Crown Bakeries continues aggressive growth strategy with New York-style bagel producer bolt-on

05-Jul-2021 - Last updated on 05-Jul-2021 at 11:36 GMT

Bagel Boy is the lastest acquisition by Crown Bakeries. Pic: GettyImages/littleny

Bagel Boy will continue to operate out of its existing manufacturing facility in Lawrence, Massachusetts, with founder Chuck Bouchrouche at the helm of the organisation.

This is Crown Bakery’s fourth bolt-on in the past 15 months. The company is owned by Arbor Investments, a specialised private equity firm that focuses exclusively on acquiring premier companies in food, beverage and related industries.

Arbor announced the recapitalisation of Crown Bakeries (formerly The Bakery Companies) with founder and CEO Cordia Harrington in October 2019 and has subsequently made significant investments to grow the business both organically and through acquisitions.

The Nashville, Tennessee-based bakery was founded in1996 by Harrington and today produces over seven million items daily for a diverse range of customers in foodservice and retail, as well as a co-manufacturing partner. It has won numerous awards, including Conagra Brands’ Supplier of the Year for 2020 and being appointed into the American Society of Baking’s Baking Hall of Fame in 2018.

Preeminent baking partner

“The Bagel Boy transaction marks the fourth add-on to the Crown portfolio in the past 15 months, giving the organisation over 1,000 employees, serving customers across all channels – in retail, as a co-manufacturing partner for brands, as well as in foodservice,” said Tuffin.

“We are thrilled not only to have grown our team and further expanded our product offering, but now boast eight facilities with presence up-and-down the Eastern seaboard, establishing Crown as the preeminent baking partner for customers in North America.”

Yianny Caparos, president of Crown Bakeries, added the Bagel Boy acquisition will expand its footprint in the Northeast of the US.

“Breakfast is the fastest growing daypart in the United States and bagel sales are growing nearly three-times as fast as the broader baked goods category,” said Caparos.

“By adding Bagel Boy’s outstanding products to our existing portfolio, including croissants, biscuits, and English muffins, as well as our extensive sweet goods capabilities, we further enhance Crown’s position as the preferred one-stop-shop baker in the industry.”

Winston & Strawn served as Arbor and Crown’s legal counsel. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.