History
The history of NoHo Partners goes back 30 years
The predecessors of NoHo Partners were Restamax Plc, Finland’s first listed restaurant company, and Royal Ravintolat, which was the largest private group of restaurant companies in Finland before its integration with Restamax. The restaurant portfolios of these two companies with almost 30 years of history complement each other wonderfully in terms of both geography and profile.
Learn more about the history of NoHo Partners here!
Restamax Oyj
Royal Ravintolat Oy
1988Royal Ravintolat Oy
Mia Saari opens a restaurant in Helsinki.
1990Royal Ravintolat Oy
Mia Saari and Pertti Hynninen take charge of three restaurants: NJK’s summer restaurant, Kulosaaren Casino and Ravintola Sipuli.
1996Restamax Oyj
Restamax’s present chief shareholders, Timo Laine and Mikko Aartio, establish a joint venture, Mr. Max Oy, which begins to engage in the restaurant business. At the early stages, the focus of the business is on pubs and nightclubs.
1996Royal Ravintolat Oy
Mia Saari’s husband Kasperi Saari joins the business.
1997Royal Ravintolat Oy
The Saari family and Pertti Hynninen start running a Holiday Inn hotel. Royal Ravintolat, the largest private hotel and restaurant company in Finland, is born. The hotel business is run by its fully owned subsidiary Oy Union Hotels Ab.
The Saari family and Hynninen acquire Arctia restaurants from Scandic, which had gained them in a corporate acquisition. Scandic continues as a shareholder. Private equity management company CapMan becomes an investor.
2003Royal Ravintolat Oy
Mia and Kasperi Saari and Pertti and Maria Hynninen purchase the shareholdings of the other shareholders, thereafter owning Royal Ravintolat in equal shares.
2005Restamax Oyj
The company’s operations are expanded into the food restaurant business.
2008Restamax Oyj
Through corporate transactions, business is increased even more strongly in pubs and nightclubs.
2008Royal Ravintolat Oy
Hotels Haven and Fabian are established.
2010Restamax Oyj
Restamax carries out a targeted share issue, as a result of which the company’s ownership base expands, and the Restamax Group is created through corporate transactions.
2011Royal Ravintolat Oy
Intera Partners becomes an equity investor. The Saari and Hynninen families become minority shareholders.
2013Restamax Oyj
The change of Restamax into a public limited company is registered in the Trade Register on 20 September 2013.
A significant step in the history of the company is taken at the end of the year, when Restamax Plc is the first company in the restaurant industry to be listed on the Helsinki Stock Exchange.
2014Restamax Oyj
At the beginning of the year, Restamax Plc purchases Rengasravintolat Group, transferring 16 restaurants in Helsinki, Tampere, Jyväskylä and Pori into the company’s ownership.
During the same year, Restamax supplements its restaurant portfolio with new restaurants and nightclubs, strengthens its position in its market areas and expands its operations into the new geographical areas of Oulu and the northern tourist centres of Ruka and Pyhä.
In August, the labour hire business becomes part of the Restamax Group.
2014Royal Ravintolat Oy
Royal Ravintolat acquires the Hanko Sushi fast food chain.
2015Restamax Oyj
The restaurant business is expanded to Oulu and Hanko and the labour hire business diversifies into medical and healthcare services.
2015Royal Ravintolat Oy
Royal Ravintolat acquires the Pizzarium fast food chain. Hotels Haven and Fabian are sold to Kämp Group.
2016Restamax Oyj
The company has 120 restaurants in Finland, and the restaurant business is expanded to Levi. The same year, the labour hire business is also strengthened in different sectors.
2017Restamax Oyj
Restamax establishes a joint limited company, Rivermax Oy, with Koskiravintolat Oy, a pioneer of the restaurant industry. The joint venture comprises seven restaurants in Tampere and Pori.
The company increases its number of restaurants to more than 130 and expands its restaurant business to new market areas in Vaasa and Rovaniemi.
The labour hire business grows into one of the leading players in the sector. Its market position is strengthened, particularly in the fields of industry, construction and restaurants.
Restamax achieves its long-term strategic goals and exceeds the MEUR 180 turnover target set for 2018 already during 2017.
2017Royal Ravintolat Oy
Royal Ravintolat acquires the Sandro fast food chain. The Saari and Hynninen families give up their shareholdings in the company.
Q1/18Restamax Oyj
Restamax publishes new long-term goals and strategy, according to which the Group is seeking a turnover of approximately MEUR 400 by the end of 2020.
Restamax announces its intention to evaluate the listing of the labour hire business comprised of subsidiary Smile Henkilöstöpalvelut Oy and its subgroup on the Nasdaq Helsinki Ltd Stock Exchange.
The Group expands its restaurant business to Denmark, operating there through its new subsidiary, Restamax Operations Denmark. The company purchases over 90 per cent of the popular Danish companies Cock’s & Cows and The Bird, which at the time of purchase operate a total of 11 restaurants and bars in Copenhagen.
Q2/18
Restamax acquires the entire shareholding of Royal Ravintolat.
Q4/18
On 27 November 2018, Restamax launches its new name, NoHo Partners.
2019
NoHo Partners expands its operations to Norway and divests its labour hire business. The company becomes the largest owner of Eezy Oyj, a pioneer in the personnel services industry, with a holding of 30.27 percent.
Q1/2020
On March 5, 2020, the company announced its result for the record year 2019. One week later, the corona epidemic strikes: the company issues a profit warning and immediately begins co-operation negotiations concerning all its personnel in Finland. Due to the market collapse, the Group’s business came to a near standstill.
Q2/2020
As expected, the Group’s result for the second quarter of 2020 was negative due to the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. Approximately 90% of the Group’s restaurants were closed in April–May. Starting from June 2020, the company focused on the gradual resumption of its business in a restricted operating environment and financing operations through cash flow.
Q3/2020
The Group operated in a restricted business environment in July–September 2020. Thanks to its efficient operating model, cost savings and the recovery of demand, the Group was able to generate operating cash flow of MEUR 5.5 in spite of the reduced volume and restore profitability to a good level.
Q4/2020
The Group operated in a restricted operating environment in all of the countries in which it operates during the last quarter of 2020. As a result of the acceleration of the pandemic, tightening restrictions on restaurants, weakened customer demand, complete halt of international business operations and lack of corporate sales during the pre-Christmas season, the Group’s turnover for October–December remained at approximately 42 % of the previous year, and operating cash flow was MEUR 7.2 negative. The full-year turnover for 2020 decreased to 57.5 % of the previous year.
Q1/2021
In February 2021, the Group negotiated a financing agreement that secures the company’s financial position for the next couple of years and facilitates the implementation of its rebuilding programme.
Q2/2021
In June 2021, the Group published its financial targets for the strategy period 2022–2024. The company aims to achieve turnover of approximately MEUR 400 and an EBIT margin of approximately 10 per cent by the end of 2024.