Gaucho owners prepare for £150m sale

THE Dutch businessman behind Argentinian steakhouse chain Gaucho has put the company on the market.

Founder Zeev Godik has hired Canaccord Genuity to run a sale for the company, and The Sunday Times has said it was predicted to cost between £140m and £150m.

Gaucho’s first branch landed in Piccadilly in 1994, and there are now 1,000 staff employed at 14 restaurants across the UK, including its site in Leeds.

Mr Godik and his private equity backer ICG are reportedly “cashing in” on the increased appetite for deals in the restaurant sector, after they led a management buy-out of the company from Phoenix Equity Partners.

In recent times, Prezzo, Pizza Express and Zizzi have all been sold to private equity buyers in America and China.