Red’s tucks in to expansion plans
RED’S True Barbecue, the restaurant operator with sites in Liverpool and Manchester, has agreed a £9m investment deal to help it pursue aggressive expansion.
The debt deal includes a second round from veterans of the restaurant industry, following the company’s successful launch of six sites across the UK.
The panel of investors which stumped up the £9m included former Wagamama chairman Ian Neill, former banker turned K10 Sushi restaurateur Maurice Abboudi, founder of Tortilla restaurants Brandon Stephens and Vietnamese street food chain Pho creator Stephen Wall.
The company has committed to opening up to 10 further smokehouses in the next two years with the funding. Red’s was recently shortlisted as a business to watch by the Sunday Times Fast Track 100 programme, having grown sales to £7.1m in 2014.
Red’s opened its Nottingham, Shoreditch and Liverpool restaurants after securing £5m of funding in 2015, and a financing deal with Santander, which is also supporting the latest deal.
Scott Munro, co-founder of Red’s True Barbecue, said: “As BBQ evangelists we’re delighted the appetite for this food trend is still as hungry as it was when we opened our first site in Leeds in 2012.
“The pipeline for 2016 is already shored up with four fantastic sites in legals allowing us to spread the good gospel of true barbecue to around 100,000 believers each month, and positioning us as clear brand leaders in the sector.”
The company has also launched its own range of BBQ sauces and rubs, with listings in Asda and Sainsbury’s, and a recipe book.
