Grupo Bimbo is a $10 billion company that gobbles up other food brands. Consider the crumbs on your tie right now: Grupo Bimbo owns Thomas’ English Muffins and Entenmann’s. It reportedly tried to buy Hostess a few years back.
“They’re good at the cost side of the business. I think the jury is still out whether they can take a brand and significantly enhance it,” says Bob Goldin, with Technomic, a food industry research and consulting firm.
He figures Twinkie may be sweetest brand on the block. News of Hostess winding down and consumer nostalgia has naturally landed the remaining yellow treats on ebay — $100 dollars a box.
“You know, it does have some sort of magic about it still, that perhaps a new owner with some investments in marketing could revitalize,” says Goldin.
The first task will be neutralizing online jokes about Twinkies, Ho-hos and a company spelled B-I-M-B-O. In the end, the Mexican multinational may be laughing. If it buys Hostess brands and shifts production, Mexico has low-cost sugar — ingredient number one.
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