Chef Jamie Oliver Said to Hire Bankers to Find New Investors

NYT Blogs
By Michael J. de la Merced
February 6, 2015

 

For years, diners have flocked to Jamie Oliver’s restaurants and made his recipes. Now Mr. Oliver, the British celebrity chef, is hoping to draw in new investors.

Mr. Oliver’s company has hired the Raine Group, a boutique investment bank, to sell a minority stake in his media and publishing business, a person briefed on the matter said on Friday.

The hiring of Raine, first reported by Sky News, may raise up to 50 million pounds, or $76 million, for the “Naked Chef.”

A stake sale would exclude Mr. Oliver’s chain of Italian restaurants.

The move to find minority investors comes as Mr. Oliver seeks to expand internationally, according to Sky News. But it is also following somewhat of a down year for Mr. Oliver’s company: Its 2013 profits fell 37 percent compared with those in the previous year, according to regulatory filings, to £6.2 million. Revenue fell 7 percent during that same time, to £32 million.