News

Centre Partners completes acquisition of Captain D's

December 4, 2013

Private equity firm Centre Partners, which has offices in New York and Los Angeles, announced Tuesday that it has completed the acquisition of Captain D's Holding Corp.

According to a news release, Captain D's senior management team will own a significant stake in the business and continue to serve in their current roles.

Nashville, Tenn.-based Captain D's includes 521 restaurants in 26 states.

"We're excited to invest in Captain D's and to partner with (CEO) Phil Greifeld and his executive team. Captain D's differentiated menu of high quality seafood products at a value price point clearly distinguishes it from its competitors and the business is managed exceptionally well. We look forward to supporting Phil and the team, who have laid the foundation for very attractive growth in the coming years," said Bruce Pollack, managing partner of Centre Partners.

Prior to this acquisition, Captain D's was owned by a Sun Capital Partners Inc. affiliate. Terms of the private transaction were not disclosed.

"This successful sale marks the culmination of a dramatic transformation and revitalization of Captain D's," said Marc Leder, co-CEO at Sun Capital. "The combination of operational improvements and customer-focused solutions will enable the business to continue to build on its strong market position."

Following the acquisition by the Sun Capital affiliate in 2010, the management team led the seafood chain to 28 consecutive periods of system-wide comparable store sales growth. A new restaurant design and a revamped menu were also introduced, and Captain D's implemented new financial controls, a new procurement process and labor management practices.

"We are excited to have Centre as our partner as we embark upon a path of accelerated growth. We have succeeded in driving same store growth for the last 28 periods, while improving our customer experience," Greifeld said. "Our customers have responded positively to recent improvements in Captain D's menu and we're even more excited by new initiatives that are just now being introduced."

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