Max’s acquires Pancake House

MANILA, Philippines– The Max’s Group of companies, owner of Max’s restaurant, has acquired the controlling share of Pancake House Inc, owner of some 400  outlets of casual dining restaurants.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Friday, December 20, Pancake House Holdings Inc., the  principal shareholder of Pancake House restaurants which owns 60.37% of Pancake House, said that it has sold all its shares at P15 per share.

As part of the deal, the Max’s group is set to make an offer to buy the remaining shares owned by minority share holders of Pancake House by January next year for P15 apiece as well.

The total tender offer price for the entire stake of Pancake House is valued at  P3.9 billion on a fully diluted basis, after the remaining convertible debt securities issued by the company has been converted.

“This offer from the Max’s group is superior to the others we have received, including one from a foreign entity that just had too many legal and other obstacles to surmount and would have resulted in the company going private,” Pancake House president Martin Lorenzo said.

Lorenzo added that Max’s group’s acquisition  also “puts Pancake House in a better position to continue providing great experiences to the customers and perform strongly in an increasingly casual dining market. “

Max’s chairman Robert Trota said his group intends  to retain Pancake House as a listed company.

Pancake House owns 105 outlets of flagship brand Pancake House  as well as 300 other outlets of casual dining restaurants  like Dencio’s, Kabisera ng Dencio’s, Teriyaki Boy, Sizzlin’ Pepper Steak, Le Coeur De France, The Chicken Rice Shop, Maple and Yellow Cab.

The Max’s group, on the other hand, has 150 stores in the country and abroad. The group was also responsible for bringing to the country international brands such as Jamba Juice and Krispy Kreme. – Rappler.com