Levine Leichtman Capital Partners on Wednesday said it sold its stake in Mountain Mike’s Pizza to the company’s two chief executives, Chris Britt and Ed St. Geme.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The deal came five years after Levine Leichtman partnered with management to acquire the chain, which operates 245 locations in several Western states. Unit count has increased 36% in the years since that deal.
The Newport Beach, Calif.-based chain was founded in 1978 and sells pizzas in a “family-friendly dine-in environment.” The chain generated record sales during the pandemic as consumers ordered more pizzas. System sales rose 13% in 2020, according to data from Restaurant Business sister company Technomic.
That performance continued into last year. Mountain Mike’s, which is entirely franchise owned, said last year that its same-store sales rose 10% in the third quarter.
Matthew Frankel, managing partner with Levine Leichtman, said its investment in Mountain Mike’s (MMP) was “extremely successful” for the firm and management. “Since our initial investment in 2017, MMP has substantially increased store count and expanded into several new states,” he said in a statement. He added that the company created a franchise development team and launched its mobile app.
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