better context. Vapiano P1: Italian Food Made in Germany (substack.com). Let's dig in.
Before Going Public
We are now in 2015 and the year is a disaster for Vapiano's PR department. Employee time stamps are being manipulated, endless overtime for employees and high turnover in managerial roles are reported; mice in the kitchen and even rotten food allegedly found.
The company is confronted with allegations of exceeding working hours among trainees in an article published by Welt am Sonntag, while the same outlet accuses Vapiano of manipulating punch times. The auditing firm PwC is commissioned to investigate the allegations and finds that there is no systematic approach but rather misconduct by individual employees, a mistake that’s being corrected. Internal however, investigations into stamp times are carried out regularly now and beyond its obvious reputational impact, this sucks up valuable management time and attention.
In the summer of 2015 CEO, co-founder and investor Gregor Gerlach, who has been running the group since 2011 is stepping down and Jochen Halfmann is taking over. A new Vapiano People Program with an App is being developed with the aim to better interact with customers that will incorporate innovate features such as mobile pay. The German website sees a launch of new magazine to further promote the brand and there is now a full inhouse blogger and Instagram team being installed. In October the company buys seven restaurants from original co-founder, former co-investor and ex-president previously responsible for internation expansion Kent Hahne (2x Bonn, 3x Cologne, 1x Koblenz and one in Cologne that’s under construction). This package of Vapiano restaurants is very successful and generates net sales of more than 20 million euros in 2014. Hahne opened his first Vapiano restaurant in Cologne in August 2006 and in 2015 with his company apeiron AG, Hahne operates six L'Osteria franchise restaurants, a direct Vapiano competitor, and two self-owned restaurants GinYuu.
Then in November of 2015, the next public relations bomb goes off with allegations regarding the company's quality standards. The company immediately investigates the issue through internal and external specialists but finds no evidence of any quality issues. Nevertheless, knowing that the group is now being closely watched, the company’s already in place hygiene standards are being reinforced. Additional audits and inspections are performed nationally. Further, all Vapianos worldwide are being audited twice by the partners SGS Institut Fresenius and SAI Global. Auditing software is purchased to simplify the implementation of the audits and the resulting measures. Apart from the external examinations, there is a food sampling plan in place being performed continuously. Again, all of this sucks up costs, management time and attention. With all these tumultuous developments the company’s growth engine is undeterred. Revenue grows by a whopping 50 million euros to 202 million euros, an increase of 33%. Impressive. While average spent per customer increases in all countries, the number of customers per day in Germany decreases by 3.3% partially due to the negative press towards the end of the year. Five own, four JV and 19 new franchise restaurants are added that year to the group, the total number of own managed restaurants grows to 51, there are 31 JVs and 84 franchises which bringing the total to 166 Vapiano restaurants. Global restaurant sales are now above 400 million euros.
But while revenue grows by an astronomical 50 million euros, operating profits, alarmingly, shrink again. Gross margins are staying perfectly healthy above 75% but operating costs keep growing disproportionately fast. The Company’s outstanding debt jumps by almost 30 million, close to 85 million euros by the end of the year. With operating profits at 9.5 million euros, alarm bells should be going off right now.
In Q4 of 2015, new CEO Jochen Halfmann introduces Strategy 2020. The new strategy includes five essential points. One, profitable growth in the newly defined core markets of Germany and Austria as well as in the UK, Netherlands, France and USA. Two, operational excellence through strict “best practice” management. Three, further development and digitalization of the concept considering guest feedback. Four, greater focus on long-term employee retention and five, building a modern and sustainable IT landscape. Sound’s good on paper but let’s see how things pan out.
Vapiano's investments (capital expenditures) that year are primarily directed towards new restaurant openings, renovations of existing establishments, and share acquisitions in other Vapiano restaurants from franchisees or JV partners. A significant portion of funds is allocated to the digitalization of the guest experience, including the development of a new app scheduled for market release in 2016 and the implementation of a time recording system across all group restaurants. The world's first standalone Vapiano restaurant with a delivery service that year is built in Fürth, Germany. The company keeps expanding its presence in both inner-city locations and international markets, such as Shanghai, China.
To finance all of this, the group has its own operating cash flow which comes in at 18 million while capital expenditures are 26 million euros plus 14 million for acquisitions. The funding gab is filled with 26 million euros of new debt and a seven-million-euro equity raise. At that end of the year and after the equity raise Gregor Gerlach (through his AP Leipzig GmbH & Co. KG entity) holds 30.1%, Hans-Joachim and Gisa Sander through their Exchange Bio GmbH hold 25.5% and the Tchibo heirs, Herz through their Mayfair Beteiligungsfonds II GmbH & Co. KG hold 44,4%.
But for the first time the restaurant’s concept that was so successful to date is being questioned. Some customers are starting to mislike the operational flow of the concept itself. If you want pasta, you must queue for pasta. If you want pizza you stand in a different queue. A small side salad, yet another queue. "You spend more time carrying trays than an actress in Berlin-Mitte. The audience in the pasta limbo can only consist of people who have worked for an insurance company for a long time and, like Stockholm syndrome, they can no longer get away from the industrial canteen feeling," writes TV host Beisenherz provocatively. While overly harsh in his assessment he's not entirely wrong judging by customers venting their frustrations in forums and social media channels. It isn’t uncommon for those who ordered pizza to have already finished eating while there is little movement in the pasta queue. Long term that doesn't go down well, QSRs competitors like L’Osteria are handling this process differently, with much success.
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Tipping Point

