Living Ventures to give Est Est Est restaurants a £17m makeover

High-street chain Est Est Est is to receive a makeover from its new owners in a bid to transform its fortunes.

Living Ventures will instigate a complete visual overhaul of the struggling Italian chain, which has an annual turnover of £17m.

Among the plans is a new menu of freshly prepared dishes, part of a bid to make the chain more upmarket.
Tim Bacon, managing director of Living Ventures, said: "We want to redefine the brand but keep its links with the past. We'll improve the service and reinvest. There's a real opportunity here to turn around the business."

Bacon plans to offload a couple of the chain's 22 sites, convert others to the company's Grill & Bar concept, and reinvigorate the remaining Est Est Est restaurants.

Living Ventures purchased the chain last week for £16.4m from The Restaurant Group (TRG), doubling the size of its portfolio to more than 30 sites. Simultaneously, TRG acquired a 40% stake, worth £7.7m, in Living Ventures and has the option to buy outright the remaining 60% share of the company in 2008.

If TRG decides not to do so, it can buy back Est Est Est.

Living Ventures is due to open four Living Room bars this year, in Oxford, Cambridge and two in London. Its next Grill & Bar is planned for Hale, Cheshire.

Source: Caterer & Hotelkeeper magazine, 07 April 2005