Bids submitted for Drake & Morgan sale

A mixture of private equity groups and trade buyers are believed to have shown an interest in Drake & Morgan, the highly-regarded bar-restaurant operator.

First-round bids for the five-strong business, which is led by Jillian MacLean, are believed to have been submitted earlier last week. It is understood that an asking price of circa £25m has been put forward, although it is thought the group might realise a price closer to the high teens/£20m mark.

It is thought that Novus has run a rule over the business, which is backed by investment company Imbiba Partnership, while a MacLean-led, private equity-backed management buyout of the group is a possible option.

It recently secured two sites for next year and is set to announce plans to ramp up its expansion strategy.