Benjamin Patou and Walter Butler intend to work together to accelerate Moma’s development and establish the company as one of Europe’s leading premium restaurant concepts, symbolising a unique “art de recevoir” in France and internationally.

Moma Group announced that Butler Industries has acquired a significant minority stake in the company. Walter Butler has been appointed as non-executive vice-president and Board member.

This strategic partnership is part of a shared long-term vision to accelerate the ambitious growth set by Moma Group to open more than 40 new venues by 2025, building on the strength of its iconic brands such as Lapérouse, Mimosa, Casa Amor and Noto in high-potential areas including the United States, the Middle East and major European capitals.

Over the last decade, Moma Group has established itself as a key operator in the events, hospitality and festive restaurant industries in France, deploying an end-to-end offering for its clients based on one ambition: to provide them with unique experiences in exceptional venues.

Butler Industries’ financial backing and wealth of experience are concomitant with an acceleration the history of Moma Group, as the company is set to unveil some fifteen new addresses over the next 12 months, including: Noto in Marrakech; Mimosa, Café Lapérouse, Noto and Manko in Saudi Arabia; Manko in Athens; Casa Amor in Dubai; Café Lapérouse in Miami; Noto in Nice; Mimosa in London, just weeks after the recent opening of Café Lapérouse in the British capital.

Since its inception in 1991, Butler Industries has developed recognised expertise in the restaurant and events industries, with significant investments in iconic assets such as Paradis Latin cabaret, Pierre Hermé, L’Ambroisie, Partouche, La Liste as well as several wine estates.

Commenting on the deal, Benjamin Patou, Founder and President of Moma Group, said: “I am delighted to welcome Butler Industries and Walter Butler to the capital of Moma Group, alongside Patrick Bruel and Eric Sitruk, who remain fully committed. As entrepreneurs with a passion for hospitality and French savoir-vivre, we share with Walter Butler the desire to continue to build Moma Group’s reputation beyond France’s borders. With this investment, Moma Group can count on a new partner with significant financial resources, commitment and expertise to accelerate its profitable growth and create interesting synergies between our brands.”

Walter Butler, Chairman of Butler Industries, also commented: “It is a great pleasure for me and for Butler Industries to become today the leading minority shareholder of Moma Group, alongside Benjamin Patou, and to be associated with a personality who contributes to the influence of French art de vivre throughout the world. Much more than a financial investment, this is an investment in French expertise in the art of living, and in a long-term project.”

Transaction advisors

For Moma Group 

Financial advisors: Lazard (Jean-Philippe Bescond, Olivier Le Maire)

Legal advisors: White & Case (Guillaume Vitrich, Simon Martin Gousset), Oriamedia (Mathieu Davy, Juliette Martin, Juliette Hueber)

For Butler Industries

Legal advisors: BDGS (Antoine Bonasse, David Andréani, Anaëlle Rioufol), Taliens (Grégoire Triet, Emilie Gras), Jeantet (Laetitia Ternisien)

Due Diligences: June Partners (Fabrice Keller, Baptiste Giordano, Mégane Letainturier), KPMG (Florence Olivier, Bénédicte Perez)

Press contacts

Moma Group 

Alexandra van Weddingen                              Eléonore Barreyre

Alva                                                                 Alva

[email protected]           [email protected]

06 11 01 17 91                                                 06 48 17 52 22

Alexis de Maigret

Vae Solis

[email protected]

06 13 62 38 23

About Moma Group 

Moma Group offers its clients an integrated range of services: 800 employees working in four areas of the events industry – catering, venues, consultancy and shows. Recognised expertise in the creation of restaurants, unique venues and event strategies for companies, brands and institutions. As the owner of a number of unique establishments, the Moma Group is developing cutting-edge expertise in operations, communications and marketing as well as in the catering sector, drawing its success from its ability to bring together talent and personalities around strong concepts. For more information: www.moma-group.com

About Butler Industries

Founded in 1991, Butler Industries is a global industrial investor with offices in Paris, Shanghai, London and Singapore and a presence in 30 countries on 5 continents. The Group is involved in all phases of a company’s life and actively supports the implementation of long-term growth strategies. For almost 15 years, the Group has concentrated its investments in growth companies, start-ups and technology businesses, both in Europe and Asia. The Group’s main investments (outside the lifestyle division) are in the defence and security sectors, and in savings, through CorumButler. For further information: www.butlerindustries.com

Butler Industries, led by Walter Butler, announced today the acquisition of a majority stake in the Parisian restaurant L’Ambroisie, alongside its founder Bernard Pacaud. This transaction, conducted with the company’s own funds, without resorting to borrowing and with no time limit, includes the acquisition of the business and the walls of the establishment. The primary ambition of Butler Industries’ investment in L’Ambroisie is to reinforce its role as a flagbearer of French culinary excellence, while respecting its unique identity.

