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News , Media and Press Releases from CFS Brands.
CFS Brands Acquires The Foodware Group
Combination Creates Preferred Provider of Smallwares and Supplies for Foodservice, Healthcare, Hygiene Industries
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. - October 03, 2023 – CFS Brands announced today that it has acquired The Foodware Group (TFG), creating a preferred provider of smallwares and supplies to the foodservice, healthcare, and hygiene markets, well positioned to capitalize on future growth opportunities. The transaction was completed October 2, 2023. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
The Foodware Group was formed through a strategic combination of G.E.T, which has a 40-year legacy of providing complete “front of house” solutions in dinnerware, drinkware, display, and buffetware; and Winco, a “one-source” supplier for tabletop, smallwares, janitorial, and countertop equipment. Through a commitment to customer-focused service, along with a unique strength in product development and sourcing, The Foodware Group has become an award-winning supplier partner for foodservice operators and distributors.
With the combination of CFS Brands and The Foodware Group, customers will have access to the broadest and deepest line-up of products and solutions to enhance their business, including Carlisle FoodService Products, San Jamar, Dinex, Winco, and G.E.T. brands, among others. Distributors and end users will be able to consolidate their purchases under a single supplier, reduce complexity in their operations, and lower their total costs.
“The acquisition of The Foodware Group is a transformational opportunity for CFS Brands,” said CFS Brands CEO Trent Freiberg. “The Foodware Group joins a portfolio of businesses and brands that are leaders in their respective markets. CFS Brands and TFG are a great fit, and together we will build on our combined strengths and shared values to continue our track record of sustainable growth and exceptional results. We are excited to work with the leadership team at The Foodware Group, and we welcome all TFG employees to CFS Brands.”
Jim White, CEO of The Foodware Group, said, “We have built a great company over the last few years that has driven strong growth and created many opportunities for our exceptional team. Our products and capabilities are a great complement to what CFS Brands offers, creating the opportunity to leverage the best of both. This is one of those rare situations where the complementary strengths of two companies create an opportunity to make one plus one equal three.”
The Foodware Group Executive Vice President and President of Winco Elaine Shen added, “We see tremendous opportunities ahead of us to enhance our value and partnership to customers. While we will continue to deliver outstanding customer service, we will also develop greater depth in our product capabilities and strengthen our competitiveness to better serve foodservice, healthcare, hygiene, and international customers.”
The integration process will be a gradual evolution that begins with taking needed time to develop a deep understanding of the businesses, brands, and teams, and the companies’ respective strengths and opportunities. G.E.T. and Winco will each continue to operate as stand-alone entities within CFS Brands. Customers and suppliers will continue to interact with CFS Brands, G.E.T, and Winco as they have in the past.
Guggenheim Securities, LLC, is serving as financial advisor, and Winston & Strawn is serving as legal counsel to CFS Brands. Houlihan Lokey is serving as financial advisor, and Kirkland & Ellis is serving as legal counsel to The Foodware Group.
ABOUT CFS BRANDS
CFS Brands (www.CFSBrands.com) is a U.S.-based manufacturer of products for the foodservice, healthcare, and janitorial industries. CFS Brands operates Carlisle FoodService Products, Dinex, Sparta, El Castor, Jofel, Marko, Piper, San Jamar, Snap Drape, WipesPlus, AyrKing, and Elite Global Solutions brands globally. Based in Oklahoma City, OK, CFS Brands employs more than 1,600 people across its headquarters, six manufacturing locations, and seven distribution centers worldwide.
ABOUT THE FOODWARE GROUP
The Foodware Group (www.thefoodwaregroup.com) is a leading end-to-end provider of supplies to the foodservice industry, delivering the highest value solutions to all of its partners with uncompromised quality and exceptional service. The Foodware Group provides front-of-the-house and back-of-the-house supplies and smallwares for diverse foodservice applications. G.E.T. was founded in 1982 and Winco in 1992. The companies joined to form The Foodware Group in 2018. The company is headquartered in Lodi, N.J., and operates four warehouses throughout the U.S. (Lodi, NJ; Miami, FL; Houston, TX; and Las Vegas, NV) with nearly 450 team members and more than 800,000 square feet of total warehouse space.
CONTACT INFORMATION
CFS Brands: [email protected]
The Foodware Group: [email protected]
CFS Brands Adds ecoLogic Option to San Jamar Classic Dispensers
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. - June 13, 2023 – CFS Brands is standing behind its commitment to offer more eco-friendly products and solutions with the introduction of its new green ecoLogic option in San Jamar’s Classic line of soap/lotion, tissue, and towel dispensers.
They are manufactured from 100% ABS resin, sourced directly from landfills which reduces our carbon footprint with sustainable manufacturing.* The dispensers' cardboard boxes are recycled and recyclable, and they arrive sealed in biodegradable bags made from up to 20 percent plant-based polymer. Even their instructions are printed on recycled paper, and their bright green "eco" logo tells the world you care.
Facilities that purchase San Jamar Classic ecoLogic dispensers can also reduce their paper costs and lower their carbon footprint by filling them with universal recycled paper products. In addition to offering the most durable and longest-lasting dispensing products on the market, CFS Brands/San Jamar washroom solutions are economical and offer real and lasting value to help organizations increase revenue and maintain ease of operations.
