Hostess Readies for 'Sweetest Comeback' Ever

NEW YORK -- July 15 is anticipated to be a sweet date in Hostess Brands Inc.'s history. That's when the company expects to have its iconic Twinkies and other snack cakes back on store shelves.

According to the New York City-based company, Twinkies, CupCakes, Donettes and other sugary treats will have the same taste as their predecessors, but boxes will feature the tagline, "The Sweetest Comeback In The History of Ever."

"A lot of impostor products have come to the market while Hostess has been off the shelves," Daren Metropoulos, a principal of the investment firm Metropoulos & Co., which teamed with Apollo Global Management to buy a variety of Hostess brands, told the Associated Press.

Hostess' return was certainly not assured. The company struggled financially for several years before it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2012. Hostess blamed higher employee pensions and medical costs for its downfall.

In the aftermath, Hostess sold off several of its brands, including Wonder and Drake's Cakes. But Twinkies was among the brands that remained. Metropoulos and Apollo bought Twinkies and the other remaining Hostess brands for $410 million and the business is now known as Hostess Brands LLC.

Although the taste of Hostess' sweet treats will remain the same, its distribution model will change. Previously, Hostess was only able to reach approximately one-third of the country's 149,000-plus convenience stores. Now, the new Hostess Brands will deliver to warehouses that supply retailers rather than doing direct-to-store deliveries only, Rich Seban, vice president of Hostess Brands LLC, told the AP.