MTY Food Group purchased the pretzel chain from CenterOak Partners LLC for $207 million
Joanna Fantozzi
MTY Food Group — the Canadian franchisor of Famous Dave's Papa Murphy’s, Cold Stone Creamery, Blimpie, and Pinkberry — announced Wednesday the imminent acquisition of Wetzel’s Pretzels from Dallas-based private equity firm, CenterOak Parnters LLC for $207 million, subject to closing conditions.
This would be the second acquisition in the past few months for MTY Food Group, which announced its acquisition of BBQ Holdings' parent company, Famous Dave's in August for $200 million.
Wetzel’s is headquartered in Pasadena, Calif. and is the second-largest franchisor and quick-service chain operating in the snack category, known for its menu of sof-tbaked pretzels, pretzel dogs, and beverages. When the deal closes, MTY Food Group will add 350 locations (90% of which are franchised) across 25 states, Canada and Panama to its portfolio.
CenterOak acquired Wetzel’s Pretzels in 2016, and over the last year, annual sales have grown to $245 million with 21 million customers. Over the past year, from end of 2020 to end of 2021, the company grew by nearly 16%, adding 45 units to its portfolio. Sales were also up 19% from end of 2020 to end of 2021, according to NRN top 500 in collaboration with Datassential. Wetzel’s has also been rolling out new store formats in unconventional locations like inside a Macy’s store.
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