Written by Cavan Sieczkowski for The Huffington Post
The owner of a hipster-approved beer company may come to the rescue of a beloved classic snack.
When Hostess announced plans to liquidate, fans of the baked-goods company feared the fate of the Twinkie. But lovers of the cream-filled sponge cake, fret not: Twinkies may survive thanks to the owner of Pabst Brewing, Co.
C. Dean Metropoulos and Co., the Connecticut-based private equity firm behind blue-collar-cum-hipster-darling beer, Pabst Blue Ribbon, is considering making an offer to buy Hostess Brands, Inc., according to Bloomberg.
“Our family would love to purchase these iconic brands,†Daren Metropoulos, a principal at the Greenwich-based firm, told Bloomberg. “We are actively pursuing this deal as no doubt strategics will also.” Adding, “We have analyzed this opportunity very carefully for a few years now. Shedding the complications of the unions and old plants makes it even more attractive.â€
Metropoulos specializes in buying and revitalizing struggling brands like Chef Boyardee pasta products, PAM cooking spray, and Bumble Bee tuna. The firmpurchased Pabst for $250 million in 2011, according to Forbes. It is North America’s largest privately-held brewer.
Hostess Chief Executive Gregory Rayburn echoed Metropoulos’ point on unions, stating that buyers’ interests piqued after union ties severed. “Nobody wants to have anything to do with these old plants or these unions or these contracts,” Rayburn told the Wall Street Journal regarding the Hostess bankruptcy auction. Liquidated Hostess would be freed from collective-bargaining agreements.
Rumors that Grupo Bimbo, a Mexican mega-bakery that claims the title of world’s largest bread baker, may also make an offer spread last week. However, Rayburn told Bloomberg that this is a “misconception” and that “due to antitrust, it would never happen.”
Other potential Twinkie saviors include McKee Foods, maker of Little Debbie snack cakes; Flower Foods, which owns Tastykake; and Canadian company Weston Foods, according to CNN.
On Friday, Hostess announced plans to liquidate after 82 years in response to a bakers strike, lagging sales and hefty debt.