Twinkies Making a Comeback?
By: Brett Allega
Updated: March 12, 2013
Twinkies could be back as early as this summer.
The winning bid is a joint venture by private equity firms Apollo Global Management (APO) and Metropoulos & Co.
The bankruptcy court had been set to have an auction among qualified bidders on Thursday, but Hostess notified the court late Monday that no other qualified bids had been submitted. That means the $410 million bid wins by default with no further approval of the court being required.
Anthony Michael Sabino, a business school professor at St. John's University, said the lack of other bidders is no surprise, given the $410 million bid that needed to be topped.
"While the Bankruptcy Code seeks competitive bidding to increase recoveries to creditors, the law can't invent bidders," he said. "The good news is a significant amount of money to pay Hostess' creditors. The great news, Twinkies have been saved!"
Wonder Bread, Twinkies and other Hostess products have not been produced since November, when the company filed with the bankruptcy court to liquidate its business following a crippling strike by the Bakery Workers union.
But while Hostess is out of business, and most of its 18,500 employees have lost their jobs, the company has been auctioning off its various brands as part of the liquidation process.
