EXCLUSIVE: Cooks Global Foods to raise up to £10m in equity for acquisitions
Triple Two Coffee is looking to supercharge its parent company's portfolio development.
Triple Two Coffee co-founder and managing director David Hodgetts said the chain's parent company Cooks Global Foods is looking to raise between £8 to £10 million in equity in the next three to four months to fund potential acquisitions of food & beverage brands.
"They [Cooks] see there's a real opportunity in the market at the moment to take on the sort of struggling brands that have a lot of potential," he told QSR Media in an exclusive interview.
Hodgetts listed coffee chains, bakery chains and fast food takeaway brands as those in the "top of the pile" for Cooks. Whilst inclined to get franchised brands, he said the New Zealand listed parent is also open to acquire startups with growth potential.
"Established brands would be a preference. [On] acquiring a newer brand, there's going to be a lot of work", he said, but clarified they remain positive and open to look at such opportunities.
The executive also confirmed that he has had conversations with "high net-worth" entrepreneurs interested in the equity raising.
Aside from Triple Two Coffee, Cooks also owns the international intellectual property and master franchising rights to the Esquires Coffee brand (excluding Australia and New Zealand).
Hodgetts said they are looking to get more involved in the acquisition plan, arguing that there's room for Cooks to be "more acquisitive" and "faster-moving" and avoid missing out on brands, referencing purchases made by other restaurant groups.
"We will be really active in finding these opportunities, using contacts within the industry to grow this."
Whilst operating on a 3-4 month window, Hodgetts said he does not anticipate heavy competition on the acquisition front, citing bigger businesses that are focused on consolidating due to weather the impact brought by restrictions due to COVID-19.
"I think the way that you do these acquisitions is that you bring on brands, and, if they have a good management team, try and keep them on so then you've got continuity, and you've got different managing directors running their businesses. And then it becomes a lot easier to manage," he added.
