The Business
Concept 2 Bakers (C2B) produces and markets branded and private-label frozen bakery foods to bakeries, retailers, wholesalers and foodservice operators, as well as leading restaurants and hotels across the United States. C2B’s product offerings consist of the award-winning Panné Provincio® frozen, par-baked organic artisan breads, frozen par-baked custom breads, Earl of Sandwich® frozen baked deli sandwich breads, and frozen baked and unbaked cut-out and standard cookies.

The Industry
Industry sources suggest that the size of the niche market for artisan breads in the United States is approximately $150 million in annual sales and growing 20 percent each year. Competitors in the artisan bread market include La Brea Bakery, a subsidiary of Ireland’s IAWS plc, Ecce Panis, a portfolio company of private equity firm Silver Brands, Inc., and Grace Baking, a subsidiary of Canada’s Maple Leaf Foods Inc.

The Process
Prestwick Partners was formed during the marketing of C2B, at which time Fritz Richards continued to advise McGlynn Bakeries, LLC on the divestiture of C2B and negotiate with the ultimate purchaser. Prior to the formation of Prestwick Partners, Fritz, together with his former colleagues, designed an M&A process, prepared marketing materials, contacted prospective buyers, and evaluated acquisition proposals on behalf of McGlynn Bakeries, LLC.