CFS Brands: Keeping the World Clean, Safe, and Nourished
* Dispensing mechanism and holding arms are not made of recycled materials and are nonrecyclable. Total recycled content varies by dispenser
ABOUT CFS BRANDS
CFS Brands is a U.S.-based manufacturer of products for the janitorial, foodservice, and healthcare industries. CFS Brands operates Sparta, Carlisle FoodService Products, Dinex, El Castor, Jofel, Marko, Piper, San Jamar, Snap Drape, WipesPlus, and AyrKing brands globally. Its Sparta brand is the premier name in professional quality brushes offering innovative cleaning solutions manufactured to enhance efficiency and durability, saving time and money. Based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, CFS Brands employs more than 1,400 people across its headquarters, seven manufacturing locations, and seven distribution centers worldwide.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Marketing – CFS Brands [email protected]
CFS Brands/San Jamar EZ-KLEEN® Sauce Bottles Upend the FIFO Market
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. - May 20, 2023 – Leave it to CFS Brands/San Jamar to upend the first-in, first-out (FIFO) sauce bottle market with their uniquely designed EZ-KLEEN® sauce bottles. Smooth interior side walls and interchangeable same-sized openings on both ends make FIFO dispensing, clean-up, and storage easier than ever before.
EZ-KLEEN® sauce bottles help chefs and foodservice professionals streamline their operations with a plating and food-prep sauce dispensing solution that is durable, affordable, and like other CFS Brands’ products, squeezes out the competition.
The unique smooth interior walls and narrow cap channels reduce bacteria traps and make cleaning a breeze. The caps are interchangeable, so operators can easily swap out the valved lid with a solid lid for safe and sanitary storage.
Gravity directs the bottle contents toward the leak-resistant dispensing valves which are protected from surface contact by the unique cap design. Clear sidewalls allow the contents to be inventoried, and the removable top lid allows the bottles to be filled from the top.
EZ-KLEEN sauce bottles are available in three sizes (16, 20, and 24 ounce) with three leakresistant valve options for thin-to-thick sauce dispensing. The green valves dispense nonviscous sauces like soy sauce or vinegar, the yellow valve distributes standard viscosity sauces like barbeque sauce or ketchup, and the blue valve is for thicker viscosity condiments like tartar sauce or sweet chili sauce.
ABOUT CFS BRANDS
CFS Brands is a U.S.-based manufacturer of products for the janitorial, foodservice, and healthcare industries. CFS Brands operates Sparta, Carlisle FoodService Products, Dinex, El Castor, Jofel, Marko, Piper, San Jamar, Snap Drape, WipesPlus, and AyrKing brands globally. Its Sparta brand is the premier name in professional quality brushes offering innovative cleaning solutions manufactured to enhance efficiency and durability, saving time and money. Based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, CFS Brands employs more than 1,400 people across its headquarters, seven manufacturing locations, and seven distribution centers worldwide.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Marketing – CFS Brands [email protected]
CFS Brands Introduces StorPlus™ PermaLabel™ Food Pans
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. - January 17, 2023 – CFS Brands introduces StorPlus™ PermaLabel™ food pans for commercial kitchen operators wanting a first-in-class food rotation labeling system.
Marking key indicators on food storage containers makes food storing and serving a simpler and safer process. Labeling food pans reduces food waste, streamlines product inventory, and ensures first-in items are also first-out. Establishing food monitoring procedures is a key component of food safety and health-code compliance under HACCP.
In the past, kitchens used sticky adhesive labels that required continual purchasing, storing, application, and residue removal. CFS Brands stepped away from the stickers and introduced these state-of-the-art StorPlus™ PermaLabel™ food pans with molded-in labels that are easily updated with write-on, wipe-off instruction. They include bilingual (English and Spanish) universal indicators with adequate space to easily see use by date, shelf life, and days of the week.
CFS Brands offers three sizes of long-lasting polycarbonate food pans with a built-in label that lasts the life of the pan. They are ideal for operators looking to streamline and improve their labeling system and save time and money.
“CFS Brands is known for thinking outside of the box, and with this innovative new product that meant thinking inside the box. Manufacturing food safety labels into food pans is state-of-theart.” says CFS Brands Director of Project Management Stan Evans. “These new StorPlus™ PermaLabel™ pans are exactly the type of product that sets CFS Brands apart from our competitors.”
ABOUT CFS BRANDS
CFS Brands is a U.S.-based manufacturer of products for the janitorial, foodservice, and healthcare industries. CFS Brands operates Sparta, Carlisle FoodService Products, Dinex, El Castor, Jofel, Marko, Piper, San Jamar, Snap Drape, WipesPlus, and AyrKing brands globally. Its Sparta brand is the premier name in professional quality brushes offering innovative cleaning solutions manufactured to enhance efficiency and durability, saving time and money. Based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, CFS Brands employs more than 1,400 people across its headquarters, seven manufacturing locations, and seven distribution centers worldwide.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Marketing – CFS Brands [email protected]