Richelieu Foods
 | |
| Private | |
| Industry | Private Label foods |
| Founded | 1862 [1] |
| Headquarters | Braintree, Massachusetts, U.S.[1] |
Key people | Robbie Jamieson, President |
| Products | Food |
| Owner | Centerview Partners |
Number of employees | 675 (2012) |
| Website | Richelieu Foods |
Richelieu Foods is a private label food manufacturing company founded in 1862, headquartered in Randolph, Massachusetts, previously owned by investment group Brynwood Partners and owned since 2010 by investment group Centerview Partners LLC.
The company—which produces frozen pizza, salad dressing, sauces, marinades, condiments and deli salads to be marketed by other companies as their store brand or white label brand—manufactures over 50 million frozen pizzas[2] and more than 20 million finished crusts annually,[3] reporting more than $200 million in yearly sales.[2]
"Odds are good most people have tasted products made at Richelieu Foods... few people know the products... were made by the company."
Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier, WCFcourier.com, August 2006
Companies with private label items from Richelieu include Hy-Vee, Aldi, Save-A-Lot, Sam's Club,[4] Hannaford Brothers Co.,[2] BJ's Wholesale Club (Earth's Pride brand) and Shaw's Supermarkets (Culinary Circle brand).[2] The company's own brands have included Chef Antonio, Raveena's, Pizza Presto!, Grocer's Garden, Caterer's Collection, Oak Park, and Willow Farms.[5]
With approximately 675 employees,[2] Richelieu Foods operates four manufacturing facilities in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin (deli staples, e.g., potato salad, coleslaw, topping of pizza crusts), Washington Court House, Ohio (cold press pizza crusts),[4] Grundy Center, Iowa and Elk Grove Village, Illinois (sauces and dressings).
According to Hoover's, Richelieu Foods' average annual revenue per worker is about $900,000.[5]
Primary competitors include Frozen Specialties, Inc., Ralcorp Holdings, Inc. and Seneca Foods Corporation.[5] The company saw steady growth during the 2008-2010 recession, having a $40 million, or nearly 30 percent, increase in 2008 sales.[2]
History
The company was founded in 1862. By 1956, the company operated as Western Dressing Inc.[4] and made only salad dressing until 1988,[4] when it was sold to an investment group, Brynwood Partners of Greenwich, Connecticut, which was itself founded in 1984[6] and owns such other brands as Stella D'oro, Turtles,[7] and Balance Bar.[8]
In 1994, Richelieu focused on the contract packing and private label areas.[4] The Western Dressing brand was sold and eventually acquired by Unilever with Richelieu Foods packing the dressing until Unilever took it in-house eight years later, marketing it under the Wish Bone brand.[4]
In 2006, the company was named Pizza Manufacturer of the Year by Snack Food and Wholesale Bakery magazine.[3]
In 2008, the company acquired the "Sauces and Dressings" division of Sara Lee along with the Sara Lee manufacturing facility located in Elk Grove Village, Illinois.[6] The division manufactures salad dressing, mayonnaise, and barbecue sauce for national restaurant and foodservice distribution customers.
In 2010 the company was purchased from Brynwood Partners by Centerview Partners LLC.
See also
References
- 1 2
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "There's new appetite for peddlers of cheap eats". Boston Business Journal, Feb 23, 2009, Lisa van der Pool. 23 February 2009.
- 1 2 "It Takes Two Working in tandem, Richelieu Foods' pizza plants in Ohio and Wisconsin are a productivity powerhouse.". Refrigeratedfrozenfood.com.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Richelieu experiences hiring boom, starts expansion". WCFcourier.com, RC Balaban, August 27, 2006.
- 1 2 3 "Richelieu Foods Inc.". Hoovers, Inc.
- 1 2 "Richelieu Foods Acquires Sara Lee's Sauces and Dressings Foodservice Business". Richelieu Foods Press Release, September 2, 2008.
- ↑ "Brynwood Partners V L.P. Acquires Turtles(R) Brand From Nestle". PRNewswire, 24 May 2007.
- ↑ "Private Equity Firm Buys Balance Bar Brand From Kraft Foods". Soyatech.com, Connecticut Post, December 6, 2009.