Human Interest
Lucid Ventures brings Jamie Oliver eatery to JHB─── 18:22 Wed, 28 Sep 2016
Johannesburg - The first South African restaurant in celebrity chef Jamie Oliver's signature chain Jamie's Italian will open in Melrose Arch in Johannesburg in November, according to a statement released on Wednesday.
Venture capital company Lucid Ventures, which was launched earlier this year by kulula.com founder Gidon Novick, announced that it has acquired a 20% stake in Jamie's Italian restaurant chain in South Africa as its maiden investment.
Lucid has an initial capital base of R80m and is an investor group comprising experienced and successful South African entrepreneurs. The initial focus of the fund is on businesses in the fast growing casual dining sector. It is approved by the Financial Services Board and benefits from a tax incentive to encourage investment in new ventures and high growth small and medium enterprises.
Jamie's Italian operates 40 restaurants worldwide. There are plans to open a further four restaurants in South Africa over the next few years.
