Fynveur takes majority stake in Rudy's owner Mission Mars
Artal's investment arm buys into the group behind Rudy's Napoletana and Albert's Schloss, as backer BGF exits after eight years and a first Scottish site nears.
Fynveur, the investment holding owned by Artal, has acquired a majority stake in Mission Mars, the Manchester operator behind Rudy's Napoletana and Albert's Schloss. The deal, advised by Invus, closed this week and ends BGF's eight-year backing of the group.
Mission Mars runs 44 sites: 40 Rudy's Napoletana pizzerias and four Albert's Schloss venues, all in the UK. The company grew from a single site of each brand in Manchester. Five openings landed in its 2026 financial year, and all are trading ahead of expectations, according to Restaurant Online.
The purchase price was not disclosed. The deal is backed by a debt facility from Santander, HSBC and NatWest, with Clearwater acting as debt adviser. Houlihan Lokey advised the Mission Mars shareholders; Jones Day acted for Fynveur.
A strong culture and ambition fit between Mission Mars, Artal and the Invus team.
BGF first invested in Mission Mars in 2018. Matt Widdall, a partner at BGF, called the company "an exceptional success story" in a sector that has faced well-documented pressure on margins and staffing.
Scotland is next for Rudy's
Mission Mars has openings in its pipeline, including its first Rudy's Napoletana site in Scotland, due in Glasgow later this month. The existing management team, led by chief executive Roy Ellis, stays in place under the new ownership.
Ellis thanked BGF for its support over the past eight years and pointed to "a strong culture and ambition fit" with Artal and Invus from early talks, according to The Caterer.
Luc Ta-Ngoc, managing director at Invus, said the plan is to bring "Rudy's and Albert's Schloss to more people and places," language that points to faster unit growth rather than a change of format.
Private equity still likes pizza
The deal lands as other independent pizza groups look abroad for growth, a path Pizza Pilgrims has already taken into Germany. It also comes a month after UK hospitality posted its best sales growth of the year, even as insolvencies in the sector remain elevated.
Mission Mars says it is exploring further acquisitions. For a 12-year-old group built on two Manchester openings, a fresh balance sheet and a wider ownership structure set up exactly that kind of expansion.