Where are now in the year 2016 and things start to deteriorate visibility. Perhaps not for the leman’s eye but any business minded observer can see that there are problems under the hood. Yes, revenue grows yet another whopping 50 million to almost 250 million euros but half of that growth, comes from acquisitions of restaurants that the group didn’t already own 100%, which is now being fully consolidated within the group’s accounts. Here is a concrete example. In the past, Vapiano SE, the group’s top holding company held an indirect 50% stake in a French subgroup via the subsidiary VAP Restaurants SA, based in Luxembourg, and included this as an associated company in the Vapiano SE consolidated financial statements using the equity method. Due to the acquisition of additional shares in September of 2016, Vapiano SE's indirect share in the French subgroup increased to 75%. This means that Vapiano SE takes control of the French subgroup, which is therefore included in the group’s financial statements as part of the full consolidation. The revenue from the acquired subsidiary now recorded in the consolidated income statement amounts to 12.8 million euros. While that’s great for the top line, the loss of the fully consolidated entity equates to 0.2 million euros. Yes, you are buying revenue, but there are losses attached to them, not profits. A similar case is the Swedish entity that runs eight restaurants with revenue of 11.5 million euros but has losses of 235 thousand euros. So much for Strategy 2020 and “profitable” growth.
That year the group’s operating profits are absolutely tanking, halving to 3.5 million euros. Operating profits are now a mere 1,4% of revenue. Remember original founder Mark Korzilius who talked about operating margins of 25% to 28% at the restaurant level? Yes, there are overhead costs for the organization that sits above the chain of restaurants, but operating margins that low indicates a course correction is needed. What’s telling is that in the annual report, in the management discussion section, the company starts talking about EBITDA as a proxy measure of profitability, rather than operating profit or net income. This wasn’t the case in the years before. Is this window dressing for an upcoming IPO? EBITDA is short for earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization. How can you measure profitability of a restaurant chain that absolutely and unequivocally needs capital investment to maintain its restaurant operations, the very source of cash generation, by simply excluding this maintenance charge (depreciation in the income statement)? Vapiano’s own annual report talks about the fact that existing restaurants must be rejuvenated from time to time and that new interior designs have to be implemented every few years. These things wear and tear, they go out of style, kitchen equipment breaks and needs replacement. This business absolutely needs maintenance capital expenditure, why anyone talks of profits before these maintenance costs is beyond me. Fun fact: in the previous annual report EBITDA is mentioned seven times, mostly around restaurant acquisitions and financing, not however as a profit indication for the group. In the new annual report, EBITDA is mentioned 28 times. Maybe it’s just me but belated Charlie Munger liked to call EBITDA: bullsh*t earnings. When in doubt I stick with Charlie. Interestingly, EBITDA for Vapiano keeps growing while operating and net profits keep falling.
Operating cashflow for the group that year is about 21 million euros, but capital expenditure is 30 million and acquisitions for subsidiaries another 20 million. To finance these expenditures another 28 million euros of debt and 16 million of equity is raised. Net debt rises above 130 million euro. The operating cashflow of the group before any capital expenditures is 21 million euros. I am not sure free cash flow would be significantly positive after maintenance capex is paid out; it’s not broken out so we can’t be sure. Granted, I am not on the ground during this time, and I am not in the board room, I am simply reading what’s in front of me, but to me this is starting to look like a distressed situation. Regardless, the following year the company goes public.

