TDR Capital in exclusivity for Buffalo Grill

Buffalo Grill confirmed the information in a press release. The deal, which is still awaiting regulatory approval and consultation with the company's works councils, could value the restaurant chain at around €400m, according to French publication Les Echos. This would equate to roughly 8x Buffalo Grill's profits.

TDR – which earlier this year was thought to be nearing a €3bn close for its fourth fund – is no stranger to the casual dining sector. The manager notably held Pizza Express in the UK in the mid-2000s and currently owns the Stonegate Pub Company. It acquired the latter from UK operator Mitchells & Butlers for £373m in 2010.

The sale process for Buffalo Grill is understood to have been handled by DC Advisory.

Previous funding
Buffalo Grill was acquired by Abénex and Nixen in October 2008 alongside Cerea Capital from Eurazeo and London-based Colony Capital. The €330m SBO saw the firms wholly acquire the business, with Abénex becoming the majority shareholder.

In 2010, the steakhouse chain fully refinanced the mezzanine tranche that had been supplied by Cerea Partenaire/Unigrains, Alcentra and Paris Orléans with a senior debt package and some of its own cash.

In mid-2015, the company underwent a second refinancing, thought to be worth less than €100m. The restructuring saw Buffalo's previous senior lenders – Calyon and Societe Generale, which arranged the package, as well as Cadif, IKB, LCL and Rabobank – being joined by Archea and Idinvest Partners. According to sources close to the deal, the refinancing allowed majority shareholder Abénex to reap a dividend.

Colony Capital previously acquired a 75% stake in the company in a €340m take-private in 2005. The GP invested via its Colony Investors and Colyzeo funds – the latter, formed in partnership with Eurazeo, secured a 50% stake in Buffalo. The company was delisted in 2007.

Company
Founded in 1980 by Christian Picart, Buffalo Grill is a French steakhouse chain. Having first opened in Avrainville, where it is still headquartered, the business then expanded across the rest of France, and into Spain, Belgium, Luxembourg and Switzerland. It currently operates 335 restaurants.

Employing a workforce of more than 6,000, the company most recently posted a turnover of €532m.

Advisers
Vendors – DC Advisory (M&A).

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• Topics
• Buyouts
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• Abénex Capital
• TDR Capital
• NiXEN
• Secondary buyout