Spudulike serves up Courts deal

SpudULike, the baked potato takeaway outlet which was founded in Edinburgh in 1974, has acquired Courts Quality Foods, making the newly-formed firm the UK’s largest chain of food outlets serving baked potatoes.

With the purchase of Courts - which owns Fat Jackets, ice cream stores FJ Cools and The Serious Sandwich Store - Spudulike plans to have more than 50 branches by the end of the year.

The combined group will have turnover in excess of 15 million and forecasts annual pre-tax profits of more than 1 million. For the year ending 31 December, Spudulike had a turnover of 7.3 million and made pre-tax profits of 590,000. Last year Courts had turnover of 6 million and pre-tax profits of 350,000.

Tony Schlesinger, chairman of Spudulike Group, said: "The acquisition is a quantum leap for us and a corporate milestone in our development strategy. We do not plan to rebrand the restaurants we have added through the acquisition.

"The deal gives the group size, greater revenue streams, added flexibility and more opportunities for expansion in the marketplace."

Funding for the acquisition, whose price was not disclosed, was provided by the Bank of Scotland.

Spudulike currently owns about 30 outlets located in leading regional shopping centres throughout the UK and in Eire. Recent shopping centre location openings include the Arndale Centre in Manchester, designer outlet villages in Ashford and Livingston and The Overgate Centre in Dundee. The group soon will open a restaurant in Touchwood shopping centre in Solihull.

Other key sites include all seven of the McArthur Glen factory outlet centres in the UK and city centre schemes in Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh and Dublin.

Fat Jackets has 15 outlets with more planned, the company said.

Spudulike recently demerged from owner British School of Motoring, which purchased the restaurant chain from founders Barbara and David Leggate and partner Kim Culley in 1982.