IPO

Where are now in the year 2017 and its Vapiano’s first year as public company. The company’s annual report reads the following “Sales revenue, like-for-like growth (LfL) and the earnings figures EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA are used as the most important financial performance indicators for controlling operational business activities.” The very same report however also says: “The majority of the group's investments regularly go towards opening new restaurant locations and modernizing existing restaurants. The latter are differentiated into regular replacement investments that occur during ongoing operations (Maintenance CAPEX) and fundamental investments in the renovation of a restaurant (Remodeling CAPEX). On average, a restaurant remodeling takes place nine years after opening.” It says it right there in their own report; every nine years a remodeling is taking place. Remodeling and updating is not cost free, so why exclude depreciation charges which reflect capital expenditures? I understand that perhaps you would want to strip out one-off opening costs, that’s fine and fair, but don’t go overboard.
The number of restaurants increases by 26 (previous year: 13) to a total of 205. The increase consists of 27 new openings and one closure. Group revenue grows to an astonishing 325 million euros but here comes the shocker, operating profits turn negative to 25 million. Fine, strip out foreign exchange losses of 3 million, IPO costs of 5.8 million and new opening costs of 6.1 million and you still have 10 million euros of operational losses. All the while the debt load of almost 130 million hasn’t materially changed, so those operating losses are before a six-million-euro interest payment. 184 million euros are raised through the IPO of which 85 million go to the company. This money is earmarked for further expansion as the group has ambitions to almost double the footprint to 330 restaurants by the end of 2020. The company is currently not profitable on an operating basis, and still wants to expand aggressively? I don’t get it. The remaining 100 million euros of the IPO money raised is distributed to co-founder Gregor Gerlach and Wella heirs Hans-Joachim and Gisa Sander. The family office of the former Tchibo owners Günter and Daniela Herz with a 44% stake, don’t sell a single share. After the IPO, 32% of all the company’s shares are now in free float.
One year later, in 2018, things get even worse. Revenue grows to 371 million, but operating losses mount to 85 million euros, that’s before interest expenses of 9 million. Even the beloved EBITDA figure turns negative, meaning the operating business before any expansionary or even maintenance capital expenditures is loss making. All regions are experiencing significant deterioration in their earnings profiles. Like for like sales are down 1% across the board. That’s revenue, not profitability. The question naturally arises: is the Group approaching its natural saturation point here or this operational by nature? The operating cash flow is now 9 million while financing cost are close to 7 million. That leaves 2 million for maintenance capital for 74 own restaurants and 76 joint ventures ones. Describing this as financially tight, would be an understatement.
Things are not looking good at this point. Yet the company still grows restaurants by 26 new sites. 64 million euros are spent on acquisitions, new openings, and maintenance costs, financed through a 20 million-euro equity raise and 72 million of new debt. The Company now has net debt outstanding of over 160 million euros. After the equity raise and by the end of the year 2018, Mayfair owns 47.4%, VAP Leipzig, Gregor Gerlach’s entity owns 18.9% and the Sander couple own 15.5% of the company. Yes, the Sanders and Gerlach may have taken 100 million euros off the table, but they still have substantial skin in the game. Plus, Mayfair hasn’t sold a single share and instead injects more money into the company through the equity round. The stock has now fallen from its IPO price of 23 euros per share to under 6 euros by the end of 2018. Something must be done here. And indeed, there is pivot in strategy and a hard push for change. At last, the management team abandons its aggressive growth plan and curtails new openings significantly. Additionally, the team wants to run a thorough analysis of weak locations to then either discontinue or sell sites. In Europe, the operating focus will be put on corporate restaurants and joint ventures in major cities to ensure the ideal size and location to match the respective demographic target group. Outside of Europe, the franchising business is being expanded and at the same time a consolidation of the existing corporate and joint venture markets is being sought. All future investments will be reviewed to achieve higher rates of returns on new openings. Investments are also being made in the renovation of older restaurants. The goal in the future is to also open smaller formats, like Mini-Vapianos (less than 400 square meters) or Freestander at prominent transportation hubs outside city centers (currently in Fürth and Toulouse) to cater to individual location requirements, and to enter new partnerships. I am not sure why management hasn’t stopped all expansion altogether, bringing the ship in order first, getting profitable, clean up, all hands-on deck before considering any further expansions whatsoever. But again, it’s easy to comment from the sidelines; maybe they saw white spaces that would be covered by competing concepts if they weren’t moving fast and aggressively enough. Although pushing internationally means competing with local players such as Jamie's Italian, Prezzo, Pizza Express, Wagamama, Nando's and many more which brings in its own dynamic.
