HIG buys Quick Restaurants for EUR 240m

The transaction is expected to be completed before the end of the year, following regulatory approval.

The vendor said the disposal would help Burger King France to strengthen its financial structure. The assets under consideration reported EUR 227m in sales and EUR 21m in EBITDA in 2019.

HIG said its investment would support Quick’s management team in its transition to an independent company. The GP and the business aim to double the size of Quick's network in the coming years.

Ares provided financing to support the transaction.

The GP will invest trough both its HIG Europe LBO III and HIG Middle Market I funds. 

Europe LBO III held a final close at EUR 1.1bn in late 2020. The fund invests in buyouts, recapitalisations and corporate carve-outs of both profitable and underperforming manufacturing and service mid-market businesses. It targets companies generating EBITDA of EUR 10m-35m and operating across a wide range of sectors, including manufacturing, services, healthcare and IT.

Middle Market I was registered in February 2020 with a target of EUR 1.99bn, according to Unquote Data.

Previous funding
The deal sees Quick returning under PE ownership following its spell with Burger King France.

Mid-cap GP Qualium became a majority shareholder in Quick in January 2007. Three years later, the GP began contemplating an exit for the business and hired Rothschild to run the process. The divestment plans were cut short by a food poisoning incident at one of Quick's branches in Avignon. After putting the sale on hold, Qualium arranged a debt restructuring understood to amount to EUR 417m in 2013, which saw the GP inject a further EUR 30m of equity into the business.

In 2015, Qualium entered exclusive talks to sell the business to corporate Groupe Bertrand, the owner of Burger King France. Enterprise value for Quick was not disclosed, but press reports at the time stated it was valued at around EUR 600-700m ahead of the sale.

Company
Established in 1971, Quick is one of France's most notable fast-food chains. Having been established in the country since 1980, Quick serves more than 36 million meals per year from a network of 107 restaurants.

People
HIG Capital - Olivier Boyadjian (managing director).

Advisers
Equity - Winston & Strawn (legal); Lincoln International (debt advisory); Accuracy (financial due diligence); Roland Berger (commercial due diligence).

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• Topics
• Buyouts
• Consumer
• France
• HIG Capital