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July 2, 2021

Westport SPAC acquires Bowlero in $2.6B deal

PHOTO | Contributed A Westport-based SPAC is acquiring upscale bowling chain Bowlero, which operates three bowling centers in Connecticut.
By Natalie Missakian

A Westport blank-check company plans to acquire bowling chain Bowlero Corp., which operates three upscale bowling centers in Connecticut including in Milford and Wallingford. 

The deal values the company at $2.6 billion.

Bowlero and Isos Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, on Thursday announced the combination, which will take Bowlero public.

Under the deal, Bowlero will continue to be led by its existing management team and will trade on the NYSE under the symbols “BOWL” and “BOWL WS,” the companies said in a joint announcement.

Bowlero, which owns the Professional Bowlers Association and more than 300 bowling centers in North America, describes itself as the dominant player in an $11 billion global bowling market. 

The company is known for buying ailing bowling alleys around the country and bringing them back to life with snazzy, high-end makeovers.  In Connecticut, it operates bowling centers on North Colony Road in Wallingford and the Boston Post Road in Milford as well as one in East Hartford.

Isos is led by former WWE co-presidents George Barrios and Michelle Wilson. 

“This transaction will allow us to further expand the Bowlero ecosystem which covers leisure, media and gaming,” Bowlero founder and CEO Tom Shannon said in a statement. 

SPACs, which have become a hot trend on Wall Street, raise money from investors to acquire other companies and take them public. SPACs do not reveal their potential acquisition targets at the time of their IPO.

Last month, Thimble Point Acquisition Corp., a New Haven-based SPAC tied to the Pritzker Vlock Family Office, announced it planned to take over Boston digital health startup Pear in a deal that values the company at $1.6 billion.

Three Connecticut-based medical technology companies, Quantum-Si and Butterfly Network in Guilford and Stamford’s Sema4, have either gone public or are planning to via SPAC mergers. 

The Bowlero-Isos deal will pour $450 million into the company from private investors through a PIPE (private investment in public equity) round, according to the announcement. 

Investors in the round include affiliates of Apollo Global Management Inc., Brigade Capital Management, Soros Fund Management LLC, the Donerail Group LP and Wells Fargo Asset Management. 

Boards of both companies have approved the deal, which is expected to close in October pending stockholder approval.

Contact Natalie Missakian at news@newhavenbiz.com
 

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