The growing fast-casual chain Lemonade has won a significant equity investment from Butterfly, a Los Angeles-based firm, the company said Wednesday.
Terms of the investment were not disclosed.
The announcement comes as the Los Angeles-based Lemonade Restaurant Group moves into the San Francisco Bay Area. Lemonade is planning six Bay Area locations in former units of the La Boulange chain, which was acquired by Starbucks Corp. in 2012 and later closed.
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The first Lemonade in downtown San Francisco opened in May, and a second unit is scheduled to open in Palo Alto, Calif., later this month.
Alan Jackson, Lemonade founder and CEO, said the Butterfly investment will help the company continue its planned growth.
“We are thrilled to be partnering with the Butterfly team, which brings a tremendous amount of industry experience and energy to the Lemonade team,” Jackson said in a statement.
Founded in 2008, Lemonade Restaurant Group operates 22 restaurants, mostly in Southern California, with a modern cafeteria format and a chef-driven menu offering seasonally rotating dishes.
The chain once included at least two units in the Middle East, which have since closed.
But both international and domestic growth is planned, said Adam Waglay, co-founder of Butterfly, based in Los Angeles, an investment firm that specializes in the food industry.
Butterfly joins previous investor KKR, which made a minority investment in Lemonade Restaurant Group in 2014.
“Lemonade is an extraordinary brand, and we are excited to be partnered with them and KKR to help grow the business and bring its unique offering to new markets throughout the U.S. and around the world,” Waglay said in a statement.
Dustin Beck, Butterfly co-founder, said Lemonade was “an impressive company that has built a very loyal following and is positioned extremely well for growth. The future looks very bright and we are pleased to be a part of it.”
Davis Wright Tremaine acted as legal advisor to Lemonade, and Kirkland & Ellis advised Butterfly.
Contact Lisa Jennings at [email protected]
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