Thompson Street Capital Partners (TSCP), a private equity firm based in St. Louis, has acquired Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers (Freddy’s), a Kansas-based franchisor of fast casual restaurants. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Founded in 2002 with its first company-owned location in Wichita, Freddy’s fast casual restaurants feature steakburgers, shoestring fries, and freshly churned frozen custard. The Company’s family friendly restaurants focus on premium quality ingredients, cooked-to-order food, and best-in-class hospitality. Since opening the first franchise location in 2004, Freddy’s award-winning system has rapidly expanded to more than 360 franchised locations and over 30 company-operated restaurants spanning more than 30 states nationwide.
Randy Simon, Freddy’s co-founder and CEO, said, “When Freddy, Bill, Scott and I started Freddy’s in 2002, our goal was to serve craveable food to our guests with quick-service speed and full-service hospitality at a price that was fair and competitive. There remains a large segment of the country where we are not present and by partnering with TSCP we will be better able to expand in those areas and continue our strong growth going forward. Obviously, the credit goes to our Team Members who have contributed immensely to our success to date and to our close-knit family of franchisees who have devoted their time and capital to develop the Freddy’s brand. We are confident that TSCP shares our values and philosophies as we continue to be guided by The Freddy’s Way in all we do.”
Scott Redler, co-founder and COO, added, “By operating The Freddy’s Way, we have developed close relationships with each and every franchisee, prioritizing their growth and success above all. We have continued to invest in an unparalleled corporate support system to ensure our operators have the resources they need, and our partnership with TSCP will elevate those capabilities and enable us to take our franchisee support to another level. When we were introduced to the exceptional team at TSCP, it was apparent that our core values and company culture aligned, making them the perfect fit for our Freddy’s family of Team Members, franchisees and vendor partners.”
Bob Dunn, Managing Partner, TSCP, said, “Freddy’s is a highly unique, scaled franchisor platform that has built a premium brand over the past two decades with leading franchisee retention, remarkable growth, and a passionate guest following of ‘FredHeads.’ We look forward to working with the outstanding team at Freddy’s to accelerate the Company’s already exceptional growth.”
Joe St. Geme, Director, TSCP, added, “Freddy’s presents an exciting opportunity to partner with the founders and management to continue to grow a premier system by accelerating franchise development, increasing focus on marketing and technology deployment, and enabling operational best practices across the footprint. We are thrilled to join the Freddy’s family and are excited to invest behind the continued successful expansion of the Freddy’s brand.”
