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07/2021

GLOBAL FRANCHISE GROUP acquired by FAT BRANDS

UNITED STATES Hospitality & Leisure / Hospitality / Restaurants / Chains EV 500M - 1.5b USD

Context

FAT Brands Inc. completed its largest-ever acquisition by purchasing Global Franchise Group from Serruya Private Equity and Lion Capital. The deal added Round Table Pizza, Great American Cookies, Hot Dog on a Stick, Marble Slab Creamery, and Pretzelmaker plus Atlanta manufacturing, doubling FAT's portfolio to 2,000+ units with $1.4 billion system-wide sales. Rationale emphasized diversification into pizza/desserts/snacks complementing FAT's burgers/chicken, leveraging GFG's resilience and synergies for $40 million EBITDA uplift to $55-60 million annually. Transaction exemplified aggressive consolidation in fragmented QSR franchising, where public operators like FAT deploy creative financing for accretive platforms amid recovery.

It is worth noting that the company had completed several external growth operations, including Round Table Pizza (2017), before an LBO led by Serruya Private Equity / Lion Capital in 2018.

GLOBAL FRANCHISE GROUP, which reported an EBITDA margin of in 2019, is valued in this transaction at an EV/EBITDA multiple of , representing a to the average currently observed in the Retail & Consumer sector (11.0x).

-> Deep-dive in Retail & Consumer market trends

Target

Global Franchise Group is a strategic brand management company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, that franchises and operates five quick-service restaurant concepts: Round Table Pizza, Great American Cookies, Hot Dog on a Stick, Marble Slab Creamery, and Pretzelmaker. The company supports more than 1,400 franchised and corporate stores across 16 countries. Round Table Pizza specializes in dine-in pizza with California-style crusts and fresh ingredients. Great American Cookies offers gourmet cookies, cookie cakes, and cinnamon rolls. Hot Dog on a Stick features corn dogs and hand-stamped lemonade. Marble Slab Creamery provides premium ice cream mixed on frozen marble slabs with mix-ins. Pretzelmaker serves fresh-baked pretzels and gourmet dips.

Ent. Value

Equity Value

Multiples

EV / Revenue

EV / EBITDA

EV / EBIT

Historical Financials (USD)

Year
Rev
EBITDA
EBIT
2019
2018

Other operations with GLOBAL FRANCHISE GROUP

List of similar M&A transactions (Date, Acquirer, Target, Country, Sub-sector)
DateAcquirerTargetCountrySector
12/2018SERRUYA PRIVATE EQUITY / LION CAPITALGLOBAL FRANCHISE GROUPUNITED STATESRestaurants / Chains
09/2017GLOBAL FRANCHISE GROUPROUND TABLE PIZZAUNITED STATESRestaurants / Chains

REFERENCES

Valuation range: EV 500M - 1.5b USD

Revenue range: 100M - 200M USD

EBITDA range: 25M - 50M USD

Note: This page provides detailed data on a private equity M&A transaction. Detailed and exact financial metrics for the acquisition of GLOBAL FRANCHISE GROUP by FAT BRANDS are reserved for mynth community members. Register for free to unlock full data.

Authors: This transaction was contributed by a verified mynth contributor and cross-checked against available transaction documents and official company communications.

Press release: view release

Target: global franchise group

Acquirer: fat brands