KANSAS CITY, MO — Hostess Brands and Voortman Cookies Limited announced Monday that they have executed an agreement under which Hostess will acquire Voortman, a rapidly-growing manufacturer of premium, branded wafers as well as sugar-free and specialty cookies, from Swander Pace Capital for approximately $320 million in cash, including a customary working capital adjustment, representing a post-synergy 9.1x1 EBITDA transaction multiple. The transaction has been unanimously approved by the Hostess board of directors. Hostess expects to close the transaction in early January 2020, subject to customary closing conditions.
“Voortman is a leading brand with a well-defined consumer position that complements and extends the growing Hostess portfolio into the growing cookie and better-for-you sweet snacking categories with meaningful runway for future growth,” commented Andy Callahan, Hostess’ president and chief executive officer. “We believe the acquisition of Voortman will create significant value for all of our stakeholders. We expect the combination of Hostess’ lean, proven operating model and Voortman’s brand and adjacent category position, will result in meaningful cost savings and growth opportunities. This acquisition fits well into our long-term growth strategy and we are confident that Voortman will be a great addition to our existing sweet baked goods snacking and breakfast portfolio.”
“The team at Voortman is excited about becoming part of the Hostess portfolio and the prospects for further dramatic growth of the Voortman brand behind the exceptional capabilities of the Hostess organization,” commented Douglas MacFarlane, CEO of Voortman.
Voortman is the No. 1 player in crème wafers and sugar-free cookies, as reported by Nielsen for the 52-week period ended Nov. 2, 2019 and has achieved compound annual point of sale growth over the last three years of approximately 5 percent. Founded in 1951 by brothers William and Harry Voortman and headquartered in Burlington, Ontario, Canada, Voortman is a manufacturer of premium, branded wafers as well as sugar-free and specialty cookies with distribution mainly in the United States and Canada. Voortman’s product ingredients, flavor profiles and better-for-you characteristics complement Hostess’ sweet baked goods snacking business.
