Milling & Baking News - January 11, 2022 - 12

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Hearthside completes deal for
Weston Foods' ambient division
DOWNERS GROVE, ILL. - Contract
manufacturer Hearthside Foods Solutions,
LLC on Dec. 29 completed the acquisition of
Weston Foods Ambient Division assets for
C$370 million ($296 million). The transaction
was first announced in November.
The assets being acquired include
six North American baking plants
that make cookies, crackers, cones and
wafers. Approximately 1,100 full-time
employees work at the facilities.
The acquisition expands Hearthside's
network to 43 locations in the United
States, Europe and now Canada.
" These new facilities possess a culture
of quality and performance that
aligns well with our customer-focused,
people-first approach to business, " said
Chuck Metzger, chief executive officer
of Hearthside Foods. " This will enable a
successful and timely integration with
our core business. "
Dessert Holdings acquires Steven
Charles - A Dessert Co.
ST. PAUL, MINN. - Dessert Holdings
announced it has acquired Steven Charles
-A Dessert Co., an Aurora, Colo.-based
maker of gourmet desserts supplying
foodservice and retail customers across
North America. Financial terms of the
transaction were not disclosed.
" As the leading premium desserts
platform in North America, we are investing
behind category-defining dessert
manufacturers like Steven Charles to
help them reach their full potential, " said
Paul Lapadat, chief executive officer of
Dessert Holdings. " Steven Charles has a
heritage of creating and commercializing
award-winning desserts and that commitment
to excellence in innovation and
service has fostered long-standing relationships
with a number of the leading
foodservice and retail operators in North
America. We see an incredible opportunity
to supplement these strengths to
support Steven Charles' domestic growth
while also investing to expand the business
globally. "
Dessert Holdings, which was acquired
earlier this year by Bain Capital Private
Equity, offers products under three
brands: The Original Cakerie, Lawler's
Desserts and Atlanta Cheesecake Co.
The Original Cakerie, founded in 1979,
is a manufacturer of desserts with locations
in Vancouver, BC, and London, Ont.
12
MILLING & BAKING NEWS
Lawler's Desserts, founded in 1976, is a
manufacturer of gourmet cheesecakes,
layer cakes, pies and other premium
desserts based in Humble, Texas. Atlanta
Cheesecake Co., founded in 1988, is a manufacturer
of premium cheesecakes and
fusion desserts based in Kennesaw, Ga.
Together, the brands serve more than 250
Baking is one of Hearthside's four primary
contract manufacturing categories,
including bars, fresh and frozen entrees,
and food packaging. The new locations
bring additional capacity and an expanded
ability to meet the needs of existing and
new customers, Mr. Metzger said.
The transaction is part of Weston Foods'
move to sell its entire baking business.
FGF Brands, Inc. in October announced it
reached an agreement to acquire the company's
fresh and frozen bakery businesses
for $1.2 billion. The businesses serve retail
and foodservice customers with packaged
fresh bread, frozen bread, rolls, cakes,
donuts and pies. MBN
support their growth ambitions. "
In teaming up with Dessert Holdings
Steven Charles will gain access to a platform
and resources to continue to develop
innovative dessert products at scale for
the company's blue-chip customer base,
Ms. O'Hara said.
" Dessert Holdings has a complementary
product portfolio to ours and brings
capital and expertise that will help us
accelerate our growth journey, " she
said. " Steven and Charles are proud and
excited to hand the company over to the
capable hands of Dessert Holdings, who
will continue to value what makes Steven
Charles so special as we are aligned on a
strategy that preserves our commitment
to culinary innovation and extraordinary
service for our discerning customers. "
Steven Charles (previously known as
customers in the United States, Canada,
Mexico, the Caribbean, South America
and Asia.
" With our investment in Dessert
Holdings, we have the privilege of backing
Paul and his team as they build the
leading premium dessert manufacturing
company in North America, and the
acquisition of Steven Charles is a perfect
fit for that vision, " said Adam Nebesar, a
managing director at Bain Capital Private
Equity. " We look forward to partnering
with Rebecca (O'Hara, president of Steven
Charles) and the Steven Charles team to
Steven Robert Original Desserts) began
operating under its new name in January
2021. According to the company, the name
change pays homage to Steven Fabos,
founder and co-CEO, and Charles Kosmont,
chairman and co-CEO, while building
on its history of desserts.
Mr. Fabos founded the company in 1995
in a one-room bakery in Los Angeles. As
demand for the company's small-batch
cheesecakes grew, Mr. Fabos expanded
the business over the next 10 years, opening
large-scale commercial bakeries in
Aurora, Colo., and Pembroke, NC. In 2004,
Mr. Kosmont, a Venezuelan immigrant
with a passion for agriculture and an eye
for finding fresh ingredients, joined the
company. MBN
bakingbusiness.com
STEVEN CHARLES - A DESSERT CO.
http://www.bakingbusiness.com
Milling & Baking News - January 11, 2022

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