Significant Capital Raise will be Used to Continue Growth Plan
Bowlero Corp., the global leader in bowling entertainment, today completed a transaction with VICI Properties Inc. (“VICI”) relating to the transfer of land and real estate assets of 38 Bowling Entertainment Centers across 17 states for aggregate value of $432.9 million. The transaction was structured as a tax-deferred capital contribution, and proceeds are expected to be used to accelerate new builds, deploy capital into acquisitions and conversions, return capital to shareholders, pay down a portion of Bowlero’s debt, and for general corporate purposes.
Bowlero entered into a triple-net master lease agreement with VICI (the “Lease”). The Lease will have an initial total annual rent of $31.6 million, representing an acquisition cap rate of 7.3%, and an initial term of 25 years, with six 5-year tenant renewal options. Rent under the Lease will escalate at the greater of 2.0% or CPI (subject to a 2.5% ceiling). Bowlero expects the Lease to be treated as a long-term lease obligation with no effect on EBITDA.
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Thomas Shannon, Chairman, Founder and CEO of Bowlero, said, “This transaction marks the beginning of a long-term, valuable partnership with VICI. John, David and team have been fantastic partners, and the support of VICI’s capital gives us the firepower to continue advancing our strategic directives. We look forward to growing the relationship over the coming years.”
Brett Parker, Executive Vice Chairman of Bowlero, said, “We are executing on accretive strategies that drive our growth. With this transaction, we also extended the duration and diversified the sources of our capital, strengthening our overall financial position. Bowlero has a long runway of opportunities with returns far in excess of our cost of capital across all growth vectors in the bowling entertainment space. We look forward to investing in additional opportunities to move our business forward and will continue to utilize sale-leasebacks to drive growth at an efficient cost of capital.”
Wells Fargo acted as exclusive financial advisor and Jones Day served as legal advisor to Bowlero on the transaction.
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