Since December 1986, L’Ambroisie, situated in the heart of Paris under the famous arcades of Place des Vosges, has been a gem in French haute cuisine, distinguished by numerous awards and honors. Bernard Pacaud, who remains the president, partner, and chef of the establishment he elevated to the pinnacle of global gastronomy, will continue to have full control over L’Ambroisie’s kitchen. His unique culinary skills, recognized worldwide and notably by the Michelin Guide where he has maintained three stars for thirty-seven consecutive years, contribute significantly to the restaurant.

“L’Ambroisie is not just a restaurant, it’s L’Ambroisie, and Bernard Pacaud is not just a monument in world gastronomy, he represents a unique life journey, a reflection of France’s most extraordinary aspects. Bernard’s life exemplifies the importance of hope in our lives. For me, it’s an investment of both heart and reason in a jewel of French heritage. I am honored by the trust of Bernard and Danièle Pacaud and determined to continue their exceptional contribution to French culinary expertise. It is a great responsibility and a huge pride for me to work with Bernard and Danièle Pacaud to ensure L’Ambroisie remains the reference in French cuisine,” says Walter Butler, President of Butler Industries.

“I am particularly proud to have made L’Ambroisie, with my wife Danièle, an institution in French gastronomy. It’s a craft passed down to me by Mère Brazier, the first woman to be awarded two triple Michelin stars. L’Ambroisie is my life’s work, founded on hard work, humility, rigor, attention to customers, and generosity. These founding values, bequeathed by my two mentors, ‘la Mère’ and Claude Peyrot – 3* Michelin stars – are what I strive to pass on to my clients and teams. Walter Butler’s project is a continuation of these values, and I am happy to ensure the future of this institution, which I will support with the same passion that has driven me for sixty years,” states Bernard Pacaud, founder and chef of L’Ambroisie.

A few weeks after its acquisition of Pierre Hermé’s macaroons, Butler Industries has signed a new deal. It is taking over the maritime services company SeaOwl, thus returning to a sector it loves. The former SNCM shareholder is taking over the entire capital, which had been shared since 2015 between Cathay Capital (around 40% of the shares) and private French and Italian shareholders. It will also associate the manager Xavier Genin and his teams, whose weight should grow. The investor will provide full equity financing, leaving only the bank loans in place (mainly related to the financing of the ships), and will pay off the mezzanine put in place by Trocadero Capital in 2017.

Founded in 2008, SeaOwl divides its activity between two main sectors: the energy sector, where it provides maintenance of offshore assets for industrial companies such as TotalEnergies, Naval Group and TechnipFMC, and the defence sector, where it assists national navies in their actions at sea, through technical support and training missions. The company has been in the news for having obtained, in 2020, the first French navigation permit for a remotely operated boat. The first contracts for the marketing of this know-how are currently being negotiated. The group, which has 1,300 employees, has a turnover of over €100 million and an EBITDA margin of around 10%. Active in 32 countries via some fifteen subsidiaries, it derives 80% of its revenues from abroad, mainly in Asia and Africa. The objective is to continue its development in these regions as well as in the Middle East, while accelerating investments in the fields of remote ship operation and marine drones.

Other business services SeaOwl Turnover: €100m Ile-de-France

Butler Industries: Walter Butler, Laurent Parquet, David Movahhedi – Buyers’ advisors: due diligence: financial: June Partners (Fabrice Keller, Baptiste Giordano); legal: KPMG Avocats (Vincent Lacombe, Florence Olivier, Albane Eglinger), strategic: Advention Business Partners (Alban Neveux, Iska Pivois); legal: BDGS (Antoine Bonnasse, Jérôme du Chazaud, Yaëlle Cohen) – Buyers’ advisors: Oddo BHF Corporate Finance (Nicolas Ecot, Xavier Lalau Keraly), Invest Corporate Finance (Christophe Marchand), Hetland Maritime (Philippe Hetland Brault, Sixte de Gastines); VDD: financial: EY (Laurent Majubert, François Estin), tax: EY Société d’Avocats (Sandrine Gobaut, Sigrid Cassagne), strategy: Archery Strategy Consulting (Rémy Bonnery); legal: Hogan Lovells (Stéphane Huten, Ali Chegra)

Source: Capital Finance

The dean of Parisian cabarets has entrusted the choreographer with his new revue L’Oiseau Paradis. A show brimming with energy, where tradition and modernity dialogue brilliantly.

