Toca raises $100m to accelerate global expansion: Toca Football, the soccer experience company, has raised circa $100m (£76.4m) in private offerings to accelerate its global growth by investing in new technologies, upgrade its Toca Soccer training centres, and open additional soccer-themed Toca Social entertainment venues. Toca Soccer is currently the largest operator of tech-enabled soccer training centres in North America with 39 locations, and Toca Social, the world's first soccer-themed entertainment and dining venues, currently operates sites in London and Birmingham. Toca raised its Series F round from both existing shareholders and new investors, including Jim Kavanaugh, founder and chief executive of World Wide Technology (WWT) and co-owner of the professional soccer team St Louis City SC; Bill Anderson, former chairman and chief executive of Anderson Holdings, founder of First Beverage Group, and founder of June Street Capital; Jared Smith, co-founder of Qualtrics; and chess grandmaster and soccer enthusiast Magnus Carlsen. Existing investor and England men's national team captain Harry Kane recently renewed his collaboration agreement with Toca and will continue to serve as a key brand ambassador. Toca, in partnership with Major League Soccer (MLS), recently announced plans to open its first Toca Social site in the US, with the Texas-based venue set to launch at The Colony's Grandscape, in advance of the 2026 World Cup. Toca Social currently operates at London's The O2 and Birmingham's Bullring & Grand Central. Earlier this year, Toca also announced a partnership with Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield to open Toca Social venues in continental Europe and its first franchise deal in Mexico with Ventura Entertainment. These venues are planned to open in London (Westfield White City), Paris, and Monterrey in 2025. Toca Social is planning to open 20-plus European venues over the coming years and is targeting “dozens” of US venues. Kavanaugh said: “Toca's unique approach – combining personalised, data-driven training with engaging, soccer-themed entertainment – has captivated a global audience, from elite athletes to young players discovering the game for the first time. With a presence in key markets, Toca is poised to redefine the future of soccer on a global scale.” Toca co-chairman and WestRiver Group founder and chief executive Erik Anderson added: “I am excited to welcome our new shareholders and to work with WWT as a key technology partner. Its exceptional experience in propelling the world's largest and most innovative organizations will be vital in driving Toca's growth.” Yoshi Maruyama, chief executive of Toca, said: “Soccer is the world's most popular sport with massive tailwinds for growth in the US. This new capital infusion empowers us to scale our brand and to bring our cutting-edge training methods and immersive experiences to millions of guests around the world. We are incredibly grateful for the trust and confidence of our investors, both old and new, as we unlock our strategic vision with our partner MLS, which shares our passion for advancing the beautiful game.” Last week, Propel reported that Toca Social UK returned to profit in the year to 31 December 2023. It turned a pre-tax loss of £448,990 in 2022 into a profit of £222,440. Turnover rose from £5,133,478 in 2022 to £5,387,586. In July, president Alex Harman told Propel that he sees 20-30 UK venues as a “realistic long- term target”. Toca Social UK features in the Premium Club Turnover & Profits Blue Book, which features 978 companies. Toca Social UK’s turnover of £5,387,586 for the year ending 31 December 2023 is the 885th highest in the database. The Blue Book ranks companies by turnover, profit and profit conversion, listing directors’ earnings for the past five years. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Premium Club for a year for £995 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or a supplier. The single subscription rate is £495 plus VAT for operators and £595 plus VAT for suppliers. Email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com to sign up.

Sticks‘n’Sushi hires Kushal Banerjee as new CFO: Japanese premium restaurant group Sticks‘n’Sushi, in which McWin, the backer of Gail’s and Big Mamma Group, acquired a majority stake earlier this year, has hired Kushal Banerjee as its new chief financial officer. He joins Sticks‘n’Sushi following five years at Azzurri Group, the ASK Italian, Zizzi, Coco Di Mama and Boojum operator, where he was finance director. Previous experience includes roles at the Daily Mail & General Trust, Lion Capital and Manchester United. Sticks‘n’Sushi said: “With more than 17 years' experience, Kushal has a strong track record with significant expertise across M&A, capital markets and corporate strategy. He will lead the finance teams across Copenhagen, Berlin and London, responsible for the brand's financial decision making, implementation of strategic board recommendations and contributing to the overall expansion of the group.” Andreas Karlsson, Sticks‘n’Sushi chief executive, said: “Kushal’s extensive experience will be invaluable in supporting brand growth and driving the business forward, as we continue to expand and explore into new territories, create new jobs and long-term value for all our stakeholders.” Banerjee added: “Sticks‘n’Sushi has always stood out to me as a beautifully curated brand, with a rich heritage and unique potential. I'm thrilled to be joining the team as chief financial officer at such an exciting time for the business and developing the strategy for expansion.” Sticks‘n’Sushi currently operates 12 restaurants in and around the Danish capital Copenhagen, 14 in the UK, and three in Berlin, Germany. Propel revealed in July that Sticks‘n’Sushi is to further add to its presence in London with an opening in Battersea, after securing a site in Electric Boulevard, part of the Battersea Power Station development, for an opening before the end of this year. The brand recently opened on the former Neighbourhood site in Upper Street, Islington, which marked its first venture into north London and is part of its growth strategy to extend its reach into the capital’s residential neighbourhoods, following the opening of a site in Richmond in May. In February, Sticks‘n’Sushi secured a new £22m loan from OakNorth to support its growth plans. The new loan, alongside funding from McWin, will aid Sticks‘n’Sushi’s plans to accelerate its growth in its existing markets and also enter new markets over the next five years. 

