Hawksmoor restaurant chain up for sale

Hawksmoor has been put up for sale in a deal that could value the restaurant chain at about £100mn, according to two people familiar with the matter, as it seeks to grow its international footprint.

Investment bank Stephens, which has been hired to run a sales process, has started speaking to potential buyers, the people said. Graphite Capital has owned 51 per cent of Hawksmoor since 2013.

Hawksmoor chief executive and co-founder Will Beckett and another co-founder Huw Gott, who own a minority stake, will retain their shareholding to continue to lead the company, one of the people added.

Graphite Capital said it did not comment on “market rumour” and Stephens declined to comment.

Hawksmoor did not comment on whether it was up for sale but Beckett said in a statement: “We’ve got a great relationship with Graphite, and together we are getting to know the US investment community in more depth. As that continues, an opportunity may emerge that we wish to explore together.”

Meanwhile, Rare Restaurants, the owner of rival steakhouse Gaucho, is also exploring a sale of the business having appointed Clearwater M&A advisers, two people familiar with the matter said. One person said Rare was yet to start the process, as it was not under financial pressure. Rare Restaurants and Clearwater declined to comment.

London-based Hawksmoor’s sales process comes as the chain, which operates 13 locations, including 10 in the UK, continues expanding abroad having opened in Chicago last week.

It follows Hawksmoor’s debut US site in New York in 2021 and the launch of another venue in Dublin last year.

The company, which opened its first outlet in 2006 in east London as a place to buy better-quality steak, said last week that sales were expected to top £100mn this year with “consistent like-for-like growth”.

One person close to the company said underlying profits for the 12 months to the end of June were above £10mn, and that it aimed to expand further in the US.

In 2021, Hawksmoor shelved plans for a flotation amid uncertainty in the hospitality industry caused by Covid lockdowns, shortages of labour and supply chain disruption. The chain had been working with Berenberg private bank on the plans.

Despite surging inflation and the cost of living crisis, the UK hospitality industry has witnessed several large deals. Last year, Apollo acquired Wagamama-owner The Restaurant Group for £506mn, while Japanese group Zensho acquired Yo! Sushi owner Snowfox Group for £490mn.

Earlier this year, London-based Equistone Partners sold its stake in catering company CH&CO to the world’s largest catering group Compass in a £475mn deal.

The exploration of a sale for Hawksmoor comes as private equity groups face pressure to sell some of their record $3tn in unsold assets in order to return cash to their backers.

Global takeovers in the first half of the year climbed 22 per cent by value thanks to a rebound in big deals, but the total number of mergers and acquisitions fell to a four-year low because of a slowdown in smaller transactions.