Rich Products has acquired Great Kitchens Food Co., North America’s largest manufacturer of private label take-and-bake pizzas and owner of the Uno Foods brand, from Brynwood Partners VIII L.P., Buffalo, New York-based Rich Products (Rich’s) announced Monday.
“Great Kitchens has robust expertise and capabilities in fully topped pizzas, bringing deep dish and handheld products to Rich’s portfolio,” Rich’s said. “This strategic move significantly expands Rich’s topped pizza offerings and strengthens the company’s position as a leader in pizza.”
Kevin Spratt, president of the U.S. and Canada regions for Rich Products, said, “As a major player in the food industry for more than 80 years, pizza has been an integral part of our business for over four decades. We’re always looking for new ways to enhance our pizza capabilities and this move is a game-changer for the industry.
“When you combine Great Kitchens’ leadership in fully topped pizzas with our strength in crust and dough, you get a one-stop pizza partner with an unmatched breadth of expertise that will allow us to accelerate growth, drive greater innovation and deliver unique and distinct value to our customers,” he continued.
The deal closed this month, Rich’s said. Terms and conditions of the transaction were not disclosed.
The addition of Great Kitchens will allow Rich’s to create a vertically integrated topped pizza and flatbread platform, expanded capacity and greater crust innovation in both deli and frozen—“all powered by an expanded joint manufacturing network,” Rich’s said.
Romeoville, Illinois-based Great Kitchens has manufacturing facilities in Romeoville, Chicago Heights, Illinois, and Brockton, Massachusetts. The company has 1,000 employees who will join Rich’s team of more than 13,000 people in 100-plus countries, “merging a deep bench of expertise that will strengthen Rich’s ability to drive long-term growth in the pizza category,” Rich’s said.
Admir Basic, president and CEO of Great Kitchens Food Company, said, “Not only is Rich’s a well-known leader in the pizza segment, but they bring the size and scale required for us to unlock new opportunities. Rich’s shares our commitment to innovation and delivering value for customers, making this partnership a natural fit. By merging our unique strengths, we have a huge opportunity to accelerate innovation and raise the bar across the industry.”
Great Kitchen’s private label and branded food products are sold nationally through major grocery retailers, wholesale club stores, foodservice and ecommerce channels. In March 2023, Great Kitchens acquired the Uno Foods Division from Uno Restaurant Holdings Corp. and now manufactures Pizzeria Uno Chicago deep-dish pizza, strombolis and calzones.
“This strategic move strengthens and broadens Rich’s ability to help customers grow their pizza business by providing more product capabilities and innovation that leverages both companies’ combined pizza expertise, industry-leading research and development, manufacturing network and capacity.” Rich’s said.
Buffalo, New York-based Rich Products manufactures a variety of foodservice products ranging from pizza, seafood and salads to cakes, cookies and icings. The family-owned company operates in more than 100 countries and has annual sales exceeding $5.8 billion.
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