Mitra QSR KNE, LLC (Mitra) and its capital partner, Chalak Growth Capital Fund, LLC (Chalak), recently closed on a large acquisition of KFC/Taco Bell units in the Northeast part of the United States for an undisclosed amount.
The transaction includes 78 KFC units, 39 KFC/Taco Bell co-branded units, and 3 KFC/Long John Silver's co-branded units. The 120 unit transaction spreads across 6 states (Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and New Jersey).
The Mitra team is led by Co-CEOs, Pushpak and Manish Patel. The Chalak team is headed by the principals of The Chalak Group, Inc., who in addition to being the private equity capital source behind the transaction, are also owners and operators of the 100 unit chain, Genghis Grill-The Mongolian Stir Fry, and the regional fast casual chain, Baker Bros-American Deli. The principles of Mitra and Chalak are also partners together in 33 additional KFC/Taco Bell units in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, and Illinois. This transaction will make Mitra one of the largest KFC franchisees in the system.
"Being one of the biggest divestures that KFC Corporation has ever undertaken, this was a very complex transaction between Yum Brands, Inc.'s M&A division, KFC Corporation, Taco Bell Corporation, Wells Fargo and Mitra. It was however, extremely amazing how all of the teams came together to make this transaction a reality," says Manish Patel, Co-CEO of Mitra, "we are excited about the prospects of this portfolio and incorporating all 3000+ team members into our culture and organization," he says.
"Mitra has proven to be one of our strongest partners in the portfolio of companies we are involved in. Manish and Pushpak are strategic thinkers that have the clear aptitude to pull off an acquisition of this size. We see a continued bright future for both The Chalak Group and the Mitra team," says Al Bhakta, Chief Executive Officer of The Chalak Group, Inc.
The transaction finalized in Mid-August and the transition has been underway since. Mitra retained all of the employees from a unit level standpoint and above store level standpoint. There are two corporate offices, one based in Dallas and a regional office for support services based in the Northeast.
"Becky Brown and her entire team at Wells Fargo exceeded our expectations as they guided us through the process," said Pushpak Patel, Co-CEO of Mitra, "each member of the Haynes and Boone legal team as well as the folks at Metropolitan Capital Advisors all played a pivotal role in closing this deal."
Haynes and Boone, LLP represented Mitra on the transaction as their counsel, Metropolitan Capital Advisors served as the Investment Banking firm and Wells Fargo Restaurant Finance provided the Debt behind the transaction.
