NIGERIA – Food Concepts, a leading Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) operator in West Africa has welcomed a new partner in its business to steer it to future growth.

Development Partners International (DPI), the main investor of the company has sold 31% stake of the fast-food chain to African Capital Alliance (ACA), a leading pan-African alternative investment firm.

Following the deal, ACA and DPI will work together to support Food Concepts on its next phase of growth and help drive the business’ regional expansion strategy.

“DPI has been there for us every step of the way as we have turned Food Concepts into a business Nigeria can be proud of, building our brands and tripling our store footprint since 2015.

“I am excited to welcome ACA as a new strategic partner alongside DPI and look forward to benefiting from their shared operational expertise and industry knowledge in the next chapter of our growth,” said David Butler, Managing Director at Food Concepts.

Established in 2001, Food Concepts has over 180 stores across Nigeria and Ghana trading under the Chicken Republic, PieXpress and Chop Box brands.

Led by a best-in-class and experienced management team, and with support from DPI, Food Concepts has grown rapidly from 58 stores in 2015, disrupting the Nigerian QSR sector with an affordable value proposition and demonstrating exceptional financial and operational performance across economic cycles.

The business also operates an online delivery business, growing at over 140% year on year and serves around 15 million customers per year, in addition to employing over 4,000 people.

Women comprise 51% of the workforce and 57% of the management team. The business was cited at the 2021 G7 summit as a leading success story in the development of women leaders.

Food Concepts demonstrates the tremendous growth the Nigerian mass market can offer for companies that are able to capture the opportunity, as its sales have grown at over 40% every year since 2015.

“This is just the beginning of its growth. We are excited to welcome ACA as partners and look forward to continuing our work with David and the Food Concepts team, as the business enters the next stage of its growth,” Runa Alam, Chief Executive of DPI, said.

ACA with US$1.2 billion Assets Under Management, will leverage its experience in the FMCG sector and understanding of the local consumers’ preferences, to deliver further value to Food Concepts.

The Chairman of ACA, Okey Enelamah, stated, “We are excited to be part of this African success story and to work alongside partners who share our vision to empower businesses in Africa.

“Through our joint efforts with DPI and the management team, we are confident that the Company will achieve its planned growth and sustainability goals.” 

The fast-food sector in Nigeria is expected to rapidly grow, driven by urbanisation and the increasingly rapid lifestyles of Nigerians, which encourages them to choose a quick fix for their meal requirements.

This is especially so, given that the average age of Nigerian consumers is below 30 years.

The leading players in the sector include Eat n Go, owner of Domino’s Pizza, Cold Stone Creamery, and Pinkberry Gourmet Frozen Yoghurt franchises, and UAC Plc through its Mr Biggs and Debonairs Pizza brands.

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