Franchising
2 industry leaders looking to invest in the 'next restaurant leader'
Dave Pace, board member of Red Robin and former CEO of Jamba Inc., and Andy Pforzheimer, a co-founder of the Barcelona and Bartaco brands, have come together to create an acquisition company, which is raising $200 million to help scale the restaurant industry's up-and-coming brands.
January 15, 2021 by Cherryh Cansler — Editor, FastCasual.com
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| Dave Pace has co-founded The Tastemaker Acquisition Corp. |
Two industry heavy hitters — Dave Pace, board member of Red Robin and former Jamba Inc. CEO, and Andy Pforzheimer, co-founder of the Barcelona and Bartaco brands — have come together to create an acquisition company to fund the next major restaurant brand.
The Tastemaker Acquisition Corp., which is now listed on the Nasdaq, is studying a variety of restaurant brands and formats before making investments of up to $200 million.
"There are companies that are innovating, finding operating efficiencies, growing their customer base, and creating entirely new revenue streams in all segments, from QSR to fast casual to polished casual to fine dining," Pace told FastCasual. "As we think about our target companies roughly 50% of our targets are middle of the fairway restaurant concepts. The other 50% are made up of restaurant technology or restaurant services, equipment and support companies."
The duo is definitely open to lesser-known brands.
"We think that there are companies that aren't on people's radar, which sometimes are the most exciting and have a lot of growth and opportunity," said Pforzheimer, who pointed out that he and Pace have supplemented their experiences with a team that has investment experience, especially in SPACs — special purpose acquisition companies — which serve as a "blank check" shell corporation designed to take companies public without going through the traditional IPO process.
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| Andy Pforzheimer co-founded The Tastemaker Acquisition Corp. |
"Our team has done two SPACs already and our board is made up of both investors and operators," Pforzheimer said in an email interview with FastCasual. "We understand the hospitality and restaurant space, and are close to industry trends. We are industry leaders, know the business inside out, and have a close team that has worked together for years."
The men want to partner with growing companies as opposed to fixing a broken business.
"You have to fix a broken company when you're private and then consider whether it's ready to be a public company," Pace said. "We're looking for a company with individuals who have a vision for 'what's next,' and are in growth mode.
Pforzheimer said companies can take advantage of the public markets to help accelerate their growth.
"We are not necessarily focused on whether the company is small or well established," he said. "Ultimately, we are looking to partner with the brand or company that has the most promising growth outlook."
Does your brand have what it takes?
In order for Tastemaker to consider a brand, it must must not be resistant when it comes to adapting technology into their models.
"While that is now table stakes, there is also the reality that we believe the world will return to some form of 'normalcy' later this year, so a vision around that is important," Pace said. "We are also looking for nimble companies that have proven themselves, especially through the COVID environment.
"In the end, it will be strong management, a truly differentiated product, and a model that has proven to be resilient and craveable that will matter most," Pforzheimer said.
About Cherryh Cansler
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