Imvescor to announce a strategic plan including an investment of up to $5.5M to rejuvenate its restaurant network

MONTREAL, April 15, 2015 /CNW Telbec/ - Imvescor Restaurant Group Inc. ("Imvescor" or the "Company") (TSX: IRG), a leading franchiser of restaurants operating 234 locations in Eastern Canada under the Pizza Delight^®, Mikes^®, Scores^® and Bâton Rouge^® banners, will hold today its annual general and special meeting of shareholders and will unveil a strategic plan that charts a roadmap for the Company's transformation and growth over the next three years.

The key objectives of the strategic plan are as follows:

• Same Restaurant Sales growth;
• improve franchisee profitability;
• enhance and leverage shared services; and
• improve shareholder returns.

Imvescor is building on its strengths, including a dedicated franchisee network, a solid balance sheet, an experienced and focused management team, a robust regional position for each of its brands and a healthy retail presence, while being well positioned to consider potential acquisition opportunities.

Frank Hennessey, President and CEO, commented, "With our strategic plan, we are entering an exciting phase of revitalization and growth for each of our brands. We will partner with our franchisees to evolve the brand experience by focusing on the core elements that make restaurants successful: quality food, good service, excellent value and an ambience that people want to come back to".

Imvescor's strategic plan is based on:

The Restaurant Rejuvenation Plan will incent franchisees to renovate more than 100 restaurants in order to improve guest experience and increase sales, and will involve an investment from Imvescor of up to $5.5M over three years.

The key financial targets are:

François-Xavier Seigneur, Imvescor's Chairman, added, "Our strategic plan for the future of Imvescor is ambitious but well-conceived, and we believe that we have the right leadership team to deliver improved results moving forward."

About Imvescor Restaurant Group Inc.

Imvescor Restaurant Group Inc. is a dynamic and innovative organisation in the family and casual dining restaurant industry. The Company is a franchise and licensing business that operates restaurants in Eastern Canada under four banners: Pizza Delight^®, operating primarily in Atlantic Canada, in the family/mid-scale segment, Mikes^® and Scores^®, operating primarily in Québec in the family and casual dining segments and the take-out and delivery segments, and Bâton Rouge^®, operating in Québec, Ontario and Nova Scotia in the casual dining segment. The Company also licenses to third parties the right to manufacture and sell prepared food products under the Pizza Delight^®, Mikes^®, Scores^® and Bâton Rouge^® brands and manufactures and sells vegetarian branded food products in grocery stores and retail outlets under the Commensal^® brand.

Non-IFRS Measures and Key Performance Drivers

This press release makes reference to certain non-IFRS measures and key performance drivers. These measures are not recognized measures under International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS") and do not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS. They are therefore unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. Rather, these measures are provided as additional information to complement IFRS measures by providing further understanding of the Company's results of operations from management's perspective. Accordingly, they should not be considered in isolation nor as a substitute for analysis of the Company's financial information reported under IFRS.

The Company uses non-IFRS measures and other key performance drivers, including "Same Restaurant Sales", "Net New Restaurants" and "EBITDA", to provide investors with supplemental measures of its operating performance and thus highlight trends in its core business that may not otherwise be apparent when relying solely on IFRS financial measures. The Company also believes that securities analysts, investors and other interested parties frequently use non-IFRS measures and other key performance drivers in the evaluation of issuers. The Company's management also uses non-IFRS measures and other key performance drivers in order to facilitate operating performance comparisons from period to period, to prepare annual operating budgets and to determine components of management compensation. The definitions of the non-IFRS measures and of the key performance drivers included in this press release are set forth in the table below:

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including, but not limited to, the Company's business objectives, estimates, outlook, strategies and priorities and all other statements other than statements of historical facts. All statements contained in this press release other than statements of historical facts, are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements may include estimates, plans, expectations, opinions, forecasts, projections, guidance or other statements that are not statements of fact. Forward-looking statements can generally be identified by words such as "may", "should", "would", "could", "will", "intend", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "outlook" and similar expressions. All such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the "safe harbour" provisions of applicable securities laws.

The Company's objectives in terms of Same Restaurant Sales, revenue and Net New Restaurants growth over the next three years may be considered forward-looking statements. Although the forward-looking statements contained herein are based on information currently available to the Company's management and on the current assumptions, opinion, intentions, plans, expectations and estimation made by the Company's management in light of its experience and perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments (such as the Company's future growth, results of operations, performance and opportunities as well as the future of the economic environment in which it operates), as well as other factors that the Company's management believes are appropriate and reasonable in the circumstances and on the date of this press release, there can be no assurance that such assumptions, opinion, intentions, plans, expectations and estimation will prove to be correct or that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. For the purposes of the outlook discussed in this press release, the management of the Company has assumed that a projected annual average increase between 3%-5% of Same Restaurant Sales, 10 Net New Restaurants and the rejuvenation of at least 100 restaurants under the Restaurant Rejuvenation Plan would be the main drivers of revenue and EBITDA. The Company does not assume any future significant acquisitions, dispositions, special dividends, share purchases, impairment charges or one-time items. The Company also assumed that the remaining outstanding warrants would be exercised in fiscal year 2016. Management considers these assumptions to be reasonable in the circumstances, given the time period for the outlook discussed in this press release, but there can be no assurance that such estimates and assumptions will prove to be correct.

Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors outside the Company's control. A number of factors could cause the actual results of the Company to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to: the Company's dependence on royalty stream, risks associated with quality control, food borne illnesses and health concerns, adverse changes to economic conditions, potential litigation and other complaints, the Company's ability to respond to various competitive factors affecting its operations, the impact of an increase in Company-owned restaurants, compliance with government regulations, the impact of sales tax upon system sales, the Company's dependence on key personnel and third parties, the closure of restaurants, changes in laws concerning employees, changes in the Company's relationships with its employees, changes in consumer preferences, the availability and quality of raw materials, franchise development and growth of the Company's royalties, risks associated with franchise regulations, compliance with regulations governing alcoholic beverages, the protection of the Company's intellectual property, the Company's retail products dependence on the strength of the Company's restaurant brands, environmental risks and regulations, the Company's dependence on technology, inherent risks associated with internal control over financing reporting, the indebtedness of the Company and the restrictive covenants to which it is subject and the risk associated with the Company's dividend policy and other factors referenced in the Company's Annual Information Form and the Company's other continuous disclosure filings which are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. These factors and assumptions are not intended to represent a complete list of the factors and assumptions that could affect the Company. These factors and assumptions, however, should be considered carefully

Forward-looking statements are provided herein for the purpose of giving information about the Company's current strategic priorities, expectations and plans, allowing investors and others to get a better understanding of the Company's business outlook and operating environment. Readers are cautioned, however, that such information may not be appropriate for other purposes and should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. The Company assumes no obligation to update such forward-looking statements to reflect new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. Except as otherwise indicated, forward-looking statements do not reflect the potential impact of any non-recurring or other special items or of any transactions that may be announced or that may occur after the date of this press release. The financial impact of these transactions and non-recurring and other special items can be complex and depends on the facts particular to each of them. The Company therefore cannot describe the expected impact in a meaningful way or in the same way it presents known risks affecting the business. The Company's forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement.

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SOURCE Imvescor Restaurant Group Inc.