Management also aims to enhance guest satisfaction. This involves refining operational processes, reorganizing the support center, and refocusing on the core offering: providing fresh and high-quality Italian food at affordable prices for a broad audience. The group also aims to reduce waiting times, especially during lunch, while also improving the evening atmosphere. There is even what I would call an evolution, away from Vapiano’s original concept, reorientating the customer journey. The ordering flow is being changed, offering guests synchronized preparations of all dishes while eliminating wait times at the cooking stations. The open show kitchen remains, staying true to original mantra of freshness and transparency but now guests can choose their preferred method of ordering through a mobile app, using a digital order point (kiosk), or by personally placing an order with a waiter. Guests can still freely choose their table and are then informed about the complete preparation of their order through a pager or their smartphone. This is a substantial deviation from the original concept, but a needed one. The group is also exploring and implementing the expansion of take-away and home delivery services but only at suitable locations, not universally across new openings. I am not sure why home delivery is even a priority here; it adds operational complexity. It’s better to clean up shop first and get back to the basics before adding new complexities. To be fair management does try to simplify. There are 49 different permanent dishes on the menu and additional 10 seasonal ones. Customers can choose from eleven different types of pasta. There is simply too much choice, and it makes orders complicated. The company announced to slim the menu down to its most popular and typical Vapiano dishes. There’s no need for an Asian salad at an Italian restaurant. "We have to go back to the roots, i.e. classic, honest Italian cuisine" says COO Everke. Regardless, in November of 2018, the supervisory board pulls the plug on CEO Jochen Halfmann and replaces him with Cornelius Everke. Everke himself has just become COO five months ago. Since 2017 he was responsible for international expansion. From 2011 to 2017 that role was filled by Mario Bauer – put a pin in that name, he’ll play a key role in the groups fate later. Then nine months later, in the middle of 2019, Cornelius Everke quits. He essentially concludes that his skillset and experience in the areas of internation expansion is no longer needed in the foreseeable future. To put it differently: Vapiano has moved from a growth story and has become a restructuring case, and other skills are required for that job. In June of 2019 Everke says the following “(we’ve) made a bit of a mistake when it came to foreign expansion”. No sh#t. Vapiano postpones the presentation of the 2018 annual financial statements three times in the spring of 2019, citing negotiations over an urgently needed loan of 30 million euros. It’s not until the end of May that a binding loan commitment comes through from the financing banks and major shareholders.
We are now in August of 2019 and the corona pandemic is just around the corner. Supervisory board chief Vanessa Hall takes over as interim-CEO and things are unravelling. Visitor numbers are declining; originally, it was planned to sell the US business but halfway through the year the buyer cannot come up with the money. But not all restaurants are performing poorly. The group's poor figures contrast starkly as an example with the experiences of the Swiss-German franchisee, who runs six restaurants. The Sodano family in Switzerland pays Vapiano a royalty of 6% of sales for the use of the brand. Enrico Sodano explains in an interview that they operate largely autonomously from the licensor. If an “accident” were to occur, he could immediately replace the Vapiano sign with Sodano, he says. The family concluded the rents and contracts with employees and suppliers independently. The Sodano family have six locations in Bern, Basel and Zurich, around one million guests every year and 350 employees. Things are going well on the ground. The delivery service they’ve built is offering them a second income stream. Expansion into Winterthur, St. Gallen and Lucerne are being planned; small locations with 150 to 250 square meters and an attached delivery service. Originally, Vapiano restaurants used to be huge but for such a large restaurant to be profitable, 800 to 1,000 guests per day are needed. That’s possible in medium-sized cities, but not in smaller towns which is why the Vapiano group now also supports smaller formats. Back to our corporate drama. The 2019 annual report would be the last report the group files. By the end 2019 the outstanding debt of the company is at an astronomical 450 million euros. Revenue has grown by another 7%, produced by four net new openings through two JVs and two franchise restaurants but operating losses come in at 317 million euros. That sound like an absolute shocker at first but depreciation and amortization charges are 345 million, so that operating cash flow is actually positive but unfortunately capital expenditures and interest payments are so large that they are eating up all of the company’s operating cash flow. Then in the beginning of 2020 Corona hits with full force and the world shuts down. As a result of the measures to prevent further spreading of the virus, the group is forced to cease all global business operations (except in Sweden). While all these shutdowns are happening, the group is the middle of negotiating with its lending banks and main shareholders. There are additional financing needs for restructuring measures, even without a pandemic happening in the background. The situation is so dire that the company starts pleading to the German government to roll out the package of financial help more quickly. Unfortunately, it’s to no end. The rapid closure of restaurants and the resulting lack of operating cash inflows in conjunction with the additional financing requirements, lead to the company’s final knockout punch. In April of 2020, the Vapiano group officially files for insolvency proceedings. The end of an era.

