Advent International has agreed to acquire Viena, the leading casual dining restaurant chain in Brazil, from the company’s founding shareholder, in a transaction whose value has not been d
Advent International has agreed to acquire Viena, the leading casual dining restaurant chain in Brazil, from the company’s founding shareholder, in a transaction whose value has not been disclosed.
The acquisition is Advent’s third in the Latin American restaurant sector in the past 10 months and the first Brazilian investment by Lapef IV, the region’s largest private equity fund, raised by Advent earlier this year. The purchase of Viena follows the buyouts of La Mansión, a casual dining restaurant group in Mexico, last November, and Grupo RA, an operator of restaurant concessions in Brazilian airports, in April this year.
Founded in 1975, Viena owns more than 60 restaurants in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, serving more than one million customers a month. Its outlets self-service restaurants located in food courts in shopping centres, casual dining restaurants, coffee kiosks in shopping malls, premium coffee shops in bookstores, restaurants specialising in Jewish food, and self-service restaurants offering pasta and other Italian dishes.
‘Viena is the leading quick casual and casual dining restaurant chain in Brazil, with a strong brand, proven store concept and network of restaurants in premium locations,’ says Patrice Etlin, a partner in Advent’s São Paulo office. ‘The company has significant growth potential, especially since it focuses on shopping mall locations, a booming sector in Brazil.’
The Brazilian food service industry generated revenue of some USD19.3bn last year, with the fast food and casual dining segments representing about 40 per cent of the market and a sector that is highly fragmented with few national chains.
Advent says these market segments are benefiting from the rising income of Brazil’s middle class, increased participation of women in the labour force and the growth of shopping malls, which favours mall-based restaurant concepts. The number of malls in Brazil grew from 240 in 2001 to 346 last year, while shopping mall sales increased by 11 per cent a year over this period.
Etlin says the acquisition of Viena will enable the integration of various operational processes at Viena and Grupo RA. ‘There are tremendous synergies not only in production and back-office activities but also among the different brands,’ he says. ‘Viena is an excellent brand, which will certainly contribute to Grupo RA’s operations in airports. Likewise, Grupo RA’s brands, such as Brunella, will complement Viena’s operations.’
The growth strategy for Viena is to consolidate its leadership position in São Paulo and Rio and thereafter expand to other regions in Brazil, through new restaurant openings and acquisitions. ‘We see further interesting acquisition opportunities throughout the country and will seek to play a lead role in the consolidation of the market,’ Etlin says.
Advent is one of the longest-established private equity investors in Latin America, having invested in 33 companies with a combined enterprise value (current or at exit) of USD5.4bn since entering the market in 1996. Twelve companies have been acquired by strategic or financial buyers, and five have completed IPOs on local or international stock exchanges.
Advent International has more than 100 investment professionals at offices in 15 countries. Since its launch in 1984, Advent has raised USD12bn in private equity capital and completed more than 200 buyout and private equity transactions valued at over USD30bn in 35 countries.
