PARSIPPANY — 1-800-FLOWERS.COM the leading gourmet food and floral gift provider for all occasions, and Ferrero International S.A., one of the world’s largest chocolate confectionery companies announced the signing of a definitive agreement under which Ferrero will acquire all the outstanding equity of Fannie May Confections Brands, Inc., including its subsidiaries Fannie May Confections, Inc. and Harry London Candies, Inc., from 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. for $115.0 million in cash, adjusted for seasonal working capital.
Ferrero International is located on the fourth floor of Seven Sylvan Drive. In addition to manufacturing Ferrero Chocolate, they also produce Tic Tac and Nutella.
In 1969 that Ferrero U.S.A. first opened for business in New York City. To introduce the Ferrero story in the vast and unique U.S. market, Ferrero U.S.A., Inc. chose as its lead product, not the enormous Nutella® brand or one of the hugely successful Ferrero chocolates, but rather the smallest Ferrero wonder of all – Tic Tac® mints!
Shortly after its introduction, the signature Tic Tac® mints “Tree” display was appearing at U.S. checkouts everywhere and America was singing along with Ferrero’s catchy:
“Put a Tic Tac® in your mouth and get a BANG out of life!”
Repositioned in 1980 as “The 1 1/2 Calorie Breath Mint®,” Tic Tac® has grown continuously, and today enjoys the position of #1 selling breath mint in the U.S.
The distinctive green of Tic Tac® was followed by the dazzling gold of Ferrero Rocher®, the fine chocolate and hazelnut “praline.” Is it any surprise that Rocher® is rapidly becoming a mainstay of increasingly-sophisticated American tastes, and that Ferrero is once again making quality confections a part of everyday life … for treats as well as gifts.
Following the success of Tic Tac® and Rocher®, consumers are now beginning to enjoy the distinctive taste of Nutella® hazelnut spread. As it rapidly gains distribution and awareness across the U.S., it’s destined to become as big a success here as it is in Europe.
In addition to the sale agreement,1-800-FLOWERS.COM and Ferrero will enter into a strategic commercial partnership, to be signed on or before closing of the sale, that will provide 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. with distribution rights for Fannie May, Harry London and certain Ferrero confectionery products in its ecommerce channels as well as in gift baskets and towers sold into the club, food, drug and mass channels in the US.
Chris McCann, CEO said, “We are very excited to be working with Ferrero International, one of the world’s largest and most respected confectionery companies. This transaction will further strengthen our balance sheet while concurrently reducing the working capital requirements in our business model. Importantly, the strategic commercial agreement with Ferrero will enable us to continue offering the iconic Fannie May and Harry London chocolate brands across our ecommerce and wholesale channels and expand our product offerings to include some of Ferrero’s world-renowned chocolate confectionery brands, including Nutella, Ferrero Rocher and Raffaello – further enhancing our ability to help our customers deliver smiles.”
Giovanni Ferrero, Chief Executive Officer of Ferrero Group, said, “We are excited that Fannie May will be joining the Ferrero Group. We have long admired Fannie May’s premium brand, products and people, and believe Fannie May is an extraordinarily good fit with Ferrero. As we have grown from a family business founded in Italy in 1946 to a leading global confectionery company, we have been guided by our key values of loyalty and trust, respect and responsibility, integrity, passion for quality, research and innovation, and entrepreneurship. Since our entry into the U.S. in 1969, we have actively expanded our premium product offering organically, and are thrilled to further accelerate growth through the addition of Fannie May. We look forward to adding Fannie May’s outstanding team and valuable manufacturing, distribution and retail platform to Ferrero’s expanding U.S. presence, and to supporting and growing this iconic American brand for years to come.”
The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals and is expected to close by May 30, 2017. At closing, Ferrero will acquire all the outstanding equity of Fannie May Confections Brands, Inc., including the Fannie May and Harry London chocolate brands and all related assets and liabilities including, but not limited to, Fannie May’s ecommerce business,79 retail stores located primarily in and around Chicago, IL, a manufacturing facility in North Canton, OH, and two temperature-controlled warehouse and distribution facilities, located in Maple Heights, OH, and Chicago, IL, respectively.