“The show must go on”. Yes, but not just any old way. After a year of forced closure, the Paradis Latin is making a strong comeback with the revival of its new revue L’Oiseau Paradis, first launched in 2019. Directed by renowned choreographer Kamel Ouali, it is placed under the sign of humour and irreverence, where tradition and modernity collide in a real lesson in style.
For nearly two hours, Kamel Ouali unfolds his colourful universe through eighteen breathtaking tableaux, punctuated by the dance steps of a supercharged troupe. But if the choreographer, a great fan of music hall, respects certain cabaret codes to the letter, he also has fun revisiting them. Tradition dictates that two lovers dance the farandole in Montmartre, while a vocalist arches her back in a scarlet suit of lights, singing Beyoncé hits.

But the show is punctuated by more contemporary touches, which give it depth and originality. If we start to move our elbows on ABBA’s hits, we are especially delighted by a more audacious soundtrack that lets out new wave or electro, tracks ranging from Depeche Mode to Alain Bashung.

Amidst the frills, feathers and sequins, the light shows and 3D videos leave the guests speechless. One thinks of the trompe-l’oeil show of the showgirl Solen Shawen, who, in flesh-coloured underwear, metamorphoses into a humanoid under computer-generated images. The magic also works overhead with artists floating in the air, suspended from Pegasus, the winged horse of Greek mythology, descending from the sky.

In total, nearly fifteen exceptional sets accompany the show, designed by Alain Lagarde, a creator renowned for his sets for operas, musicals and plays. In addition, there are 500 signature costumes (flashy dresses, lion headdresses and bird feathers) created by the fashion house On aura tout vu, which has collaborated with Katy Perry.

A magazine in her image

The watchword is celebration, but it rhymes with current events. The choreographer reveals himself through his portraits, and does not hesitate to make a few winks at the causes that are dear to him. Like the ballet of jellyfish on the opera of Lakmé suddenly swallowed up by a pile of rubbish.

A flawless performance by Kamel Ouali who signs a daring and perfectly balanced revue, between dance, music, humour and decadence. “The show must go on”.

Le Paradis Latin, 28, rue du Cardinal Lemoine (5e). www.paradislatin.com

 Source: Le Figaro

Three stars in the Michelin guide, at the top of the list of the 1000 best restaurants in the world, Guy Savoy will create four menus a year for the cabaret on the Left Bank.

The “Paradis Latin” style salmon heart, caviar tarama”, “Foie gras semi-cooked with Guérande salt, smoked tea jelly, bitter orange”, “Paradis Latin iced nougat”… We are already licking our lips. At the Paradis latin, the show and the party are obviously on the stage where Iris Mittenaere has been performing for the last six months, leader of the revue “l’Oiseau Paradis” imagined by Kamel Ouali. The taste buds will also soon be in for a treat.

From 1 January 2020 – if we don’t count the Christmas and New Year’s Eve evenings for which he will concoct the menus – the menu of the Left Bank cabaret will be signed Guy Savoy. Three Michelin stars and the fourth consecutive year that he has topped the list of the world’s 1,000 best restaurants with his establishment at La Monnaie de Paris (6th arrondissement), the chef “will prepare four menus per year, one per season, i.e. 64 different dishes”, says Walter Butler, the owner of the premises.

Increasing numbers of visitors

“First of all, we asked ourselves if it was possible to serve quickly in order to meet the constraints of the cabaret while maintaining the quality of each dish. The selection of suppliers, the creation of teams under the supervision of the chef who trained them, the complete renovation of the kitchens “entirely rebuilt according to his wishes”, and the testing of the dishes, “this partnership is the result of a long period of work, almost a year”, continues Walter Butler.

“But make no mistake, people are not going to go to Guy Savoy, it’s a completely different experience, but the menus are prepared by his team with the guarantee of exceptional quality,” he continues. As for prices, they are not increasing with two show menus, the Gustave Eiffel and the Prestige, at 150 and 190 euros respectively.

Taken over a year ago, restored from top to bottom, the Paradis Latin continues its transformation with a certain success and an increasing number of visitors. “We have had a very strong increase in attendance, our rooms are full,” says Walter Butler, who emphasises his “very Parisian” clientele. “There really is a clientele from the capital that comes and returns, it is the one that is increasing the most.

Source: Le Parisien