Food-to-go retailer Pret A Manger is poised to be sold for £1.5 billion to investment firm controlled by a family of German billionaires.
A majority stake in the high street chain, owned by private equity firm Bridgepoint, will be offloaded to JAB, the which is owned by the Reimann family in Germany.
The change of hands comes after Bridgepoint, which bought Pret A Manger for £364 million in 2008, had been considering listing the firm in New York.
The transaction is expected to be completed during the summer, where JAB will acquiring its stake in Pret A Manger through an investment vehicle of JAB Consumer Fund and JAB Holding Company.
The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
“This is a day of celebration at Pret. This agreement recognises the hard work of all our amazing teams around the world,” Pret A Manger chief executive Clive Schlee said.
“Bridgepoint has been wonderful owners of the business for more than a decade. All of us at Pret believe JAB will be excellent long-term strategic owners.
“JAB believes in Pret’s values and supports our growth plans. I am really looking forward to this next chapter of Pret’s story.”
Pret A Manger has 530 stores worldwide and is rapidly expanding globally in countries such as the US, China and France.
It booked revenues of £879 million last year, as well as its ninth consecutive year of like-for-like sales growth.
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