Jarvis Hotels bosses in bid to go private

Jarvis Hotels' founder John Jarvis is making a bid to take the hotel company private. Jarvis and co-director Richard Thomason have sounded out the company about making an offer of 145p a share in cash, valuing Jarvis at about £147.8m. Their bid, which is being made through an investment vehicle called Kayterm, is being backed by venture capital firm Lioncourt Capital. The two directors have also told Jarvis they have a pledge from Trefick, the offshore investment firm owned by entrepreneur Jack Petchey that has a 29.7% stake in the company, that it will accept the offer, if one is made. Earlier this autumn, speculation focused on whether Petchey himself was preparing to make a bid for Jarvis, which has 67 hotels and owns the rights to the Ramada brand in the UK. by Nic Paton Buy this week's *Caterer* magazine for more industry news and analysis