Friedman Fleischer & Lowe, LLC, a San Francisco-based private equity firm, today announced that an affiliate of the firm has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Church’s Chicken from Arcapita Bank B.S.C.(c), a global investment firm headquartered in Bahrain. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Church’s Chicken is one of the world’s largest quick-service chicken restaurant concepts, with over 1,600 outlets worldwide. Church’s serves traditional home-style fried chicken in a simple, no-frills restaurant setting, with a focus on providing complete meals at low prices for value-conscious consumers. The fried chicken concept operates under two brands worldwide: Church’s Chicken and Texas Chicken.

David L. Lowe, Vice Chairman of FFL, said: ‘FFL has a long history of successful consumer industry investments. The acquisition of Church’s Chicken represents an opportunity to apply our sector expertise to enhance the value of an outstanding quick service restaurant chain. We are impressed by Church’s global footprint, compelling value positioning, history of industry-leading same stores sales growth, and of course the opportunity to further expand domestically and internationally. We look forward to working with Harsha Agadi and the company’s extraordinarily talented management team.’

Harsha V. Agadi, President and CEO of Church’s Chicken, added, ‘The Church’s management team is excited at the prospect of working with FFL, which has an excellent track record, and is committed to supporting the continued global growth of our brand. We are very pleased to work with a private equity firm that brings strong retail and food experience, which will result in a winning combination for both parties.’ The Church’s management team will be rolling over significant equity to support their belief in the long term growth opportunity for Church’s Chicken.

Completion of the transaction is expected within 30 days, and is subject to normal closing conditions.