PE-backed Buffalo Grill completes second refinancing

José Rojo
22 May 2015

Tweet
Facebook
LinkedIn
Google plus
Send to

French steakhouse chain Buffalo Grill, backed by Abénex Capital and Nixen Partners, has undergone its second refinancing since the 2008 SBO.

Information regarding the amount of senior debt being refinanced remains confidential, but market sources place it below €100m. Buffalo's current debt is thought to sit below that mark after the business repaid some of the €175m it borrowed as part of the 2008 buyout.

The restructuring saw Buffalo's previous senior lenders – Calyon and Societe Generale, which led 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.

Aside from this partial debt refinancing, the transaction featured an additional €30m supplied by Buffalo's lenders to help the company expand its network of restaurants. The business has plans for 13 openings throughout 2015, eight of which will be Buffalo Grill restaurants and five will be Buffalo Burger establishments.

The refinancing is the second the business has undergone since being acquired by Abénex and Nixen in 2008. 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.

Previous funding
Buffalo Grill was acquired by Abénex Capital 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.

Colony Capital had 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 Spain, Belgium, Luxembourg and Switzerland. It currently operates 331 restaurants.

Employing a workforce of 5,560, the company most recently posted turnover of €522m.

People
Associate manager Olivier Moatti and manager François Even led the deal for Abénex Capital, while Nixen Partners was represented by CEO Jean-Paul Bernardini and director Anne-Laure Mougenot.

Advisers
Debt – Credit Agricole, Jean-Christophe Bonassies, Fabrice Carlioz (Debt advisory); Gide, Thomas Binet, Rossana Braz-Duarte (Legal).
Company – Mayer Brown, Olivier Aubouin, Jérémy Thézée, Patrick Teboul, Marion Minard, Benjamin Homo, Elodie Deschamps (Legal); EY, Gilles Marchadier, Pierre Josset (Corporate finance).