In early-December, private equity company Eagle Merchant Partners acquired Vasari LLC, the second largest franchisee in the Dairy Queen system and the largest franchisee in Texas. The transaction includes 74 Dairy Queen restaurants in three states, 71 of which are in Texas. A majority are clustered around Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Austin, Waco, East Texas and the panhandle region. The purchase includes an exclusive territory rights agreement for the development of an additional 16 stores in the Dallas-Fort Worth market.  Eagle Merchant Partners is committed to injecting capital into the existing restaurants, with plans to remodel and modernize 70 stores over the next five years. Eagle Merchant Partners is an Atlanta, Georgia-based private equity firm focused on the acquisition of middle market companies in the consumer, business services and industrial sectors in the Southeastern United States. The equity firm is actively seeking to acquire additional multi-unit Dairy Queen operators in the region who are looking for a professional transition and exit.

Eagle Merchant Partners, One Buckhead Plaza, 3060 Peachtree Rd. NW, Suite 360, Atlanta, Georgia 30305 (404/974-2480 www.eaglemerchantpartners.com)

American Dairy Queen Corp., 7505 Metro Blvd., Minneapolis, MN 55439-0286 (952/ 830-0200 www.dairyqueen.com)