Freeman Spogli & Company Acquires A Majority Interest In Five Star Food Service

CHATTANOOGA, TN – Five Star Food Service, Inc. ("Five Star" or the "Company"), announced today that it has been acquired by Freeman Spogli & Company, management and other investors. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Headquartered in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Five Star is a leading provider of unattended food and beverage solutions in the Southeast, operating over 1,350 micro markets, 17,500 vending machines, 7,300 coffee machines and serving over two million dining meals per year throughout Tennessee, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama and Kentucky. The Company services over 8,500 diverse customers through a network of 17 branch locations and 300 routes. Five Star is the largest franchisee of Canteen Vending Services, a division of Compass Group USA, Inc., which is the leading provider of micro markets and unattended food service in the United States.

“Micro markets are a high growth segment of unattended foodservice benefiting from shifting consumer preferences towards snacking, portable meals, and fresh and healthy offerings,” said Brad Brutocao, a partner at Freeman Spogli. “Led by CEO Alan Recher, the Five Star management team has done an outstanding job positioning Five Star as the leading provider of unattended food and beverage solutions in its geographies. We are pleased to partner with management in the next phase of this exciting growth story and look forward to supporting Five Star as long-term investors in the Company.”

Alan Recher, CEO of Five Star, added, "We are thrilled to partner with Freeman Spogli, whose relevant experience in value-added distribution, foodservice, and convenience retail are a perfect fit for the Company and will be invaluable resources as we continue to grow the business organically and through acquisitions.”

Morgan, Lewis and Bockius LLP acted as the legal advisor to Freeman Spogli & Company. Finn Dixon & Herling LLP and Evans Harrison Hackett PLLC acted as the legal advisors to the Company and its controlling shareholder. Piper Jaffray & Company acted as lead financial advisor to the Company. Financing for the acquisition was provided by Ares Capital Corporation and Varagon Capital Partners.

About Five Star Food Service

Five Star Food Service, headquartered in Chattanooga, TN, is the Southeast’s premier on-site food and beverage solution provider to employers and other commercial, institutional, and educational locations. Five Star is a leader in micro markets, full-line vending, corporate pantry kitchen, coffee and water services, full-service dining, catering, and sustainable products across Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Kentucky, and North Carolina. Founded in 1993, Five Star has grown to one of the largest privately held operators in the United States and is a franchise of Canteen, a Compass Group company. Learn more at www.fivestar-food.com or join the conversation on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram.

About Freeman Spogli & Co.

Freeman Spogli & Co. is a private equity firm dedicated exclusively to investing in and partnering with management in consumer and distribution companies in the United States. Since its founding in 1983, Freeman Spogli has invested $4.5 billion in 61 portfolio companies with aggregate transaction value of over $23 billion, and is currently making investments from FS Equity Partners VIII, L.P. Freeman Spogli has offices in Los Angeles and New York. For more information, please visit www.freemanspogli.com.