Private equity firms Blue Marlin Partners and Trive Capital are set to acquire a majority stake in Mo' Bettahs Hawaiian Style Food in the US from Savory Fund. 

The founders of Savory Fund and Mo' Bettahs will maintain minority stakes in the business. 

Founded by Hawaii-born brothers Kimo and Kalani Mack in 2008, Mo' Bettahs was acquired by Savory Fund in 2017 and has expanded from six to 56 stores across seven states.  

Since 2021, Mo' Bettahs’ revenue has soared by 178%. 

The financial terms of the transaction remain undisclosed. Harrington Park Advisors acted as the financial advisor to Mo' Bettahs, with Mayer Brown providing legal advice to both Mo' Bettahs and Savory Fund.  

Benesch and Gibson Dunn served as legal advisors to Blue Marlin and Trive Capital, respectively. 

Blue Marlin founder and managing partner Peter Kirsch said: "Mo' Bettahs has established itself as the leader in the Hawaiian category, as well as one of the most exciting fast casual brands in the market with its high-quality food and authentic dining experience that harkens back to Kimo and Kalani's days growing up in Hawaii."  

Kimo and Kalani Mack stated: "We never planned on owning a restaurant — let alone almost 60 of them. We were two city bus drivers from Hawaii who knew how to cook, how to eat and how to work, but the way our lives have unfolded is beyond anything we could have imagined. We wouldn't be here without our Savory partners,  Andrew and Shauna Smith.”