The deal, which is expected to be completed later this month and which includes co-investment by Prezzo’s management team, will support the growth of the Karen Jones-led restaurant group.
Cain International is a privately held real estate investment company led by Jonathan Goldstein, who will join Prezzo’s board of directors following completion of the transaction.
Its current UK hospitality and leisure portfolio includes experiential crazy golf brand Swingers; Maslow’s Group, which operates private members’ club Mortimer House; and The AllBright, the collective for women in business.
“We are delighted to be teaming up with Jonathan and Cain International,” says Jones, Prezzo’s executive chair.
“Together, we think our shared belief in great hospitality and entrepreneurial approach combined with a restaurant business based in the high streets of the UK, represents a powerful blend for the times we live in.”
The deal marks a new chapter in what has been a challenging couple of years for Prezzo. In 2018 the group entered into a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA), eventually closing nearly 100 restaurants. The move helped it halve its operating losses to £29.7m.
At the time Jones said she was on a mission to restore the struggling Italian brand after it had lost its focus on hospitality and “make customers love it again”.
Cain International says that Prezzo, which has around 180 venues, has outperformed the sector over the last 12 months with ‘robust’ trading leading up to the lockdown in March, and in the intervening period between the March and October lockdowns.
“We firmly believe that strong hospitality and leisure brands with disciplined leadership will thrive in a post-COVID landscape,” says Goldstein
“Prezzo has a clear vision for how to best serve its customers and communities and I am confident that the combination of Cain’s operational and financial expertise, the exceptional management team led by Karen, and the commitment of Prezzo’s entire workforce will enable the business to realise its full potential.”