Powered By Blogger

Thursday, September 1, 2016

Gourmet Burger Kitchen Swallowed By Wimpy Owner Famous Brands

The high-end UK burger chain Gourmet Burger Kitchen (GBK) is to change hands in a £120m deal.

The company is to be bought by the owner of Wimpy, Famous Brands, which said it viewed the purchase as an opportunity to go upmarket.

GBK has grown to 75 restaurants since it was bought from its founders in 2010 by South African private equity vehicle Yellowwoods.

It was confirmed that the chain's current management team and staff would remain in place.

Famous Brands added that it saw plenty of scope to double GBK's footprint through the opening of more outlets over the next five years - with 10-15 new restaurants in the UK alone annually.

"The low interest environment in the UK is supportive of continued consumer spend, while the impact of fears of Brexit on this sector appear negligible - endorsed by a recent survey which confirms that despite the generally subdued economy, household spend in the Eating Out category is up 4% year on year in June 2016."

GBK recently secured an agreement to buy back five franchises in Ireland and Famous Brands said it was considering opening up in South Africa.

Its group strategic adviser, Kevin Hedderwick, said: "We've been looking to expand our presence in the UK market for some time, and the acquisition of GBK was the perfect opportunity for us to do this.

"Not only will this enhance our existing income stream with currency earned outside of Africa, it simultaneously up-weighs Famous Brand to a higher league."

No comments:

Post a Comment