Sentinel Capital Partners has sold Huddle House Inc., the companies said Thursday. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.
The buyer asked not to be disclosed, according to a spokesperson.
The New York City-based private-equity firm acquired Huddle House in 2012.
“Sentinel has been a great partner to Huddle House and over the past six years has helped us set and achieve meaningful strategic milestones,” said Michael Abt, CEO of the Atlanta-based family-dining chain. “Our customers, franchisees, operators and employees are super excited about Huddle House’s future."
In recent years, Huddle House had been in the midst of a turnaround and remodeling program.
“Throughout our ownership, Huddle House has achieved impressive systemwide operational results that have increased efficiency and improved productivity at the individual restaurant level," said Jim Coady, a partner at Sentinel. "Average unit volume increased by 14 percent on our watch, which reflects the commitment and dedication to excellence of the entire Huddle House team."
In 2016, Abt discussed a plan to nearly double the average unit volume of restaurants.
“We’re going to optimize our kitchen design, so the expediting and service areas will be designed to increase throughput capacity and operational efficiency and will use new cooking platforms and technologies,” he told NRN at the time.
Huddle House ranked No. 158 on NRN’s latest Second 100 census and reported U.S. systemwide sales of $240 million for the fiscal year ended April 2017. The chain has 349 units.
In the past year, Sentinel also sold the Checkers/Rally's quick-service brands for $525 million and acquired quick-service seafood purveyor Captain D's. The firm has $2.6 billion of equity capital under management.
Correction: Feb. 1, 2018 This story has been updated with information about the buyer of Huddle House.
Correction: Feb. 1, 2018 An earlier version of this story misstated franchised brands operated by Sentinel Capital Partners. The story has been updated.
