Zambrero is wholly owned by its founder, Dr Sam Prince, and is understood to be after growth equity funding, a partial sale or a full one.
But Street Talk hears that with the IPO window firmly shut, responses have veered towards potential mergers and/or sales to other fast food businesses. The names being thrown around are rival Guzman y Gomez and Craveable Brands, which owns Oporto and Red Rooster.
Zambrero’s soul-searching coincides with that of Guzman y Gomez and other non-restaurant but food-related businesses such as Patties Foods, Vesco, Lite n’ Easy, Superior Food Services and Tibaldi.
We’ve also found signs of life in the limbo land of IPO hopefuls.
Melbourne’s Hiro Brands, which sells everything from drain-cleaning liquids to lipsticks, was asking fund managers for IPO roadshow meetings next week, and sources said it looked like a late-August listing.
Hiro’s float is one everybody will be watching. It has a roster of big-name executives and investors, but it is still venturing out amid the eerie quiet of equity capital markets.
The Garry Hounsell-led Hiro Brands is hoping its ‘mini P&G’ pitch is compelling enough to overcome IPO market doldrums and charm listed equity investors.
