July 2014: HIG Capital, an investment fund based in Miami, acquires Compañía del Trópico, the holding company for Café & Té for an undisclosed amount.
Founded in 1973, Café y Té is a key player in the cafeteria sector in the Iberian Peninsula. It has the largest network of fully owned outlets in Spain and Portugal together with a network of franchises, having a total of 147 outlets in prime locations operating under the brands Café y Té, Café y Tapas, Il Café di Roma, Kroxan, California and Sky Madrid.
Café y Té was previously 53% owned by its two founding partners: : its President Gustavo Ron (51%) and FF Corporación Cafetera, holding company of Miquel Ángel Fort (2%), the other 47% being owned by the international private equity fund, 3i.
With this acquisition and the simultaneous acquisition of Panaria, HIG Capital plans to create the leading cafeteria and casual dining group in Spain and Portugal.
SOCIOS advises the shareholders of Café y Té on the design, negotiation and closing of the transaction.