New Beginnings

Because of the pandemic, the majority of the group's subsidiaries in Austria, the Netherlands, Denmark, the United States, Sweden, and China also file for insolvency or seek liquidation. The US business never gets sold in the end and is wound down. In the summer of 2020, significant group divestments occur, including the sale of 75% shares in the group's French subsidiaries, shares in franchisor companies, Australian subsidiaries, German subsidiaries, associated companies, self-managed restaurants in Germany, and insolvency-related sales in the Netherlands, Great Britain, and Sweden. The buyer of the Vapiano brand and one of these bundles of Vapiano restaurants is company named Love & Food Restaurant Holding, a consortium led by Mario C. Bauer – a name I told you to remember. Bauer was a former Vapiano board member and led the national and international expansion, opening 200 sites in 33 countries from 2011 to 2017 until he was succeeded by Cornelius Everke. Bauer didn’t feel comfortable with the IPO at the time but clearly has a lot of managerial and entrepreneurial talent.
The buyer consortium is an absolute A-Team comprised of European QSR top league hitters, including the founder of the Pret A Manger chain Sinclair Beecham; Henry McGovern, the founder and Ex-CEO of the giant international restaurant and foodservice operator AmRest; the Van der Valk Family that runs hotels and Vapiano restaurants in the Netherlands, and co-founder and ex-CEO Gregor Gerlach. The acquisition value is 15 million euros and entails 30 Vapiano restaurants in Germany, albeit that’s just the purchase price which comes on top of any capital investment needed to refresh and return the sites to its former glory. Nevertheless, just as a thought experiment, if you can get each site to 2 million euros of revenue and 400,000 euros in operating profit on average, which wouldn’t be an overly aggressively assumption given the company’s history, you’ve got yourself a package that can deliver restaurant-level operating profits of 12 million euros or more. It’s not disclosed how much capex was needed to refresh the operations, just that fact that the overall investment plus purchase price was a middle double-digit million-euro figure. Stil, it probably was a decent purchase. The same consortium buys Vapiano’s French business for 25 million euros just two weeks prior. After the transaction concludes, the master franchise is given to Delf Neumann and his Gastro & Soul GmbH. Neumann is an experienced operator, and he is ambitious to revitalise the brand with new services and products. For example, instead of pizza, the restaurants will be serving pinsa - a flatbread made from sourdough, wheat and rice flour, topped similarly to a pizza. It targets a more health-oriented customer base looking for a less calory heavy option. The menu overall is expanded by including a variety of vegan and vegetarian dishes.
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Today Neumann’s Gastro & Soul GmbH operates 18 Vapianos on its own account and has 29 franchise sites, amongst other brands. By the year 2021, Vapiano operates 191 restaurants in 34 countries. This is around 50 fewer sites than before the bankruptcy. The number of branches is particularly thinned out in Germany – from 80 to 55. Nevertheless, Vapiano's home country remains by far the largest market, followed by France with 35 restaurants and Austria with 15 locations. “We have shrunk ourselves to health,” says Bauer in the aftermath and there is no further shrinking planned. Quite the opposite, the smell of expansion is in the air again – pun intended. Not as aggressively as before and with a new menu and ordering process.
Overall, the team around Bauer is filled with industry experts with knowledge and networks gained over decades who have a great track record, a long-term view, and the staying power to let Vapiano breath and finds its way back to success. The pressure of being a public company with all the associated quarterly, half-year and yearly disincentives have been removed. The menu is changed and extended with new types of pasta and sauces with significantly more vegetarian and vegan dishes available. Guests can order with restaurant staff, at terminals or on their phones and there are barcodes attached to the tables identify the respective seat. The food is brought to your table, all at the same time if you are in a group, no more annoyances with waiting in line. There is a plan for smaller, 350 square meter locations, with half the number of guests and significantly fewer staff and less set-up costs required to make the economics work. Locations that capitalize on remote work and increased demand for local lunch options, higher population density with shorter delivery routes and therefore cost-effective in house delivery services are targeted. And Bauer is testing the concept of ghost kitchens, which operate without a dining room or service staff, focusing solely on preparing food for delivery services, which for obvious reasons have a very different operational set up and footprint. Original founder Mark Korzilius however is not entirely convinced. He is not a fan of the pinsa for instance and he considers Vapiano's pizza as its cash cow, flagship product and believes that the core Vapiano proposition of Pizza, Pasta, Bar that has given the company its original success is being diluted. He instead admires the competitor L'Osteria, saying they’ve done a better job by focusing on Italian classics, especially the impressively large pizzas that sticks out beyond the plate is leaving every customer in awe. The guys who run L’Osteria are the same guys who have built Vapiano with him in the first place. Bauer on the other hand, like a true business leader, remains undeterred, stating that he is frequently asked whether Vapiano's restart was bold or foolish. He believes in entrepreneurship, franchising, in his experienced fellow partners and importantly the Vapiano concept. By the year 2024 you can find over 140 Vapiano branded restaurant in 27 countries across the globe, including locations far away from its birthplace like Australia, USA, Columbia, Chile, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia. And why not? Italian food is, and will remain to be, incredibly popular. Vapiano offers fresh and tasty food at affordable prices in a good atmosphere. This combination of attributes should attract a lot of customers. It certainly has in the past.
For more stories: WIP Thomas Weitzendoerfer Substack

