Guzman y Gomez

Guzman y Gomez
Company typePublic company
ASX: GYG
Industry
Founded2006
HeadquartersSurry Hills, New South Wales, Australia
Number of locations
210 restaurants (2024)
Area served
Key people
  • Steven Marks (Founder)
  • Robert Hazan (Co-Founder, NED)
  • Guy Russo (Chairman)
ProductsMexican food
AU$–2.2 million (2023)
Websitewww.guzmanygomez.com.au

Guzman y Gomez (GYG; /ɡʊz.ˈmɑːn.iː.ɡoʊ.ˈmɛz/)[1] is a Mexican casual and fast food restaurant chain based in Australia. Many restaurants also serve coffee through the “Cafe Hola” brand which operates during the morning.

Guzman y Gomez was established in Sydney in 2006 by New York City trio Steven Marks, Sebastian Van der hoek and Robert Hazan and operates over 200 restaurants in Australia, Japan, Singapore and the United States.

In 2021, Guzman y Gomez is the ninth-most popular fast food restaurant in Australia.[2]

Restaurants

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In Australia, Guzman y Gomez had 185 restaurants in operation as of May 2024.[3] The business operates internationally with 25 locations in Singapore, Japan, and the United States.[3]

History

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Guzman y Gomez was established by Steven Marks, a New Yorker who previously worked as a hedge fund manager. After relocating to Australia, he found the quality of Mexican food to be poor and decided to start a restaurant.[4] He has stated that "real Mexican is really urban, street and hot [...] Latin people are so full of energy and full of life, we wanted to bring that to Australia".[5] He took on his friend Robert Hazan, another New Yorker, as a partner. They named the business after two of Marks' childhood friends.[6]

The first store was opened in King Street, Newtown, Sydney in 2006.[7][4] Store openings in Bondi Junction and Kings Cross followed within a year.[8] By April 2012, there were 12 stores.[5] The first Guzman y Gomez in the Melbourne central business district opened in November 2012.[9] Within 12 years, they opened 100 stores in Australia.[10]

Guzman y Gomez restaurant in the Jingūmae district of Tokyo

The first international Guzman y Gomez restaurant opened at the end of 2013 in Singapore,[11] followed thereafter by the opening of a restaurant in Tokyo, Japan in April 2015.[12] In January 2020, Guzman y Gomez's international expansion continued with the opening of their first restaurant in the United States in the Chicago suburb of Naperville.[13][14]

Ownership and finance

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Marks and Hazan initially supported GYG with their own money. In 2009 they sold a minority stake to Peter Ritchie, Guy Russo and Steve Jermyn, who had previously been involved with McDonald's Australia.[4] Russo was subsequently appointed chairman of the board.[6] The board also includes co-founder Robert Hazan, 3 former McDonalds executives, Tom Cowan of TDM Growth Partners,[15] and Rokt CEO Bruce Buchanan.[16]

Investment firm TDM Growth Partners bought a stake in the company for $44 million in August 2018.[4] In December 2020, the publicly listed Magellan Financial Group bought 10% of the company for $86.8 million.[17] In May 2022, Magellan sold its 11.6% stake in the company to an entity owned by investment bank Barrenjoey Capital Partners for $140 million.[18]

Marks stated in 2019 that his goal was to list GYG on the Australian Securities Exchange.[4] In 2020 he stated that he was also ambitious to expand the company's presence in the United States, citing Australia's "antiquated" labour laws, high rents, and expensive fresh produce.[6]

In May 2023, Marks resigned as CEO due to a health scare.[19] However, he changed his mind and remained as CEO.[20] Hilton Brett was appointed co-CEO in October 2023.[21] GYG was listed on the Australian Securities Exchange on 20 June 2024.[22][23]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ About Us: The Fun Stuff. Guzman y Gomez. 22 November 2011. Retrieved 12 October 2019 – via YouTube.
  2. ^ "McDonald's, KFC, Hungry Jack's & Domino's Pizza are Australia's favorite restaurants - Roy Morgan Research".
  3. ^ a b Jeffrey, Daniel (31 May 2024). "Aussie fast food chain announces $2.2 billion transformation". www.9news.com.au. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d e Gillezeau, Natasha (15 October 2019). "From Wall St finance bro to burrito king". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 1 April 2021.
  5. ^ a b Mason, Max (9 April 2012). "From Wall Street, he rode in on a Mexican wave". Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 24 July 2014.
  6. ^ a b c Waters, Cara (22 February 2020). "'Build the next McDonald's': Guzman y Gomez heads to the US on way to IPO". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  7. ^ Chung, Frank (8 April 2016). "McDonald's, Guzman y Gomez and Domino's smash fast-food rankings, Pizza Hut in crisis". News.com.au. Archived from the original on 8 April 2016.
  8. ^ Butterworth, Monique (13 November 2007). "Mexican wave". Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 23 November 2015. Retrieved 4 August 2019.
  9. ^ Vedelago, Chris (21 November 2012). "Mexican chain finds city home". Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 22 November 2012.
  10. ^ Bennett, Lindsay (6 April 2018). "How Guzman Y Gomez took on McDonald's without marketing". AdNews. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
  11. ^ Kitney, Damon (11 August 2014). "McDonald's old boys beef up the burritoa". The Australian.
  12. ^ St. Michel, Patrick (24 April 2015). "The Taco Bell is ringing, but will Tokyo come to the party?". The Japan Times.
  13. ^ "Guzman Y Gomez is coming to Naperville". Guzman y Gomez. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
  14. ^ Wilson, Marie (14 January 2020). "Naperville is getting the nation's first Australian Mexican restaurant". Arlington Heights Daily Herald.
  15. ^ "The rise of Guzman y Gomez: the making of a global brand". Business News. 1 April 2021. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
  16. ^ "Why Rokt and its biggest investor are pushing ahead with a 2023 IPO". Australian Financial Review. 30 May 2022. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
  17. ^ "Magellan pays up for Guzman y Gomez". Australian Financial Review. 22 December 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2021.
  18. ^ "Magellan sells Guzman y Gomez stake to Barrenjoey unit for $140m". Australian Financial Review. 9 May 2020. Retrieved 9 May 2022.
  19. ^ Thompson, Sarah; Sood, Kanika; Rapaport, Emma (7 May 2023). "On ya Marks! Guzman y Gomez boss resigns". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  20. ^ Riordan, Primrose (8 December 2023). "Guzman y Gomez appoints Kmart and Target executive as new CFO". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  21. ^ Ignacio, Celene (8 October 2023). "Guzman Y Gomez appoints Hilton Brett as co-CEO". Inside Retail Australia. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  22. ^ Huge milestone: Guzman y Gomez flags $2.2b IPO Australian Financial Review 31 May 2024
  23. ^ Mexican fast-food chain Guzman Y Gomez listing today, ASX down slightly, super funds on track for strong returns ABC News 20 June 2024
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