Forest Park’s Ferrara Pan completed a merger with Farley’s and Sathers June 18, and on Monday the newly merged company announced it was closing its Round Lake, MN. facility next spring, according to a press release.
Crain’s Chicago Business reported the two candy companies were in merger talks in late February, just weeks after the death of Ferrara patriarch Nello Ferrara at agea 93.
The agreement sold a majority share of Ferrara Pan to Farley’s and Sathers, which has sales of $615 million, according to Crain’s. Farley’s and Sathers acquired Chicago’s Brach’s Confections in 2007. Brands produced by Farley’s and Sathers include Chuckles, Now and Later and Trolli.
Salvatore Ferrara II, president of Ferrara Pan, is CEO of the newly merged company now known as Ferrara Candy Co. The new firm will have its headquarters in Chicago.
A silent majority stakeholder is Catterton Partners, a Greenwich, Conn.-based private equity firm that specializes in consumer products such as Cheddars, Noodles and P.F. Chang’s China Bistro restaurants and Build-a-Bear and Restoration Hardware, among others. Catterton had previously been seeking a buyer for Farley’s and Sathers.
Because the new company is headquartered in Chicago, the Minnesota operations are being closed, according to a press release from Farley’s and Sathers. The company will also close a trucking company located in Chattanooga, TN.
“We value the dedication and hard work of all of our employees and are committed to providing assistance to ease the transition for those affected,” the press release announcing the closures said.
Ferrara Pan was founded in 1908. The company has been headquartered in Forest Park since it bought and converted the Borden Dairy facility in 1959. The company built a state-of-the-art chocolate factory in Maywood within the past five years. According to Confectionary News, Ferrara Pan now has five facilities, located in the United States, Mexico and Canada and currently employs around 800 people.
