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A SPANISH GROUP has acquired a majority stake in the Irish-based takeaway chain Apache Pizza in a deal worth up to €10.7 million.
The deal is a joint venture between Telepizza and OKR, the operator of Burger King franchises in Ireland.
Telepizza announced the deal as part of its annual financial results for 2017. According to the Spanish-listed firm’s annual report, it will pay up to €10.7 million for the brand.
Some €6.7 million of that acquisition investment was paid in 2017 with potential additional investment to be paid through €4 million in earnouts this year.
The report added that Apache Pizza made earnings before tax of €1.4 million during the financial year that ended 30 June 2017.
Apache Pizza was founded by Robert Pendleton and his wife Emily Gore Grimes in 1996.
Since it was set up over two decades ago, it has grown to become the largest takeaway pizza chain in the Irish market, with over 150 outlets in the country.
Compared to its rivals in the market, Dominos and Papa Johns, Apache has more than double the number of outlets.
Up until the sale last year, Pendleton and his wife controlled roughly 70% of the company. The rest of the firm was owned by Niall Doonan and Paul Doonan.
The Irish Times has reported that Pendleton will remain at the firm as managing director and that there are plans to open up to 50 more outlets in Ireland.
Pendleton added that the company, which will keep the Apache brand, is also interested in expanding the franchise to Scotland and Wales within the next 12 months.
Telepizza
Founded in 1987, Telepizza is a major international player in the takeaway business, operating across 20 countries.
Te Spanish firm has 1,400 pizzeria joints worldwide and employs roughly 25,000 people.
In addition to the Irish market, new countries Telepizza expanded into last year included the UK, France, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Malta, Iran and Paraguay.
Last year, Telepizza reported sales of €561 million, an 8.6% increase on the previous financial year.
Written by Killian Woods and posted on Fora.ie
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I usually buy apache, it’s Irish owned and tastes nice. Will be switching elsewhere now. Do we have ANY domestic companies that aren’t foreign owned at this stage?
@Sean Stevenson: are you serious? The pizza is pure greasy dirt
@shellakybooky: exactly what you want, I’ll usually only order takeaway when drinking/hungover anyways. Dominoes tastes like cardboard with slime.
@Sean Stevenson: Happens to every small start ups that get big..Big fish comes and buys a majority stake..Thats Capitalism..You’ll starve if you take that attitude
@Sean Stevenson: I’ve never even seen an Irish person working in an Apache store. I assumed it was an Indian company or something! I’d love a pizza now and some of their taco fries. (Yes, I know it doesn’t have to be Irish people working there for it to be an Irish company)
@Sean Stevenson: Why would you switch when a minority stake is still held by an Irish firm and the pizza’s are still going to taste the same. I’m sure that the 2.300 employees who work for Apache in Ireland wouldn’t be overly happy if all Apache customers took your view, took their business elsewhere and put Irish jobs in jeopardy. The same could be said for Irish companies that have interests abroad and who repatriate much needed revenue back to Ireland.
If a company produces a good quality product or service and employs Irish workers then who cares who owns it? If you want to switch services like you say then then what mobile service are you going to use seeing as all of them AFAIK are owned by foreign companies?
@Sean Stevenson: who cares who owns it? Go to your local chipper that’s not a branded chain if you want to be more local.
@shellakybooky: yes it’s very greasy.. there wedges are not much better .
@Peter: as in cowboys and Indians?
@Peter: I assumed it was a money laundering operation, given that there are loads of them and they’re never busy. I guess not at this valuation.
@Ben McArthur: comment of the year!
Apache pizza is rank and I can’t understand why anyone eats it.
@Catherine Sims: Cos it’s delish!
@Peter: chicken Apache ftw
@mike scott: Do you think Apache Temple Bar is open?! The Spar opposite never closed!
I’ve always wondered why pizza is so expensive, they must cost Very little to make, flour, yeast water – base is dirt cheap.
Tomato sauce- dirt cheap, toppings and cheap mass produced mozzarella- when is someone going to start vastly undercutting this absolute rip off and start a chain that charges €5 for a massive pizza?
@David Grey: ‘cos staff, rent, insurance, marketing etc etc
@David Grey: Do the maths and you’ll see that last year Apache made a whopping twenty seven euro per outlet per day, or €609 per employee per year. The economics of the pizza business are pretty rubbish. Good luck to any lower cost alternative.
