"As a major player in the food industry for more than 80 years, pizza has been an integral part of our business for over four decades," says Kevin Spratt, president, U.S.- Canada region, Rich Products. "We're always looking for new ways to enhance our pizza capabilities, and this move is a game-changer for the industry. When you combine Great Kitchens' leadership in fully topped pizzas with our strength in crust and dough, you get a one-stop pizza partner with an unmatched breadth of expertise that will allow us to accelerate growth, drive greater innovation and deliver unique and distinct value to our customers."

The addition of Great Kitchens will allow Rich's to create a vertically-integrated topped pizza and flatbread platform, expanded capacity and greater crust innovation in both deli and frozen – all powered by an expanded joint manufacturing network.

Headquartered in Romeoville, Illinois, Great Kitchens has three manufacturing facilities in Romeoville, Chicago Heights, Illinois and Brockton, Massachusetts. The company has 1,000 associates who will join Rich's team of more than 13,000 people in more than 100 countries.

"Not only is Rich's a well-known leader in the pizza segment, but they bring the size and scale required for us to unlock new opportunities," says Admir Basic, president and CEO, Great Kitchens Food Company. "Rich's shares our commitment to innovation and delivering value for customers, making this partnership a natural fit. By merging our unique strengths, we have a huge opportunity to accelerate innovation and raise the bar across the industry." 

In December 2020, Brynwood VIII formed Great Kitchens to acquire ARYZTA North America's take-and-bake pizza and flatbread business in a corporate carveout transaction. In March 2023, Great Kitchens acquired the Uno Foods Division from Uno Restaurant Holdings Corporation and now manufactures the Pizzeria Uno Chicago deep-dish pizza, strombolis and calzones.

"We are pleased to announce the divestiture of Great Kitchens Food Company to Rich's and are grateful to all the employees for their dedication to the business," says Henk Hartong, chairman and CEO of Brynwood Partners. "Our employees and management team in our three factories worked tirelessly to grow and improve the Great Kitchens business during our ownership period. We are excited that a world class company like Rich's will continue to build this incredible business."

Great Kitchen's private label and branded food products are sold nationally through major grocery retailers, wholesale club stores, foodservice and ecommerce channels.