While the sale applies only to the Legal dining spots, Roger Berkowitz whose family founded the company is holding onto other parts of the business, including the retail and online aspects of the company.
“I am humbled by the dedication our employees have shown over the years in building Legal Sea Foods into the preeminent brand it is, Berkowitz said in a statement. Our restaurants will continue under the stewardship of PPX, and my family and I will own and operate the Legal Sea Foods brand in non-restaurant channels. I am excited to pursue a future focused on fish by further expanding the brand into e-commerce and retail.
Roger Berkowitz to retain rights to the name for e-commerce and retail
PPX Hospitality Brands on Tuesday announced the acquisition of Legal Sea Foods, a Boston institution founded by the Berkowitz family in 1968, now with 27 casual-dining locations in Massachusetts, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia and Washington, D.C.
The sale also includes Legal’s Quality Control Center in Boston’s Seaport. The deal will take effect immediately.
Boston-based PPX was launched in January of 2020 as the parent company of steakhouse chain Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group and The Strega Group, which operates three Italian chophouses in the Boston area under the Strega Italiano brand as well as Strega Caffe, a coffeehouse on the campus of Northeastern University.
UpdatedTue, Dec 22, 2020 at 2:36 pm ET
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Legal Sea Foods was sold Tuesday to a Medford-based hospitality group. (Dave Copeland/Patch)
MEDFORD, MA The sale of Legal Sea Foods was finalized Tuesday afternoon. The iconic restaurant chain was sold to PPX Hospitality Brands, a Medford-based company behind Smith & Wollensky and three Boston-area Strega restaurants.
The sale was announced around 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, but a spokesperson for PPX later said the deal has not been finalized as yet. In an email shortly before 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, the company confirmed the sale had gone through.
Legal Sea Foods has been owned by the same family since its founding in Cambridge in 1968. Roger Berkowitz, the public face of Legal Sea Foods since taking over as chief executive officer from his father in 1992, told The Boston Globe the sale was directly related to the coronavirus pandemic that has decimated the restaurant industry.
WCVB
BOSTON Legal Sea Foods, one of the country s oldest seafood restaurant chains, has been sold.
PPX Hospitality Brands, a Boston-based hospitality group, on Tuesday announced the purchase of the Legal Sea Foods Restaurant Group.
PPX will own and operate all restaurant concepts under the Legal Sea Foods banner, including airport locations.
Roger Berkowitz, whose family opened the chain in 1968, will retain ownership rights of the Legal Sea Foods name in channels outside of restaurant operations, including e-commerce and retail.
Active Legal Sea Foods employees have been invited to remain as part of the team. When fully operational, PPX hopes to employ 3,000 people across all three companies, the company said.
PPX completes deal to acquire Legal Sea Foods, promotes COO to brand president
By
Dec. 22, 2020 19:11 GMT
PPX Hospitality Brands has now closed its deal to purchase the assets of Boston, Massachusetts-based Legal Sea Foods from former longtime CEO and owner Roger Berkowitz for an undisclosed price. [.]
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