Franchising
FAT Brands acquiring Fazoli's for $130M
November 2, 2021
Lol Angeles-based FAT Brands Inc. has agreed to acquire Fazoli's for $130 million from Sentinel Capital Partners. The transaction is expected to close by mid-December, according to a company press release. Fazoli's CEO Carl Howard, along with his entire leadership team, will continue in their roles, Howard told FastCasual.
"Fazoli's has a great growth story, in particular, over the last year; they continue to surpass sales expectations across the board," FAT Brands CEO Andy Wiederhorn said in the release. "We have been eyeing this category for some time; however, we were waiting for the right brand — one that is high-growth, with almost all restaurants having drive-thru access, in addition to, the synergies that we will achieve adding Fazoli's to our portfolio of brands. We look forward to building off of the success of Sentinel Capital Partners."
With over 200 stores and a development pipeline of 100 units over the next several years, the purchase of Fazoli's will increase FAT Brands' footprint to 2,300 stores and its 2022 expected systemwide sales to over $2.1 billion. The purchase will also increase FAT's post-COVID normalized EBITDA by about $14.5 to $15 million in 2022.
"We have had an outstanding year and we couldn't be more pleased to join forces with FAT Brands, a company that has the same growth-oriented mentality as us at Fazoli's," Howard said about the Kentucky-based brand. "From co-branding to virtual kitchens to menu development opportunities, we see great value in being a part of FAT Brands."
FAT Brands owns 15 restaurant brands: Round Table Pizza, Fatburger, Marble Slab Creamery, Johnny Rockets, Twin Peaks, Great American Cookies, Hot Dog on a Stick, Buffalo's Cafe & Express, Hurricane Grill & Wings, Pretzelmaker, Elevation Burger, Yalla Mediterranean and Ponderosa and Bonanza Steakhouses.
