Sustainable Restaurant Group, the owner of seafood chains Bamboo Sushi and QuickFish, on Tuesday announced that it has received a strategic investment from Bain Capital and early-stage investor Kitchen Fund.
The investment will be used to support the chains’ expansion into new markets, and to “amplify the concepts’ commitment to sustainability efforts.”
Portland, Ore.-based Sustainable Restaurant Group was founded in 2008 with the launch of the sustainable sushi restaurant Bamboo Sushi. In 2016, the company added QuickFish, a quick-service poke chain.
Combined, the chains operate six locations in Portland and Denver and plan to open 10 more locations over the next two years, adding locations in Seattle and San Francisco.
The chains are targeting more environmentally conscious consumers. They support more sustainable fishing practices, excluding seafood from overfished oceans while highlighting health risks associated with farm-raised fish. The company doesn’t serve seafood such as bluefin tuna that are on Monterey Bay Aquarium's Red List of fish vulnerable to overfishing.
The company's Carbon Calculator determines the carbon footprint of its individual menu items and offsets that footprint.
The investment from Bain and Kitchen Fund come “at a crucial point in our growth trajectory, and at a time when the fishing industry is plagued with inefficient supply chains and unhealthy farm-raised fish,” company founder and CEO Kristofor Lofgren said in a statement.
The company received funds from Bain Capital Double Impact, a subsidiary of Bain Capital that targets companies that do social and environmental good. Kitchen Fund, meanwhile, has made numerous early-stage investments in growth restaurant chains such as Cava, Curry Up Now and The Pie Hole.
Warren Valdmanis, a managing director for Bain Capital Double Impact, in a statement called Sustainable Restaurant Group “an authentic, compelling brand that stands out across all social dimensions.”
“Kristofor and his high-quality management team have done an exceptional job of tapping into a growing segment of customers who recognize that eating sustainably sourced seafood is not only better for you, but also better for the planet,” Valdmanis said.
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