Guzman y Gomez has secured $44 million in investment from TDM Growth Partners to accelerate local and international growth.
TDM Growth Partners has invested for a minority stake in Guzman y Gomez, with Tom Cowan and Hilton Brett from the investment firm joining GYG’s Board of Directors.
Steven Marks, Founder and Global CEO of Guzman y Gomez said, “Six months ago, we embarked on a journey to raise capital to expand and grow our business here in Australia and internationally. It was critical to GYG that the business partner we chose believed in our values and strategy to re-invent fast food for the 21st century.”
“After an extensive search, we are pleased to announce a partnership with TDM Growth Partners, one of the best investment teams in the country. We have been looking for true partners with a proven history of success and TDM’s investment team will bring a plethora of experience to our team,” said Marks.
“TDM understands the Australian market and the team are our customers. They understand our brand, our commitment to fresh, quality food, our focus on creating exceptional guest experiences and our investment in using data and technology to drive the business. Their support for our strategy has never wavered.”
The new funding will be used to build on Guzman y Gomez’s growing footprint of Australian restaurants, and help fuel expansion into new markets, including the US. GYG, which opened its first store in Newtown in 2006, has close to 120 restaurants and drive-thrus across Australia, Singapore and Japan.
“TDM Growth Partners is immensely proud to join Steven and his team on the next stage of their journey. We are incredibly impressed by the quality of both the management team and the Board of Directors. We love the passion they have for their business, and importantly, their focus on culture — a value that is at our core. We believe people and culture are critical to driving a competitive advantage, and GYG has fostered this from day one,” said Tom Cowan, Partner, TDM Growth Partners.
“We are excited by the growth profile of GYG — in our experience it is very hard to find an Australian based business with sales of over $200m growing at 30% per annum, and we look forward to being a long term supportive shareholder as the business continues to scale quickly.
“The capital raise follows a year of strong growth for GYG, marked by technology and food innovations including the expansion of its world-first drone delivery programme (a partnership with X), making a name for the Brekkie Burrito down under, rapid drive-thru expansion, and taking out the title as Australia’s best multi-site restaurant in QSR Media industry awards.”
