Hopcat Under New Ownership and Coming Out of Bankruptcy

WOOD TV8 reports that Hopcat has been sold to Congruent Investment Partners and Main Street Capital, after its former owners, Barfly Ventures filed for bankruptcy earlier this year. Congruent Investment Partners and Mainstreet Capital will operate Hopcat, Stella's Lounge, and Grand Rapids Brewing Company under a new company named Project Barfly LLC.

The restaurant chain sold for $17.5 Million and as the founder of Congruent Investment Partners, Travis Baldwin, told Fox 17, they believe in the concepts of Barfly Ventures and have followed the story of the business for a few years. Their goal is to build upon the restaurants' history and success.

"We know the business extremely well from our experiences over the last five years. We strongly believe in each restaurant concept and intend to return the company’s focus to providing a unique, best-in-class customer experience.”

The newly formed company, Project Barfly LLC CEO Ned Lidvall told WOOD TV8,

“The whole management team and I are very excited about the new owners. We think it’s a great fit for the company, and the energy and collaboration they bring will only enhance our recovery and growth. We are also thankful for our loyal guests and teammates – and vendor and landlord partners who have been working hard to make our progress possible,”

There are three Hopcat locations in West Michigan, two in Grand Rapids, including the original location downtown and one in Holland. Prior to the pandemic, they had 14 other locations in 8 states. The other properties include Stella's Lounge and Grand Rapids Brewing Company, both downtown Grand Rapids.