Victory Park Capital Secures $51 Million Credit Facility from GE Capital to Further Growth of Giordano’s
Press Release
Apr 06, 2015
CHICAGO – April 1, 2015 – Victory Park Capital (VPC), an asset management firm focused on middle market debt and equity investments, announced today that it has secured a $51 million credit facility from GE Capital, Franchise Financeand Citizen’s Bank to refinance existing VPC debt and fund long-term growth initiatives of Giordano’s, a world-famous stuffed pizza restaurant chain based in Chicago, Ill. The credit facility will contribute to corporate and franchise expansion in key markets outside of Chicago and help fund the development of business enhancements impacting Giordano’s growth strategy.
“We were impressed with GE Capital’s proven reputation as one of the largest lenders in the restaurant finance sector and are confident they will offer strategic value to the overall growth strategy for Giordano’s,” said Chad Peterson, principal at VPC. “The latest credit facility will provide Giordano’s with significant flexibility to continue to execute on its development plan.”
The Company’s long-term development plan includes the opening of new Giordano’s restaurants in a number of new markets outside of the current operating footprint. The recapitalization will provide the business with incremental growth capital to support the capital expenditures for expansion.
“The new capital represents the next step in the continued development of our business,” said Giordano’s CEO Yorgo Koutsogiorgas. “We look forward to working with a team as experienced in the franchise sector as GE Capital and believe Giordano’s is well positioned for future growth.”
About Victory Park Capital
Victory Park Capital Advisors, LLC (“VPC”) is a privately held, SEC-registered, global alternative investment firm. VPC provides opportunistic capital solutions to both emerging and established businesses with an expertise investing across various sectors where traditional sources of capital are limited. The firm’s differentiated offerings leverage an extensive network of industry relationships, disciplined deal origination, creative financing capabilities and broad credit structuring and special situations expertise. The firm was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Chicago with additional offices in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. For more information, please visit www.victoryparkcapital.com.
About Giordano’s
Based in Chicago, Giordano’s Famous Stuffed Pizza has been serving its world-famous pizza since 1974, when founders and immigrants brothers Efren and Joseph Boglio became discouraged by the lack of their kind of stuffed pizza available in the Chicago area. Giordano’s currently operates company as well as franchised restaurants in Illinois, Indiana, and Florida. The company also operates a Food Truck in Chicago, and makes its famous pizza pies available for shipping, nationwide, through its websitewww.giordanos.com.