PJ United Holdings, Inc.

Company Overview

Founded in 1991, PJU is the largest owner and operator of Papa John’s International pizza franchises. Headquartered in Birmingham, AL, the company operates 155 locations across 10 states. Papa John’s International, Inc. (NASDAQ: PZZA) is the world’s third largest pizza company. Papa John’s ranked number one in customer satisfaction among all national pizza chains in the highly-regarded American Customer Satisfaction Index.

Opportunities

• Facilitate a management buyout of PJU from its current, passive ownership group
• Invest behind a strong management team to recapitalize its business with an experienced financial partner and help execute management’s aggressive growth objectives

Key ValuFactors Initiatives

• Collaboratively implemented a strategy to amplify growth
• Assisted management in building a new labor management system to improve operational efficiency
• Expanded the service footprint by adding 16 de novo locations
• Deployed a disciplined acquisition strategy resulting in a highly successful add-on serving four new markets across 26 locations
• Optimized the balance sheet to support growth initiatives and completed two dividend recapitalizations

Outcome

During a six-year partnership, Halifax and management expanded the business from 117 locations in 6 states to 155 locations in 10 states.

After redistributing nearly 100 percent of invested equity and accomplishing its shared investment objectives with management, Halifax successfully exited the investment in a sale to the management team and a financial sponsor. Halifax’s management partners continued to own a meaningful equity position and operate the business following the sale.