H.I.G. Europe Establishes Iberian Foodservice Platform; Acquires Café & Té and Panaria Chains
MADRID – August 4, 2014 – H.I.G. Europe, the European affiliate of H.I.G. Capital, a leading global private equity investment firm focused on middle market companies, has completed the acquisition of Café & Té and Panaria, two leading bakery, coffee shop and tapas bar operators in the very fragmented Spanish foodservice market.
Café & Té is a leading Spanish coffee shop and tapas bar operator with a network of 147 points of sale with 101 Directly Operated Stores (“DOS”). Café & Té Group operates, amongst others, through the following brands: Café & Té, Café & Tapas, Il Caffè di Roma, Kroxan and Sky Madrid.
Panaria was founded in 2010. In 4 years, Panaria has developed a network of more than 60 coffee shops with 10 DOS. Panaria will contribute to the group the brands Panaria, Bocados, LaBurgin, and Charlotte, the recently acquired coffee shop franchise network with 40 franchisees.
The new group will have more than 247 stores in premium locations, of which approximately one-half will be DOS and the remainder franchises.
Antonio Pérez, founder and CEO of Panaria, will continue to own an equity stake in the company and will become CEO of the resulting entity, with the ultimate goal of positioning the company as a leading operator of foodservice concepts in the Iberian Peninsula. Gustavo Ron, Founder of Café & Té, will continue supporting Mr. Pérez as a Director of the combined company.
Jaime Bergel, Managing Director of H.I.G. Europe, said, “We are very pleased to back the combination of Café & Té and Panaria, two very successful concepts in the Iberian foodservice industry, which have proven resilient in the face of a competitive environment. We fully support management’s vision of building a leading platform in Spain through internal and external growth opportunities”.
About Café & Té
Founded in 1973 by Mr. Gustavo Ron, Café & Té is a leading Spanish coffee shop chain. Café & Té operates a network of 147 coffee shops, 101 owned and 46 franchises. The company’s owned and franchised coffee shops sell coffee, tea, ice cream, tropical juices, paninis, baguettinis, toast, pancakes, natural shakes, pastries, hamburgers, salads, chocolate, smoothies, milkshakes and frappes, cake, pasta, pizza, sandwiches, and fresh baked goods. Café & Té is top of mind with Spanish consumers and it ranks second compared with the rest of coffee shop franchises in Spain. http://www.cafeandte.com/
About Panaria
Panaria is a fast-growing premium bakery and coffee shop concept based on a high-quality product offering. Its wide product offering comprises bread and bakery, sandwiches, pizza, etc. It also offers lunches and catering services. Panaria was founded in Valencia in 2010 by Mr. Antonio Pérez and, in 4 years, has achieved a network of more than 60 coffee shops with 10 DOS and more than 300 employees. http://www.panariapanaderias.es/
About H.I.G. Capital
H.I.G. is a leading global private equity investment firm with more than €11 billion of equity capital under management. Based in Miami, and with offices in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, New York and San Francisco in the U.S., as well as international affiliate offices in London, Hamburg, Madrid, Milan, Paris and Rio de Janeiro, H.I.G. specializes in providing capital to small and medium-sized companies with attractive growth potential. H.I.G. invests in management-led buyouts and recapitalizations of profitable and well managed manufacturing or service businesses. Since its founding in 1993, H.I.G. has invested in and managed more than 200 companies worldwide. The firm’s current portfolio includes more than 80 companies with combined sales in excess of €22 billion. For more information, please refer to the H.I.G. website at www.hig.com.