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M&A Deal Summary

Flowers Foods Acquires Simple Mills

On January 8, 2025, Flowers Foods acquired food company Simple Mills from Vestar Capital Partners, Bridge Investments and Constitution Capital Partners for 795M USD

Acquisition Highlights
  • This is Flowers Foods’ 15th transaction in the Food sector.
  • This is Flowers Foods’ largest (disclosed) transaction.
  • This is Flowers Foods’ 15th transaction in the United States.
  • This is Flowers Foods’ 1st transaction in Illinois.

M&A Deal Summary
Date 2025-01-08
Target Simple Mills
Sector Food
Buyer(s) Flowers Foods
Sellers(s) Vestar Capital Partners
Bridge Investments
Constitution Capital Partners
Deal Type Add-on Acquisition
Deal Value 795M USD
Advisor(s) Piper Sandler & Co.
Centerview Partners (Financial)
Ropes & Gray (Legal)

Target

Simple Mills

Chicago, Illinois, United States
Simple Mills offers more than 30 baking mixes, crackers, cookies, bars and frostings that are free of gluten, grain, dairy, soy, GMOs, excessive sugar, gums, emulsifiers, and anything artificial. All products are made exclusively with real, whole-food ingredients like nutrient-dense almond flour, unrefined coconut sugar and sprouted seeds that work hard for the body in every bite while delivering taste that regularly earns five-star ratings from customers. Simple Mills was founded in 2012 and is based in Chicago, Illinois.

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Buyer(S) 1

Buyer

Flowers Foods

Thomasville, Georgia, United States
Category Company
Founded 1919
Sector Food
Employees9,200
Revenue 5.1B USD (2023)
DESCRIPTION

Flowers Foods is a producer of fresh packaged bakery foods. Flowers operates bakeries across the country that produce a wide range of bakery products. Flowers Foods was founded in 1919 and is based in Thomasville, Georgia.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 15 of 16
Sector: Food M&A 15 of 16
Type: Add-on Acquisition M&A Deals 12 of 12
State: Illinois M&A 1 of 1
Country: United States M&A 15 of 16
Year: 2025 M&A 1 of 2
Size (of disclosed) 1 of 7
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2022-12-13 Papa Pita Bakery

West Jordan, Utah, United States

Papa Pita Bakery is a manufacturer and distributor of high-quality bagels, tortillas, breads, buns, English muffins, and flat breads. Papa Pita Bakery was founded in 1983 and is based in West Jordan, Utah.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2025-02-11 Simple Foods

United States

Simple Foods provides probiotic products.

Buy -

Seller(S) 3

SELLER

Vestar Capital Partners

New York, New York, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1988
PE ASSETS 11.0B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

Vestar Capital Partners is a private equity firm that targets management buyouts and growth capital investments across North America and Europe in the consumer, business services, and healthcare sectors. The Firm looks to invest $50 to $150 million in transactions valued up to $1 billion. Specific areas of interest include food, apparel, household goods, retail, consumer services, industrial services, information services, manufacturing, distribution, transportation, financial services, media/communications, digital health media, and medical technology. Vestar Capital Partners was formed in 1988 and is based in New York City.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 67 of 67
Sector: Food M&A 7 of 7
Type: Add-on Acquisition M&A Deals 29 of 29
State: Illinois M&A 6 of 6
Country: United States M&A 54 of 54
Year: 2025 M&A 1 of 1
Size (of disclosed) 12 of 22
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2024-07-24 Nonni s

Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States

Nonni's is a manufacturer and marketer of artisanal cookies and other premium baked snacks. Nonni’s premium products are synonymous with artisanal, authentic, and Italian-inspired. Products are marketed under the Nonni’s, THINaddictives, and La Dolce Vita brand names, and sold through a diverse distribution platform that includes major customers in club, grocery, mass market, foodservice, and online retailing. Nonni's was founded in 1988 and is based in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Sell -
SELLER

Bridge Investments

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

Category Growth Capital Firm
Founded 1998
Size Small
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

Bridge Investments is a private investment firm focused on growth companies. The Firm has the flexibility to invest at any stage of a business’s growth cycle, from seed or Series A investments to majority investments in mature growth companies seeking liquidity and support in advancing to the next level. Areas of focus include tech, tech-enabled services, SaaS, consumer, and health/wellness. Bridge Investments was established in 1998 and is headquartered in Highland Park, Illinois.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 8 of 8
Sector: Food M&A 1 of 1
Type: Add-on Acquisition M&A Deals 6 of 6
State: Illinois M&A 2 of 2
Country: United States M&A 8 of 8
Year: 2025 M&A 1 of 1
Size (of disclosed) 1 of 2
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2023-06-26 Casetext

San Francisco, California, United States

Casetext is an AI legal assistant that offers document review, legal research memos, deposition preparation, and contract analysis in minutes. In launching CoCounsel, the first-ever legal AI assistant, Casetext ushered in a new era for legal technology. CoCounsel processes 2B+ words per day, automating critical, time-intensive tasks for lawyers and expanding access to justice. Casetext was founded in 2013 and is based in San Francisco, California.

Sell $650M
SELLER

Constitution Capital Partners

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 2008
PE ASSETS 6.7B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

Constitution Capital Partners is a private equity and asset management firm focused on opportunities throughout North America. Constitution Capital typically invests in private equity partnerships, however the Firm also makes direct private equity and credit investments. Constitution Capital Partners does not have any sector preferences. Constitution Capital Partners was formed in 2008 and is headquartered in Andover, Massachusetts.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 30 of 31
Sector: Food M&A 4 of 4
Type: Add-on Acquisition M&A Deals 15 of 16
State: Illinois M&A 3 of 3
Country: United States M&A 27 of 28
Year: 2025 M&A 1 of 2
Size (of disclosed) 5 of 12
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2024-10-01 Atria Wealth Solutions

New York, New York, United States

Atria Wealth Solutions is a modern wealth management solutions holding company designed specifically for advisors and their clients. Atria’s core mission is to empower its subsidiaries’ financial advisors with a next generation set of tools, services and capabilities that support their growth and enable them to prosper in a digitally connected and constantly evolving financial environment. Atria Wealth Solutions is based in New York City.

Sell -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2025-04-14 Artisan Design Group

Dallas, Texas, United States

Artisan Design Group is a dealer of flooring products and services, providing design, procurement, installation and quality control of flooring and complimentary products for homebuilders. Artisan Design Group was founded in 2016 and is based in Dallas, Texas.

Sell $1.3B
Mergr

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Company

Legal