NEW YORK, July 8, 2004 - Castle Harlan, Inc., the New York private-equity investment firm, announced today it has completed the acquisition of Caribbean Restaurants LLC (CRI), operator of 165 Burger King restaurants in Puerto Rico. CRI is the market leader and the most successful quick-service restaurant franchise on the island. The purchase price was $340 million.
Castle Harlan acquired the company from Oak Hill Capital Partners, L.P. and American Securities Capital Partners.
Caribbean Restaurants has been in business for 40 years and consistently outperforms other fast-food concepts in Puerto Rico, including McDonald's. Its average annual revenue per restaurant exceeds that of the average Burger King on the U.S. mainland, and its sales growth surpasses that of Burger King worldwide.
David Pittaway, senior managing director at Castle Harlan who led the transaction, said the current management, including founder and chief executive officer Luis Arenas, would remain in place and would continue to hold an equity stake in the company.
Caribbean Restaurants joins other restaurant companies in Castle Harlan's portfolio. They include Morton's Restaurant Group, a leading operator of upscale steakhouses, and McCormick & Schmick's, a leader among full-service seafood restaurants.
Founded in 1987, Castle Harlan is a leading New York private-equity investment firm, investing primarily in controlling interests in the buyout and development of middle-market companies in North America and Europe. Castle Harlan's team of nine managing directors, including its founders, has completed more than 60 acquisitions with a total value in excess of $7 billion.
The firm, whose roots date back to the start of the institutionalized private-equity business in the late 1960's, has managed private-equity capital in excess of $2.5 billion.
Castle Harlan also invests in Australia, New Zealand and the Australasian region through its Sydney-based affiliate, CHAMP, which is one of Australia's oldest and largest private equity firms.
Castle Harlan's portfolio companies, which employ more than 26,000 people, include Gravograph, the global leader in engraving technology; Associated Packaging Technologies, the country's leading manufacturer of CPET containers for the frozen food industry; and Advanced Accessory Systems, the largest manufacturer of automotive roof racks and tow systems in North America and Europe.