Sugar Foods Purchases Concord Foods
Sugar Foods, which serves foodservice, grocery, retail and restaurant brands, has acquired Concord Foods. With the strategic acquisition of Concord’s complementary resources, capabilities and expertise, Sugar Foods aims to deliver better innovations and more services to its customers. The terms of the acquisition weren’t disclosed.
Founded in 1968, Concord is a supplier of custom ingredients and retail food products for supermarkets, foodservice operators and food manufacturers. The acquisition adds Concord’s 255,000-square-foot facility in Brockton, Mass., to Sugar Foods’ North American operational footprint, which will play a major role in its future growth plans. Sugar Foods has also acquired Concord’s brands as part of the deal, among them Concord Fresh Success, Simply Concord, Italia Garden, Oringer and RedEMade. Concord was previously owned by Arbor Investments, its founders and management.
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“Concord and Sugar Foods share a long and successful history of customer-led innovation and service, and, with our complementary capabilities, I am confident that, together, we will maximize customer value and unlock new growth opportunities,” noted Andrea Brule, president of Villa Rica, Ga.-based Sugar Foods. “This transaction combines the best of both organizations, and I look forward to welcoming the talented Brockton team to our Sugar Foods family.”
“I have long admired Sugar Foods for its diverse product categories, customer-led culture, and deep commitment to quality and service,” added Concord Foods CEO Robin Galloway. “The Concord team is thrilled to begin its next chapter with Sugar Foods and looks forward to executing on the robust pipeline of growth opportunities ahead. I am confident that together, we will be an even stronger food and ingredients provider with a broader set of capabilities to better meet customers’ needs.”
According to Sugar Foods, the acquisition creates new market development opportunities within each of its business segments, including its Fresh Gourmet division. Sugar Foods’ foodservice distributor and chain customers will be able to take advantage of a combined network with improved capabilities that will spark innovation, increase speed to market, enhance customer service, and drive relevance with new menu offerings and better marketing programs. Meanwhile, the company’s retailer customers will be able to draw on streamlined logistics and vendor management, improved merchandising, and marketing across ancillary produce categories.
“For more than 40 years, both Fresh Gourmet and Concord Foods have built produce-adjacent brands and products to drive department sales through thoughtful merchandising and cross-promotions with popular fresh produce categories,” observed Barry Bounds, head of Sugar Foods’ Fresh Gourmet division. “We welcome Concord’s successful family of brands into the Fresh Gourmet Company umbrella and will continue to drive growth with a shared commitment to fresh forward, quality ingredients that inspire fresh produce consumption.”
“Concord Foods is an excellent strategic fit within the Sugar Foods portfolio,” asserted Chris Trick, investment partner at Chicago- and Los Angeles-based Pritzker Private Capital, which partners with middle-market companies based in North America in the manufactured products and services sectors. “We are thrilled to partner with the Sugar Foods team as the company executes value-add acquisitions to advance its growth and market expansion strategy.”
