(ABC News)--Buyout firms Apollo Global Management, LLC and Metropoulos & Co.
have agreed to purchase the Hostess and Dolly Madison cake brands,
including Twinkies. The iconic snacks have been off the market since
Hostess closed its plants in November and declared bankruptcy after its
unions went on strike.
The proposed transaction includes the brands, five bakeries, and
certain equipment for $410 million. The transaction requires US
Bankruptcy Court approval. A hearing to consider approval of the sale
will take place on March 19.
"We are very pleased to have the opportunity to bring back ‘America's
favorite snack'. Apollo and I are proud to be associated with such an
outstanding set of brands," Dean Metropoulos, founder and CEO of
Metropoulos & Co., said in a statement. "This transaction will
ensure the beloved Hostess snack cakes can continue to be enjoyed for
years to come. We look forward to returning the iconic Hostess
products, including Twinkies, Ding Dongs, and HoHos, to consumers as
soon as possible. In addition, we are also pleased to be able to
provide employment opportunities for many people in cities around
America."
Some 18,500 workers were left jobless by the closing. It was
not immediately clear how many, if any, of those jobs would be saved.
Apollo reportedly plans to outsource distribution to third-party
drivers and produce the snacks in existing bakeries, rather than those
that were shuttered.
An auction was to be held for the company's assets, but no bids were
received. A spokesman for Hostess said the company had no comment on the
lack of competing bids for the snack cakes, the Associated Press
reported. Previously, Hostess CEO Greg Rayburn had predicted the process
would be "wild and wooly."
A representative for Apollo, whose investments include the fast-food
chains Carl's Jr. and Hardee's, declined to comment to the AP
Hostess had also canceled an auction for its Wonder and other major
bread brands after no competing offers were made. Those breads are being
sold to Flowers Foods, which is based in Thomasville, Ga., and makes
Tastykakes and Nature's Own bread. The final sales of the breads and
Hostess snack cakes are set to be approved in bankruptcy court on March
19.
McKee Foods, which makes Little Debbie snack cakes, was picked as the
lead bidder for Drake's cakes, which include Devil Dogs, Funny Bones
and Yodels. The deadline to submit competing offers for those snack
cakes is Tuesday, with an auction set for Friday.
Hostess, based in Irving, Texas, stopped making its cakes and breads
in late November after it announced it was going out of business and
closing its plants following years of financial struggles.
Copyright 2013 by ABC News
