Indulge Desserts Holdings, a portfolio company of AUA Private Equity Partners, has acquired Joey’s Fine Foods.
Joey’s Fine Foods is a family-owned branded manufacturer of dessert snacking products serving club stores, traditional and alternative grocery retailers, and foodservice channels. Approximately 80% of the company’s sales come from its branded products which include Joey’s Famous Black and White Cookies and Linzer Tarts.
Joey’s also manufactures a variety of other products including muffins, sliced cakes, brownies, pastries, and cookies. The company’s products are sold in both family-size and individual packaging. Joey’s was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Newark, NJ (www.joeysfinefoods.com).
The acquisition of Joey’s provides Indulge Desserts with access to a new product category that further diversifies the company’s business. In addition, AUA is developing cross-selling opportunities which will help expand Joey’s sales into new channels. “We are pleased to acquire Joey’s Fine Foods and expect meaningful synergistic opportunities as we continue to scale our leading premium desserts platform,” said Andy Unanue, Managing Partner of AUA Private Equity.
Indulge Desserts was acquired by AUA in June 2016 and is a maker of premium gourmet desserts, offering a full line of American and international/ethnic, all-natural products to the foodservice and retail markets across the US. The company’s portfolio of products includes Italian specialties, Latin desserts (tres leches and dulce de leche) and Asian inspired treats as well as gluten-free and sugar-free items. Indulge Desserts is based in New York.
In March 2017, Indulge Desserts acquired Elegant Desserts, a Lyndhurst, NJ-based manufacturer of European-style desserts including French chocolate mousse, petit fours, specialty brownies, cheesecake and carrot cake bites (www.elegantdesserts.net). Earlier, in January 2017, Indulge Desserts acquired Love & Quiches, a Freeport, NY-based manufacturer of desserts and quiches (www.loveandquiches.com).
“We are excited to acquire Joey’s Fine Foods and the high-quality products the company manufactures as this transaction will allow us to continue to expand Indulge Desserts’ diverse portfolio of products,” said Steven Flyer, Partner of AUA Private Equity. “We continue to seek other dessert manufacturing assets as we realize on our vision to grow Indulge Desserts into a leading premium dessert manufacturer.”
The acquisition of Joey’s Fine Foods was led by Mr. Flyer, Senior Associate Jack Lin, Associate Te’Rhon O’Neal and Analyst Mateo Yibrin.
AUA Private Equity makes equity investments in companies in the consumer, media and business services sectors with a particular focus on family-owned businesses and companies benefiting from the growth of the US Hispanic population. The firm invests from $15 million to $75 million of equity in companies that generate at least $5 million of EBITDA. AUA is based in New York (www.auaequity.com).
© 2018 Private Equity Professional | October 24, 2018
