--- description: Golden Gate Capital will purchase the seafood chain from its current owner title: Huge Change Coming to Red Lobster image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd727b0bdd7315a66/69868a4955a859c91ba8043a/479724689.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Companies](/tag/companies/) ## Companies Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Darden Restaurants Selling Red Lobster for $2.1 Billion by [Maya Rhodan](/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 16, 2014 1:20 PM CUT  Two women stand next to a car outside a Red Lobster restaurant in Peoria, Illinois, U.S., on Tuesday, March 18, 2014\. Darden Restaurants Inc. is scheduled to release earnings figures on March 21\. Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg Two women stand next to a car outside a Red Lobster restaurant in Peoria, Illinois, U.S., on Tuesday, March 18, 2014\. Darden Restaurants Inc. is scheduled to release earnings figures on March 21\. Photographer: Daniel Acker/BloombergBloomberg—Bloomberg via Getty Images by [Maya Rhodan](/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 16, 2014 1:20 PM CUT Darden Restaurants [announced](http://investor.darden.com/investors/news-releases/press-release-details/2014/Darden-Announces-Sale-of-Red-Lobster-to-Golden-Gate-Capital-for-21-Billion/default.aspx "undefined") the sale of its Red Lobster business for $2.1 billion on Friday. San Francisco based private equity firm Golden Gate Capital will purchase of the popular seafood franchise and related assets. The bulk of the sale’s proceeds will be used to settle outstanding debt. “Today’s announcement is the culmination of a highly competitive process designed to maximize the value of the Red Lobster business and better position Darden for success,” said lead director of Darden’s board Chuck Ledsinger in a [statement](http://investor.darden.com/investors/news-releases/press-release-details/2014/Darden-Announces-Sale-of-Red-Lobster-to-Golden-Gate-Capital-for-21-Billion/default.aspx "undefined"). According to the [announcement](http://investor.darden.com/investors/news-releases/press-release-details/2014/Darden-Announces-Sale-of-Red-Lobster-to-Golden-Gate-Capital-for-21-Billion/default.aspx "undefined"), the purchase price is nine times Red Lobster’s 12-month earnings ending on April 27\. The sale is expected to close in early 2015 and provide the company with $1.6 billion in cash. About $1 billion will be used to retire debt, the remaining funds will be used to repurchase shares. The company has been mulling either the sale or spin-off of its Red Lobster brand due to the chain’s inability to move up-market. On a December [conference call](http://bigstory.ap.org/article/darden-looking-spin-or-sell-red-lobster "undefined") with shareholders, Darden CEO Clarence Otis announced the pending sale of Red Lobster as part of an effort to increase the company’s value. Golden Gate Capital has stakes in California Pizza Kitchen, Payless ShoeSource, and Express clothing stores. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/102665/red-lobster-sale/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/102665/red-lobster-sale/"},"headline":"Darden Restaurants Selling Red Lobster for $2.1 Billion","datePublished":"2014-05-16T13:20:17.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T07:53:03.597Z","description":"Golden Gate Capital will purchase the seafood chain from its current owner","url":"https://time.com/102665/red-lobster-sale/","keywords":["Companies","Retail","restaurants","Sale","Dining"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd727b0bdd7315a66/69868a4955a859c91ba8043a/479724689.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Maya Rhodan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd727b0bdd7315a66/69868a4955a859c91ba8043a/479724689.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Olive Garden and Red Lobster Locations Ahead of Darden Restaurants Inc. Earning Figures","caption":"Olive Garden and Red Lobster Locations Ahead of Darden Restaurants Inc. Earning Figures","creditText":"Bloomberg—Bloomberg via Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/companies/","name":"Companies"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/102665/red-lobster-sale/","name":"Darden Restaurants Selling Red Lobster for $2.1 Billion"}}]}] ```