Brown Gibbons Lang & Company (BGL) has sold Lillie's Q Sauces & Rubs, LLC, a premium barbeque brand, to OWS Foods. 

BGL's Food and Beverage investment banking team served as the exclusive financial advisor to Lillie's Q. This deal marks BGL's second transaction this year in the gourmet condiments and sauces category and third within the broader specialty foods industry.

The partnership will help Lillie's Q expand its national presence in conventional grocery and foodservice.

Founded in 2010 by two-time World Barbecue Champion Chef Charlie McKenna, Lillie's Q is a barbeque brand known for its Southern flavors and premium sauces, rubs and seasonings. Growing up in Greenville, S.C., McKenna learned the art of Southern BBQ from his Grandma Lillie, whom he named the company after. As he traveled the BBQ competition circuit from Memphis to Alabama and the Carolinas, he created a sauce unique to each region. In 2014, with co-founder Brian Golinvaux, the company commercialized its premium products into a CPG portfolio sold into retail grocery stores.

"With BGL's guidance and advice, we were able to identify and negotiate with the right partner to accelerate the Lillie's Q brand,” McKenna says. “When I launched Lillie's over 14 years ago, the goal was to get the product into every household. We believe we have the best-tasting product in the market, and with the resources offered through a bigger platform, we are excited about the opportunities ahead."

OWS Foods was established in 1988 and is the maker of Championship BBQ sauces and rubs, including Head Country. The company operates a research and innovation lab in Overland Park, Kan. to support production facilities in Concordia, Mo., and Ponca City, Okla.

The partnership will help Lillie's Q rapidly expand its national presence in conventional grocery, foodservice and club channels. OWS Foods' research and development capabilities, coupled with Charlie McKenna's taste profiles, will help Lillie's Q explore and enter new complementary product categories.