This article was displayed on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 3:13 p.m. on Mar. 13, 2026.
Burger and chicken brand Mom's Touch will be back on the market for the first time in four years since 2022. With results improving sharply, the largest shareholder believes it could be valued in the low-to-mid 1 trillion won range.
According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 13th, KL&Partners, the private equity fund (PEF) manager and largest shareholder of Mom's Touch, is pursuing a sale of its controlling stake. It is said to be starting the process of selecting a sell-side advisor as early as early April.
Mom's Touch has been growing rapidly of late. Last year's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) reportedly came to about 102 billion won. That was more than 20% higher than the previous year's 84 billion won. Sales increased on the back of a co-launch with a chef who appeared on "Culinary Class Wars," and profitability was maximized through expansion of pizza shop-in-shop stores and disciplined management.
Given that fair valuation (price relative to enterprise value) for the F&B franchise sector is around 10 to 13 times EV/EBITDA, Mom's Touch is expected to be recognized at up to about 1.3 trillion won. In particular, its strength is cited as accelerating overseas expansion, starting with the successful establishment of its directly operated store in Shibuya, Japan.
Mom's Touch was sold to KL&Partners in 2019. KL&Partners acquired a 56.8% equity stake for about 200 billion won at the time, then increased its stake to 95% in 2022 and voluntarily delisted the company.
In 2022, KL&Partners pursued a sale by selecting Deutsche Bank as the lead manager, expecting a valuation of about 1 trillion won. However, amid a deterioration in F&B market conditions, it scrapped the sale plan and focused on scaling up and strengthening fundamentals.
KL&Partners has already recovered 2.7 times its principal through a recapitalization (recap).