Harvest Partners SCF – the non-control private equity strategy of Harvest Partners – has led a $250 million investment in OTG Management, a New York-based operator of airport food and beverage concessions.
OTG operates proprietary restaurants and offers concession management services in which it designs, develops, operates and manages entire terminal concession programs. The company’s portfolio includes more than 230 restaurant locations at 26 terminals across 11 airports. The company, founded in 1996 by CEO Rick Blatstein, employs over 4,500 people and is based in New York (www.otgmanagement.com).
The investment from Harvest Partners SCF (HP SCF) will support OTG’s expansion to new airport locations. “Rick and the OTG team are pioneering the evolution of airport food and beverage programs. He is a creative leader, and exactly the type of founder/owner we seek to support with our flexible, non-control private equity investment solutions,” said Jay Hegenbart, Senior Managing Director and Portfolio Manager for HP SCF.
Harvest Partners SCF targets private equity-like returns while assuming risks more characteristic of debt investments. The group targets investments of $20 million to $75 million in companies where the business owners need equity capital but do not wish to dilute or sell their ownership. Target companies will have revenues of $100 million to $750 million and be active in the following sectors: business and consumer services; healthcare services; industrial and energy services; manufacturing; and distribution. HP SCF, founded in 2014, is headquartered in New York (www.hp-scf.com).
“OTG’s strategy puts the company at the forefront of the hospitality sector, and positions it as a clear leader in airport foodservice,” said Sean Murphy, a Principal at HP SCF. “It is no surprise that, as an acknowledgement of the company’s success, OTG ranked among the World’s 50 Most Innovative Companies in Fast Company Magazine and has received numerous other awards and accolades.”
In addition to Mr. Hegenbart and Mr. Murphy, Caldwell Zimmerman and Jerry Chan of HP SCF also worked on this transaction.
Piper Jaffray & Co. (www.piperjaffray.com) was the financial advisor to HP SCF and Latham & Watkins (www.lw.com) served as legal counsel.
© 2016 Private Equity Professional • 9-8-16
