Houston’s homegrown doughnut establishment has a brand new proprietor. Shipley Do-Nuts has been acquired by California-based non-public fairness agency Levine Leichtman Capital Companions. Phrases of the deal weren’t disclosed.
Earlier than town’s doughnut lovers expertise a collective freak out in regards to the evils of what non-public fairness possession means for eating places, it’s value nothing that Shipley’s most up-to-date proprietor can be a personal fairness agency — Austin’s Peak Rock Capital acquired Shipley in 2021.
Peak Rock touts quite a lot of successes throughout its 4 years with Shipley, rising the corporate to greater than 375 shops throughout 14 states. It additionally opened a brand new headquarters and R&D facility in Houston, based on a launch.
“We’re pleased with the success Shipley has achieved throughout our possession and honored to have contributed to the evolution of this iconic model,” stated Robert Strauss, senior managing director of Peak Rock. “Our investments in individuals, processes and expertise have propelled Shipley to attain transformational development. Now we have deeply appreciated the help of Firm’s loyal clients, franchisees, workers, and the Shipley household.”
Previous to Peak Rock’s acquisition, Shipley had been a family-owned enterprise led by Lawrence Shipley III. The household remained as buyers within the enterprise and are doubtless realizing a major windfall on account of Levine Leichtman’s buy.
“Now we have benefited enormously from our partnership with Peak Rock, and their method has been key to unlocking Shipley’s spectacular development,” Shipley CEO Flynn Dekker stated. “We’re dedicated to supporting our franchisees’ companies and serving our clients the world’s biggest donut as we proceed to introduce our iconic model to increasingly more communities throughout the nation.”
Simply as Peak Rock introduced expertise with food-related companies to Shipley, so too does Levine Leichtman. It has been concerned with eating places resembling Mountain Mike’s Pizza, Nothing Bundt Desserts, and Kilwins, a chocolate and ice cream idea from Los Angeles.
Personal fairness companies have proven common curiosity in Texas eating places. In November 2020, KSL Capital Companions invested in Hai Hospitality, the Austin-based group behind Uchi, Uchiko, and Loro. Much more famously, Chicago’s BDT Capital Companions acquired a majority stake in Whataburger in 2019. Saigon Hustle, a Houston-based quick informal Vietnamese restaurant, is a part of the venture-backed Savory Fund.
