A Scottish entrepreneur is to open four new restaurants as part of a significant expansion push.
Brad Stevens, who founded Pizza Punks in 2015, has appointed FRP Corporate Finance to assist on raising capital as the businessman "looks at the next stage of the restaurant’s growth journey".
The firm operates in eight locations across the UK including in Glasgow, Belfast, Newcastle and Leeds, with four new openings last year in Leicester, Nottingham, Durham and Liverpool.
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It said it now sees the potential to establish a strong UK-wide business, with plans to expand into Edinburgh, Manchester, Cardiff and Birmingham in 2024, "plus four other major university cities to follow".
The Bar Soba entrepreneur said: "We are extremely excited about where Pizza Punks is at, both as a brand and a business, and the opportunities it has for significant further growth."
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He continued: "We've seen very strong sales across the entire Pizza Punks portfolio, which has driven record sales for us recently. This has come off the back of exceeding our budget expectations, as well as getting our labour and cost of sales into a healthy position during our last financial year.
"We have reviewed our options for expansion and have identified the next cities we are keen to bring the Pizza Punks experience to, working closely with FRP to identify funding options for our next stage of growth into Edinburgh, Manchester, Cardiff and Birmingham. We are feeling really positive about what the future holds for Pizza Punks."
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Daniel Brecker, director of FRP Corporate Finance, said: "We are delighted to be working alongside Brad and the top team at Pizza Punks as it continues to execute its UK site rollout strategy.
"Pizza Punks stands out with its highly distinctive brand and excellent site economics supported by its award-winning menu. FRP’s Northern Corporate Finance team, led by Daniel Brecker and Pardeep Singh, are working with the company to explore investment options for the next phase of growth."
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