@Ben McArthur: that, or they have done creative accounting going on. I find it hard to believe they only sold 10 pizzas a day.
Hope they teach how to make pizzas
@Polly Dolan: Telepizza is delicious
The Apache Indians are rejoicing as we speak
@Leroy: Brilliant.
You think they’ll use real ham and bacon now???
@Kev Barnes: probably Not and the real meet will still be Halal.
Burger King owned subsidiary? Hmm? Does that mean I could get a whopper cheese and pinapple 12inch with wedges a bottle of watered down syrup?? Mmmm heart stopping….
The Sioux & Cheyenne won’t be happy to know Apache are turning Spanish
Never liked Apache anyway.
@Humphrey De Fluff: apparently Apache never liked you either
Dominos tho
That’s a lot of dough for a pizza the pie not matter what way you slice it!
probably the last place I would use for a pizza.
Behold, a certain young maiden did oft times and at strange hours greatly desire a pizza. This would often happen in the second or the third watch, when home delivery was not available. At such times there would be much weeping and gnashing of teeth because she could not have the desire of her heart.
And so she spake thus with herself: “If I would but learn to make my own pizza, then when the desire cometh upon me in the night hours, I shall be able to have pizza straightaway, without waiting for the pizza merchants to re-open when the cock croweth.”
The following day she sought out the school of one Papa Giuseppe, who gave instruction on the making of pizza.
The maiden had not long been in the presence of her new Master before she learned that a pizza base consisteth wholly of flour, water, yeast, salt and sugar. Because she was loathe to wait continually upon her Master, for the many hours of study that he required of his disciples, she departed from his presence straightway after hearing of the ingredients.
When she was in her own home, she did search until she had found all of the necessary items, and she put an equal measure of each into a large earthen vessel, and did eat from it.
“Pshaw!” she exclaimed, as the ingredients spewed forth from her mouth. “The truth is not in my Master,” she reasoned with herself. “This food tasteth badly of salt and yeast. I will go to him and remonstrate him for his deception.”
“I have not wronged you,” said the good Master when he had heard the maiden’s story. “If you had continued steadfastly in my word, like my true disciples have done, you would have learned the correct measure for each of those ingredients.”
The maiden was humbled beyond measure by this new revelation. “Surely, I was too impatient with Master Giuseppe,” she said. “I will return to his class a second time, and hear more of what he has to say.”
And so she listened once again to the words of the great pizza maker, until she was fully instructed in the ways of weights and measures.
She did hide all these things in her heart (and on the notepad in her laptop computer), after which she made haste to leave the classroom and return home once again. There she made use of that which she had learned from the Master. Her weights and her measurements were without equal throughout all the land.
But lo, her labours failed yet a second time, for that which she produced was of the nature of silly putty. It did take the shape of whatsoever vessel wherein it had been placed. “My hand runneth over,” she said upon trying to pick up a piece of the pizza. And upon biting into it, there was not the familiar crunch in which her soul had taken such delight in days gone by. Instead, her mouth was filled with softness, and the taste was that of the glue which the scribes do use when binding their books.
She returned to her master, greatly distressed, and did enquire as to why he had taught her such untruths.
“But I have not misled you,” said the kindly Giuseppe. “The mixture must first be cooked, before it is meet for human consumption.”
Alas, the poor maiden was humbled yet again. Nevertheless, though she returned many times to the Master’s feet, each time she learned a new truth, she believed that she was his equal, and that she had no further need to learn from him. Because of this, her learning was painfully slow.
Now there were certain other foolish students like herself, who hurried off to try what they had learned from Papa Giuseppe as well. But when their “pizzas” fell short of the glory that they had so desired, they cast aside all hope of making pizzas and returned to peanut butter sandwiches instead. Their hearts became hardened against the good Papa, and they blamed him for their failures, when it was these foolish students themselves who were the cause of their own problems.
Our young maiden was foolish for not being faithful in her attendance at the pizza-making classes; but she was less foolish than her equals, because she returned to learn more when her own understanding failed.
So learn a lesson from the foolish young maiden. Follow your Master faithfully, and do not stray from his side until you have hidden in your heart all that he hath to say.
And learn likewise from the wisdom of the foolish young maiden. For, if you should stray from the way, do not heap scorn on your Master or those whom he may have used to show you some small part of the truth. If your efforts fail, return to him and learn again the hidden truths that can only be learned by one who is of a broken and a contrite heart. ((Dave the Voice).
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