PE firm TriSpan acquires Pho restaurants after Gresham House Ventures exit
TriSpan has acquired a significant majority stake in UK Vietnamese restaurant group Pho, after Gresham House Ventures exited its investment in the chain on Monday.
The global PE firm has invested in Pho through its dedicated restaurant fund Rising Stars. It represents the fund’s third investment in the UK, following Rosa’s Thai Café and Thunderbird Fried Chicken, and its eighth globally.
It comes a day after London’s Gresham House Ventures announced it had offloaded its 30 per cent stake in Pho on behalf of the Baronsmead venture capital trusts, who invested £4.4m in 2012 to fund new restaurant sites.
Since Gresham’s initial investment, Pho has expanded from six to 30 restaurants sites around the UK with a focus on London, and three delivery-only kitchens. Gresham House said the Baronsmead VCTs fully realised their investment on the sale.
The restaurant chain generated revenues of around £40m in the year to February 2020 and will open a new site in Lincoln, in plans signed pre-Covid.
Gresham House said the restaurant chain had “demonstrated resilience through the pandemic,” while TriSPan said it is “actively reviewing” more expansion opportunities as the UK emerges from the pandemic.
Robin Rowland, TriSpan European Operating Partner will chair the board with Steve Hill, current chairman, remaining on the board as a non-executive director, the PE firm said. Founders Stephen and Juliette Wall will remain in executive roles to help support the growth plan.
“After an extremely challenging 18 months […] it’s fantastic to receive this vote of confidence in Pho,” said founders Stephen and Juliette Wall.
“Gresham House have been wonderful partners and we now look forward to working with Robin and the TriSpan team as we get back to what we do best.”
“Our deep consumer network and expertise have helped the team shape the growth strategy and the development of the management team which will support the ongoing success of the business,” said Bevan Duncan, managing director at Gresham House Ventures.
TriSpan declined to comment on the terms of the transaction.
Reports that Gresham House was mulling the sale of Pho first emerged pre-pandemic two years ago, after the firm bought the fund and investment manager in charge of Pho from Livingbridge in 2018.
Stephen and Juliette Wall launched the Pho restaurant chain in 2005 following a visit to Vietnam, opening the first branch in Clerkenwell.