Greene King and Greggs to help more people with criminal records into the workforce: Brewer and retailer Greene King and Greggs, along with Wincanton, the logistics provider, and Timpson, the key-cutting specialist, are joining forces with the charity ReGenerate to help more people with criminal records into the workforce. The Times reported that together they will be working on the charity’s Good Jobs Project, intended to tackle the worklessness problem, the revolving door of reoffending and the “eye-watering” £18bn annual cost of repeat criminality. ReGenerate points out that nearly two thirds of businesses report struggling to fill positions, yet more than half will not employ anyone who has been in prison. It said a third of companies refuse to hire anyone with a criminal record. With about a quarter of the working age population having criminal records, this dramatically reduces job prospects for millions of people, it added. Analysis by the charity suggested the economy is missing out on £11.5bn of revenues by excluding criminal-record holders from work. ReGenerate wants companies to change their approach, noting that 90% of employers who recruit people with criminal records report high levels of competency, loyalty and retention. A similar proportion said that “inclusive recruitment” policies, which also include offering work to young people leaving care and the disabled, have improved their reputation and helped them win contracts. 

St Peter’s Brewery invests in Portobello Brewing: Suffolk’s St Peter’s Brewery, one of the UK’s first craft brewers, has made an investment in Portobello Brewing, which was founded in 2012 by Rob Jenkins and is based in the heart of the Portobello area of west London. Portobello Brewing will join the Curious, St Peter’s and Wild brands within the group, while Jenkins will remain as Portobello’s managing director, with no changes to his existing team. St Peter’s said Portobello Brewing’s “customer focused service model remains unchanged” and that “both teams will continue to work together to enhance the Portobello brand with increased resources and support”. Jenkins said: “This partnership will bring increased investment, improved brewing capabilities and enhanced marketing support for our products.” Richard Mather, chief executive of St Peter’s Brewery Group, added: “This is an exciting development in line with our goal of working with great people and brands. The aim being to accelerate growth and innovation through building long-term relationships with customers and consumers. We are looking forward to supporting Rob and his team in this new chapter for Portobello Brewing.” Propel revealed in October 2023 that St Peter’s had acquired the Curious Brewery and Wild Beer Co businesses for an undisclosed sum. St Peter’s itself was acquired by a group of private individuals for an undisclosed sum at the start of 2021, having been founded in 1996 by John Murphy. 

Bilimoria pays back Cobra creditors: Lord Bilimoria is pressing ahead with his 15-year campaign to pay back creditors from Cobra’s collapse after earning dividends from his beer business worth £7.8m. The Times reported Lord Bilimoria has said he is racing towards fulfilling a promise to repay creditors in full after they were left out of pocket when Cobra went bust in 2009. Cobra Beer grew rapidly for 20 years after it was launched by Bilimoria in 1989. Yet it never turned a profit, and made a loss of £15.9m in 2008. The company was placed into a controversial form of administration which allowed Bilimoria to continue owning a stake in the business. He joined forces with Molson Coors to acquire the business through a pre-pack administration, but left unsecured creditors owed around £70m. The peer responded to concerns about the deal’s impact on more than 300 small trade suppliers by saying he wanted to “make sure that my creditors have been settled” and has been seeking to come good on that pledge ever since. Bilimoria told The Times: “I’ve continued to settle my creditors as I have done for 15 years. It is still very much my intention to look after everyone, and I’m almost there. To my knowledge, no one in the country has ever done this, and I’m doing it.” The Cobra Beer Partnership has declared a dividend of £7.5m for the year ended 31 December 2023, and has declared extra dividends totalling £5.2m so far in 2024, meaning the group has delivered payouts totalling £92.8m since the collapse in 2009. Bilimoria is entitled to about half of the payouts from the business, and Molson Coors paid Cobra’s secured creditors £14m in the pre-pack deal.