Founded in 1989 by Gilles TERZAKOU, its current Chairman and majority shareholder, the MRS Group is specialised in collective catering for businesses and administrations.
With about €40 million of sales and operating more than 100 restaurants in France, MRS is positioned as the largest independent player after the three majors of the corporate catering market.
The Group operates nationally, with a strong historical presence in the Ile-de-France area and recent development in the regions, through organic growth (South-West and Rhône-Alpes) as well as external growth (North).
Since its creation, MRS has built its positioning and reputation on "health and well-being food", and has introduced health capital as a strategic element that differentiates its offering (healthy, highquality cuisine using fresh products, special short circuits, menus developed with dietitians and nutritionists).
To finance its development plan, which involves doubling its revenue and the number of restaurants over a 5-year period, notably through the launch of new concepts, the acceleration of digitisation and the creation of a new offering, the Group sought to obtain backing from minority financial partners.
Gilles TERZAKOU, Founding Chairman, MRS Group: "With growth of around 15 to 20% per year, it was necessary to strengthen the group equity in order to respond sustainably to our new contracts on the one hand, and to speed up our R&D on the health food market on the other. The entry of Agro Invest will also enable us to establish partnerships with French producers, and more particularly with regard to "organic" products"
Romain MASSIAH, Managing Partner, ADVISO PARTNERS: "Given the quality of the Group and its strong organic growth potential, the transaction attracted a great deal of appetite from financial investors. In addition to the valuation, Agro Invest's and Rives Croissance's offer stood out due to its very good understanding of MRS's positioning and the project's importance"
Delphine NICOLAS, Investment Director, AGRO INVEST: "We are very pleased to support Gilles TERZAKOU and his team in this new phase of MRS' development. We were attracted by the company's positioning on health and well-being as well as by its desire to differentiate itself by developing its own supply chains, particularly for fresh products".
Denis COUDERCHET, Director, RIVES CROISSANCE: "Rives Croissance is delighted to support Gilles TERZAKOU and his entire team in this primary operation. Alongside our investor partner Agro Invest, we were particularly attracted by the quality of the executives and the Group's development potential, both in organic growth and to seize build-up opportunities. For Banque Populaire Rives de Paris, this operation perfectly reflects our institution's desire to support companies in their region as a close and committed strategic partner."
