F’real and Goglanian Bakeries Become Part of Rich's
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Rich Products Corp. announced today that it is acquiring two food companies – Goglanian Bakeries Inc. and f’real foods LLC -- plus entering into a new joint venture, Twin Star Bakery, with business partner The Stolbun Group.
"The acquisitions of Goglanian Bakeries and f’real foods, and [the] establishment of our Twin Star joint venture, are consistent with our ongoing commitment to shape and reshape our diverse portfolio to keep Rich's focused on a path of long-term growth," stated President and CEO Bill Gisel.
The acquisition of family-owned Goglanian Bakeries will significantly expand Rich’s current pizza business and provide the company with an exceptional line of par-baked pizza crusts, flatbreads and pitas to complement its existing strength in frozen pizza dough within the foodservice channel, according to the company's announcement.
Goglanian possesses a significant manufacturing network with operations in Santa Ana, Calif., Fountain Inn, S.C., and Rochester, N.Y., along with a new state-of-the-art facility located outside of Chicago, which is expected to open in the first quarter of 2013.
"This acquisition strengthens our competitive position within the pizza category, one of our highest growth priorities for our U.S.-Canada region," said Richard Ferranti, executive vice president and chief operating officer at Buffalo, N.Y.-based Rich's.
The addition of f’real foods, based in Orinda, Calif., provides Rich’s with a new product line and greater penetration into the high-growth convenience store segment. F’real sells authentic, high-quality milkshakes, smoothies and frozen coffee beverages, along with patented blending equipment, to more than 9,000 c-store and foodservice locations across the United States and Canada. Based on its unique business model and current growth trajectory, f'real will be managed as a separate subsidiary business.
"The acquisition of f’real provides us with the opportunity to enter a completely new product category, and also establish additional inroads into the high-growth convenience store segment within Rich’s Foodservice Division. We will be working closely with the f’real leadership team to help them leverage our scale, best practices and certain capabilities," Ferranti said.
Lastly, the Twin Star Bakery joint venture includes a state-of-the-art desserts manufacturing operation near Houston, which produces fully finished cakes, and baked and iced cookies. The Stolbun Group will manage Twin Star’s research and development and production, while Rich’s will oversee product marketing and sales, primarily through its In-Store Bakery Division.
"As we enter our 68th year in business, these acquisitions provide terrific growth and add to the momentum we have as a family-owned business that stretches across the world," Gisel concluded. "We’re thrilled to welcome an exceptional range of new products to our portfolio and a wide array of talented new associates to our organization."