LEAWOOD Kan. Houlihan's Restaurants Inc. received more than $68 million from two outside sources to fund expansion and remodeling of the 92-unit chain, the company said late last month.
Minneapolis-based private-equity firm Goldner Hawn Johnson provided $28 million in equity, and Wells Fargo Foothill Restaurant Finance, a subsidiary of Wells Fargo & Co., provided a new $40 million senior credit facility.
Houlihan's said the funds would be used to develop new prototype restaurants that feature new architecture, menu formats, uniforms, music, patio-style dining and a larger bar area. The format debuted in the Chicago area in May 2006. The latest location in San Antonio, which opened in April, has produced sales results above system averages, the company said, although it did not reveal figures.
The new prototype is about 6,300 square feet and costs about $2.2 million to build, the company said.
Houlihan's has projected its systemwide sales to exceed $350 million for 2007.
The company also said it would focus growth on new corporate restaurants and limit franchise growth. The company expects to open between 10 and 20 corporate restaurants per year, and at least 30 new corporate Houlihan's locations are in various stages of development, the company reported.
