Healthy food restaurant chain puts growth on the menu with £3.5m investment

Filmore & Union, the Northern-based chain of restaurants and delis, has secured a £3.5m investment from BGF.

The Leeds-based business, which currently operates 14 sites and recently opened a concession in John Lewis, will use the funding to expand its portfolio across the North of England and the Midlands.

Created in 2012 by Adele Ashley, Filmore & Union serves a menu of fresh and seasonal food and drinks using local produce for breakfasts and lunches, as well as gluten-free cakes.

Starting from a single site in York, Filmore & Union now runs restaurants across Yorkshire including Ilkley, Harrogate, Beverley, Skipton and Wetherby, as well as food to go delis in Newcastle and York train stations.

The business raised £865k on Crowdcube in 2015 and today generates revenues of more than £6m.

In addition to the investment, Kevin Bacon will join the company as non-executive chair, following an introduction by BGF. Kevin is a former MD of Frankie & Benny’s and Jamie’s Italian.

BGF is the most active investor in small and mid-sized businesses in the UK. An established and independent company, it has £2.5bn to support a range of growing companies across every region and sector of the economy.

The investment into Filmore & Union was led by BGF’s Chris Boyes and Mike Clarke, who are based in Leeds.

Adele Ashley explained: “We believe there is a very clear market opportunity to expand the Filmore & Union portfolio. We have built a loyal customer base who feel an affinity to the brand and share our passion for eating well.

“We have built the business in Yorkshire and the North East and are excited to expand the brand across the North of England”.

“We are delighted to be partnering with BGF. We had a number of other options, however BGF’s long-term approach as well as its broader network, was very attractive and the investment will help us accelerate our growth plans.”

BGF’s Chris Boyes added: “Adele has created a popular restaurant concept which caters to the growing market for customers who are focused on eating well. The team has established a good foundation to continue the rollout across the UK, and we are excited to support the next stage of growth.”

Management were advised by Paul Land and Andy Kerr of TLP Capital Partners, with legal advice from Dahren Naidoo of Freeths. John Hamer and Thomas Mieszkowski of Walker Morris provided legal advice to BGF.