Italian restaurant chain to invest £9m in expansion
An Italian restaurant chain which opened one of its first sites in Leeds has secured £9m to grow across the UK.
Gusto Restaurants, the privately backed chain which was formerly part of the Living Ventures group, is targeting aggressive expansion.
Gusto was formed by LV in 2005, and managing director Sue Crimes undertook a management buyout in 2014 with the backing of Palatine Private Equity.
The group operates 16 restaurants with 600 staff, and recorded £23m in turnover for the year to March 2016.
The £9m funding package from Santander will allow the brand to develop existing sites, as well as target more suburban locations. The company said it has already identified further sites for expansion in Yorkshire, the Midlands and the South.
Managing director of Gusto, Sue Crimes, said: “We are thrilled to secure Santander backing and are very much looking forward to working with them in expanding our business and increasing our geographical presence across the UK. With the ongoing support from Palatine and a great Gusto team in place, we will continue to build our position as a national brand.
“We are grateful to Santander and Palatine for their shared vision in our ever growing business and their belief in our brand.”
Gary Tipper, managing partner of Palatine Private Equity, added: “Since Palatine’s investment, the management team have done a great job of building and developing the brand and moving into new areas of the UK, and there is now a solid platform to grow the business further. This new facility allows the business to deliver Gusto’s strong site pipeline, and also puts the company in a great position to take advantage of additional site or portfolio opportunities that arise.”
Santander Relationship Director, Ian Henry, commented: “Gusto is an established and popular brand, with a strong management team and great backers in Living Ventures and Palatine. Santander is delighted to be supporting the company in its next phase of growth.”
Richard Sealy of Gateleys provided support to Beechbrook Capital.
