CHICAGO — Geneva Glen Capital has added to its dessert portfolio with an affiliate’s recent acquisition of Dianne’s Fine Desserts from Superior Capital Partners, L.L.C. Based in Newburyport, Mass., Dianne’s provides frozen thaw-and-serve dessert products to the food service industry, national restaurant chains, and in-store bakers of national grocery stores.
Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Founded more than 40 years ago, Dianne’s product line includes cheesecakes, layer cakes, pies and tarts, brownies/bars and individual minis and specialty desserts. Dianne’s has three GFSI certified manufacturing facilities, including the company’s private label in-store bakery provider, Daystar Desserts. The company was carved out of Heinz Foodservice as a standalone platform in 2012.
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| Jeff Gonyo, managing director of Geneva Glen Capital |
“Dianne’s market position, coupled with the management team’s deep expertise and passion, made this a great investment opportunity for us,” said Jeff Gonyo, managing director of Geneva Glen Capital.
Under Superior’s ownership, Dianne’s further penetrated the in-store bakery channel and broadened its product line.
The company also showed “50% revenue growth and a ten-fold increase in earnings,” said Andrew Wiegand, a managing director at Superior. “The company is now extremely well positioned to realize growth over the long term.”
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| Mike Knowles, c.e.o. of Dianne’s |
“We wish to thank Superior for their partnership throughout an exciting four-year period,” said Mike Knowles, chief executive officer of Dianne’s. “Their support in effecting a highly successful carve-out and their shared vision for growth were instrumental to the success that Dianne’s has achieved. We appreciate their contributions and look forward to our partnership with Geneva Glen Capital to execute on the next phase of our growth.”
Geneva Glen Capital is a Chicago-based private equity firm that invests in proven private companies with leading market positions, significant growth potential, and stable cash flows. The company focuses on control buyout transactions as well as minority growth capital investments, and targets companies headquartered in the United States or Canada with EBITDA between $3 million and $20 million.
