Private equity firm focused on hospitality industry beefs up executive team
Hargett Hunter announced today that 30-year hospitality industry veteran Scott Taylor has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of its newly created full-service restaurant platform, Cherry Bounce Hospitality. Taylor joins the leading private equity firm after serving in C-level executive positions at Walk-On’s Sports Bistreaux, Beef ‘O’Brady’s and the University of Florida.
Taylor will oversee the full-service brands Trudy’s Authentic Tex-Mex, Cajun Steamer Bar & Grill and Live.Eat.Surf Restaurants as he builds out the new platform. Additionally, Cherry Bounce is currently seeking prospective additions to the platform and is in discussions with several brands interested in joining the newly established group.
“I’m excited to join the Hargett Hunter family in this important leadership role as we focus on strategic expansion with our newly created restaurant platform,” said Taylor. “I believe the right culture attracts the right people and creates special opportunities. I aligned quickly with the Hargett Hunter team on a shared vision and strategy to build best-in-class teams and partnerships across the full-service restaurant space.”
Hargett Hunter is led by Founding Partner & Managing Director Jeff Brock and Partner Brian Fauver. The partners have been investing debt and equity in leading food & beverage businesses for a combined 45 years. Having invested in nine emerging chains – most recently from a dedicated restaurant fund raised in 2019 – Hargett Hunter’s brands operate across the U.S. in a variety of service formats and food categories.
Establishing Cherry Bounce is the latest move in the group’s endeavor to bring unmatched resources to the nation’s most promising emerging and established restauarant brands. The platform is designed to support the leadership teams of the regional casual dining brands to achieve their respective growth, profitability and operational goals. Taylor’s restaurant-industry expertise will be instrumental to the platform’s success and continued expansion.
“The opportunity to successfully scale authentic, differentiated and approachable restaurant brands has never been greater,” said Brock. “Part of being the preferred partner for emerging brands is providing them with resources and advantages to de-risk the challenges associated with operations and growth in our industry. We’re committed to bringing the industry’s top talent to our platform as we continue to execute the exciting growth plans for these truly special brands. Scott’s presence allows us to stack the deck to enable our brands to reach their full potential. His passion for hospitality and incredible track record of driving growth will help us continue to realize the vision for building the strongest growth brands in the industry. We could not be more excited to have his energy focused on supporting our dynamic brands.”
“Jeff and the Hargett Hunter team have built something truly special,” continued Taylor. “They operate with an offense vs. defense mindset and invest the appropriate time and resources to drive success across each brand. Culture is everything and I’m looking forward to building on the incredible foundation in place to leverage some of the tremendous opportunities for growth ahead.”
Based in Raleigh, North Carolina, Hargett Hunter is an operationally focused private equity group investing exclusively in emerging restaurant brands. Having invested over $250 million in more than a dozen emerging concepts across the U.S., the partners have purposefully built the Hargett Hunter platform to address the common needs met by emerging restaurant chains as they scale. Established as a preferred partner for emerging brands with 5-50 units, Hargett Hunter’s dynamic team of highly respected industry leaders, service providers and platform partners is dedicated to driving value and mitigating common risks for the country’s premier emerging concepts. For more information, please visit HargettHunter.com.
