New owner for Roadchef
Motorway service station operator Roadchef, which has its head office at Norton Canes, has been bought by Macquarie Asset Management.
The arm of Australian financial services giant Macquarie is buying Roadchef, which has services at Norton Canes and Stafford, from Antin Infrastructure Partners.
Roadchef is the third-largest MSA operator in Britain behind Moto and Welcome Break.
Antin initially invested in the business in 2014 in a deal reported at the time to be worth about £150 million.
Roadchef has vowed to step up its partnerships with a number of the UK’s most popular brands after being sold.
The company, which operates 30 motorway service locations and serves more than 50 million customers a year, will look to deepen ties with the likes of McDonald’s, Costa Coffee and Leon.
Macquarie is one of the largest investors in the UK, having invested and arranged more than £50 billion in the country’s essential infrastructure in recent years.
Its funding will allow Roadchef to invest in sites, facilities and branded partnerships with fast food operators, as well as accelerate the roll-out of fast-charging electric vehicle infrastructure.
Macquarie has operated in the UK for more than 30 years, opening its London headquarters in 1989.
Mark Fox, chief executive of Roadchef, said: “We thank Antin for their significant support over the past years, which enabled us to implement our growth strategy and strengthen our position as a leading UK MSA operator. We are delighted to continue our growth journey with Macquarie Asset Management, who recognise our potential and will continue to invest, grow and build Roadchef.”
Gordon Parsons, a senior managing director at Macquarie Asset Management, said: “As a key part of the UK’s motorway infrastructure, we believe Roadchef has a major role to play in facilitating the transition to net zero. Its extensive network of locations across the country make it well positioned to support the fast-charging infrastructure that is key to the adoption of electric and low carbon vehicles. We look forward to working closely with the management team to develop Roadchef’s energy transition strategy and its offering for motorists.”
Mark Crosbie, managing partner at Antin, said: “We are proud of the substantial development and strategic transformation Roadchef accomplished during Antin’s ownership. We are also grateful for the strong performance of Roadchef’s experienced management team and dedicated employees and are confident they will continue to be successful under their new owner.”
