February 2, 2018

Hostess acquires breakfast brands, rewards employees with bonuses

On Feb. 1, Hostess completed its acquisition of Aryzta’s breakfast brands including one of its Chicago Cloverhill bakery facilities and Big Texas and Cloverhill brands. The acquisition includes supply partnerships with several key Hostess retailers. Until June 2017, the bakery was a significant co-manufacturer to the company.

“This is an excellent enabling acquisition for the Hostess breakfast strategy and fills a key strategic gap in our product portfolio,” said Dean Metropoulos, Executive Chairman of Hostess. “The Big Texas and Cloverhill brands and private label partnerships will add significant strength to our growing breakfast business.”

The transaction will allow Hostess to gain greater access to the club, vending, cash-and-carry and independent convenience stores sales channels while expanding its range of offerings in the breakfast category to HoneyBuns, Danish pastries and cinnamon rolls. The 137,000 sq. ft. bakery facility represents the largest individually-wrapped Danish pastry facility in North America and will help Hostess reduce reliance on co-manufacturing.

The recently enacted tax legislation also allowed Hostess to provide bonuses totaling $1,250 to its 1,036 hourly bakery and corporate employees. The bonuses will include $750 in cash and a $500 401k contribution. Hostess is also offering a year’s worth of free product to all employees. A representative from each bakery location will choose a ‘product of the week’ and all employees will be eligible to take home one multi-pack of the week’s selection, every week for a year.

 

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