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What are Dividends?

Limited company dividends refer to the distribution of profits that a company makes to its shareholders. In the United Kingdom, a limited company is a business structure that has its finances separate from the personal finances of its owners (shareholders). When a limited company generates profits, the directors may choose to distribute a portion of these profits to shareholders in the form of dividends.

Who are Dividends For?

Dividends are typically intended for the shareholders of a limited company. Shareholders are individuals or entities that own shares in the company, which represents their ownership stake. Dividends are a way for shareholders to receive a return on their investment and a share of the company’s profits. It’s important to note that not all profits need to be distributed as dividends — companies often retain some profits for reinvestment or future use.

How to Issue Dividends?

The process of issuing dividends involves several steps:
a. Determine Available Profits:
Before issuing dividends, a company must ensure that it has sufficient distributable profits. These profits are calculated based on the company’s financial statements, taking into account factors such as retained earnings, reserves, and any other legally available profits.
b. Hold a Board Meeting:
The board of directors must convene a meeting to discuss and declare the dividend. The decision should be recorded in the meeting minutes, specifying the amount of the dividend, the date of declaration, and the names of the shareholders receiving dividends.
c. Notify Shareholders:
Once the dividend is declared, shareholders must be informed in writing of the amount they will receive and the payment date.
d. Transfer Funds:
On the agreed-upon payment date, funds are transferred to the shareholders’ bank accounts.

Dividend Paperwork

In the UK, it’s crucial to maintain proper documentation when issuing dividends. This paperwork includes:

a. Dividend Vouchers:

Dividend vouchers are legal documents that confirm the dividend declaration, specifying the amount and date of payment. These vouchers should be provided to each shareholder receiving dividends.

b. Minute Records:

Detailed minutes of the board meeting where the dividend was declared must be maintained in the company’s records.

Tax on Dividends

In the UK, dividends are subject to tax. As of the 2024/2025 tax year, there’s a tax-free dividend allowance of £500 per year. Any dividends beyond this allowance are taxed at varying rates depending on the individual’s overall income tax band.
Understanding and managing limited company dividends can be complex, especially in relation to tax implications. To ensure your business is handling dividends optimally and in compliance with tax regulations, consider hiring professional small business accountants. Our UK-based accounting experts can provide tailored advice, guide you through the dividend process, and help optimize your tax obligations. Book a free consultation today to elevate your financial management and ensure the success of your business.