FIVE STAR FOOD SERVICE ACQUIRED BY PNC RIVERARCH CAPITAL

CHATTANOOGA, TN – Five Star Food Service announced today its partnership with PNC Riverarch Capital, a leading middle-market private equity firm which invests in well-positioned companies across a variety of industry sectors including consumer products and services.

Founded in 1993, Five Star serves more than 5,500 customers across vending, micro-market, office coffee, and dining operations. Through customized foodservice offerings tailored to a variety of environments, Five Star enables employers to better serve the needs of their workforce, enhancing employee satisfaction, productivity and retention. Five Star is headquartered in Chattanooga, Tennessee and operates from 12 branch locations across Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama.

Since its 2008 reorganization, Five Star has grown revenues threefold and is prepared to accelerate its growth over the coming months and years. The investment will support Five Star’s plan to maximize market share, introduce new solutions, and expand its operational footprint.

“I am excited to partner with PNC Riverarch Capital to sustain and accelerate the growth of our business,” said Al Recher, CEO of Five Star. “Our foremost commitment is to provide our customers with exceptional foodservice solutions, supported by best-in-class customer service. We are excited for the company’s next phase of growth.”

“Five Star’s strong value proposition to employers and end consumers has driven an exceptional operational track record,” said Michael Hand, Managing Director of PNC Riverarch Capital. “We were particularly attracted to the company’s talented management team, entrenched market leadership position, and strong customer relationships. We look forward to partnering with the Five Star team to continue to build the premier provider of on-site food and beverage solutions in the Southeastern United States. We are immediately pursuing multiple add-on acquisition targets and have a healthy appetite for additional opportunities.”

About PNC Riverarch:

PNC Riverarch Capital is a middle-market private equity firm which invests in privately held companies headquartered in North America. The firm seeks well-positioned companies where it invests $10 million to $50 million of capital in support of leveraged and management buyouts, recapitalizations, corporate divestitures and growth financings. PNC Riverarch Capital invests across a variety of industry sectrs, including consumer products and services, outsourced business services, specialized manufacturing, and value-added distribution.

PNC Riverarch Capital is a division of PNC Capital Finance LLC, a wholly owned indirect subsidiary of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE: PNC). Since 1982, PNC has invested over $1.0 billion of equity capital in more than 100 companies.

About Five Star Food Service:
Five Star Food Service is a leading provider of on-site food and beverage solutions in the Southeast United States. Solutions include micro-markets, full-line vending, coffee service, corporate dining, food production, and catering. For more information visit www.fivestar-food.com.

VENDING YELLOW PAGES DIRECTORIES:

Call us at 1-800-956-8363 to POST YOUR COMPANY, or QUESTIONS?