M&A Deal Summary

Freeman Spogli Acquires Cafe Rio

On September 7, 2017, private equity firm Freeman Spogli acquired restaurant Cafe Rio from Apax and KarpReilly

Acquisition Highlights
  • This is Freeman Spogli’s 4th transaction in the Restaurants sector.
  • This is Freeman Spogli’s 34th transaction in the United States.
  • This is Freeman Spogli’s 1st transaction in Utah.

M&A Deal Summary

Date 2017-09-07
Target Cafe Rio
Sector Restaurants
Buyer(s) Freeman Spogli
Sellers(s) Apax
KarpReilly
Deal Type Secondary Buyout
Advisor(s) Piper Jaffray Companies (Financial)

Target

Cafe Rio

Salt Lake City, Utah, United States
Cafe Rio is a high-growth, fast-casual Mexican restaurant concept focused on serving exceptional food that is made from scratch. Cafe Rio offers its customers a wide variety of menu items that are customized by using various formats, proteins, and sauces. Its differentiated approach and focus on serving high-quality, fresh, made-from-scratch food has engendered an extremely loyal customer following with high brand satisfaction and net promoter scores. Cafe Rio was founded in 1997 and is based in Salt Lake City, Utah.

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Buyer(S) 1

Buyer

Freeman Spogli

Los Angeles, California, United States

Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1983
PE ASSETS 7.0B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Focused
DESCRIPTION

Freeman Spogli & Co. is a private equity firm focused on acquiring middle-market retail, direct marketing, and distribution companies. The Firm will consider opportunities throughout North America and prefers partnering with management when pursuing acquisitions. Freeman Spogli looks to invest $75 to $300 million in transactions valued up to $750 million. Freeman Spogli was formed in 1983 and is based in Los Angeles, California with an additional office in New York City.


DEAL STATS #
Overall 34 of 48
Sector (Restaurants) 4 of 4
Type (Secondary Buyout) 14 of 18
State (Utah) 1 of 1
Country (United States) 34 of 48
Year (2017) 1 of 3
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2017-07-27 First Watch

Bradenton, Florida, United States

First Watch operates full-service daytime cafés under the First Watch and The Egg & I brands. The restaurants serve breakfast, brunch, and lunch from 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., seven days a week. The company provides customers a unique farm-to-table experience through a variety of healthy, traditional, and indulgent offerings, with a focus on fresh ingredients and outstanding service. First Watch was founded in 1983 and is based in Bradenton, Florida.

Sell -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2017-09-29 Planet Fitness

Hampton, New Hampshire, United States

Planet Fitness is a franchisor and operator of fitness centers in the United States, with more than 12.5 million members and 1,700+ stores in 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Canada, the Dominican Republic, Panama, and Mexico. Planet Fitness was formed in 1992 and is based in Hampton, New Hampshire.

Buy -

Seller(S) 2

SELLER

Apax

London, United Kingdom

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor


Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1981
PE ASSETS 77.0B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

Apax Partners is a mega-sized private equity investment group, operating across the United States, Europe, Israel and Asia. Broad industry sectors of interest include tech & telecom, media, retail & consumer, healthcare, financial services, and business services. Apax will consider both minority and majority investment positions and prefers companies with strong market positions and growth potential. The Firm generally pursues platform acquisitions valued from $1 to $5 billion. Apax Partners was formed in 1981 and is based in London.


DEAL STATS #
Overall 123 of 171
Sector (Restaurants) 2 of 2
Type (Secondary Buyout) 40 of 61
State (Utah) 1 of 1
Country (United States) 47 of 63
Year (2017) 5 of 6
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2017-09-01 Matchesfashion

London, United Kingdom

Matchesfashion is a luxury online retailer, engaging with its customers online, in-store, via its app, and at its pioneering retail and broadcasting destination, 5 Carlos Place. It delivers to over 176 countries and offers 24/7 advice through its fashion concierge team MyStylist. Matchesfashion was founded in 1987 and is based in London, United Kingdom.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2017-10-01 Squad

Poissonnière, France

Squad is an IT services company specialized in Cybersecurity and DevOps. Squad provides expertise to ensure protection against the most complex cyber threats. Combining the best practices of DevOps and Cybersecurity, we are committed to creating secured cyberspace. Squad was founded in 2011 and is based in Poissonnière, France.

Buy -
SELLER

KarpReilly

Greenwich, Connecticut, United States

Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 2007
PE ASSETS 500M USD
Size Middle-Market
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

KarpReilly is a private equity firm focused on partnering with small to mid-size growth companies across a broad range of industries. The Firm looks to commit $10 to $25 million of equity capital per investment. Sectors of interest include building materials, business services, consumer brands, healthcare services, retail, and restaurants. KarpReilly will consider both minority or majority investment positions in transactions that include growth financings, management buyouts, acquisition financings, and recapitalizations. KarpReilly was formed in 2007 and is headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut.


DEAL STATS #
Overall 14 of 14
Sector (Restaurants) 4 of 4
Type (Secondary Buyout) 5 of 5
State (Utah) 1 of 1
Country (United States) 13 of 13
Year (2017) 2 of 2
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2017-07-18 EbLens

Torrington, Connecticut, United States

EbLens is a lifestyle retailer of urban-inspired footwear, apparel and accessories. EbLens features regular releases of exclusive and limited-edition footwear as well as the most sought-after and hottest premium brands, including Nike, Jordan, adidas, Timberland, Polo, The North Face, Lacoste and Nautica, among others. Through a growing footprint of stores in key New England and New York markets, EbLens is emerging as a destination for consumers seeking on-trend fashion. EbLens was founded in 1949 and is based in Torrington, Connecticut.

Sell -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2018-02-16 Christy Dawn

Los Angeles, California, United States

Christy Dawn is a vintage-inspired clothing brand that uses deadstock fabric and sells predominantly through the Company’s website (www.ChristyDawn.com). The Company uses only sustainable methods of production and offering living wages. Christy Dawn is based in Los Angeles, California.

Buy -