Everfoods snaps up Indian bakery outfit Cookie Man

03-Jul-2018 - Last updated on 03-Jul-2018 at 01:46 GMT

No financial details for the deal have been disclosed.

Related tags Bakery India South Asia

Packaged foods firm Everfoods — owned by the Everstone Group — is to acquire Chennai-headquartered Cookie Man from Australia Foods India Ltd.

The deal will be undertaken via its subsidiary, Modern Food Enterprises Pvt. Ltd. (MFEL), for an unspecified amount.

Cookie Man is a manufacturer and retailer of Australian cookies and bakery products such as muffins, ice creams, brownies and chocolates. It has over 50 stores/kiosks in malls and airports with a presence in over 20 cities across India.

Anupam Saluja, Cookie Man CEO, and the current leadership team will continue to work with the Modern and Everstone leadership.

The deal will see Everfoods will get exclusive rights to own and operate the brand and other related intellectual property not only in India but also in Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh and Mauritius.

Deep Mishra, managing director, Everstone Group, said: “Cookies are the fastest growing segment in the biscuits category, and the segment is expected to continue to grow at double digit rate in the coming years.

“Cookie Man, with its premium and authentic cookies positioning and an extremely strong equity base, is a good fit for Everfoods and especially Modern. This is the first of many acquisitions in core and adjacent spaces that we are evaluating and looking to close,” he added.

Previously, Everstone — again via Everfoods — bought the Modern bakery brand from Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) in 2016 and has also built an R&D facility in Chennai.