Uno Restaurants has agreed to sell its Uno Foods division to Great Kitchens Food Company, a portfolio company of Brynwood Partners. Uno Foods makes and sells the frozen version of its iconic Pizzeria Uno deep dish pizza and calzones across various channels, including supermarkets, club stores, and other outlets. Based in the Chicago area, Great Kitchens is a leading U.S.-based manufacturer of take-and-bake pizzas and flatbreads sold nationally to high-quality grocery stores, club stores, and mass retailers.
The Uno Foods division started in 1988 in the basement of an Uno Pizzeria and Grill restaurant. Today, it produces and sells its restaurant-quality products from its manufacturing facility located in Brockton, MA. The facility sells its frozen product to various food outlets. The sale is a part of Pizzeria Uno’s strategic pivot to focus on expanding its franchise business, specifically in partnering with hotel operators in converting their full-service restaurants into Pizzeria Uno locations.
“The sale of the Uno Foods division will allow Uno Restaurants to focus on its franchise footprint expansion growth strategy. We added five new franchise locations in 2022, with plans to add an additional 10-15 in 2023 and many more in the coming years. We are excited to bring Uno Restaurants’ premium pizzas to more communities in the future and are confident Great Kitchens Food Company is the right partner to enhance our strong brand awareness across the country.” states CEO Erik Frederick.
Uno Restaurants is a portfolio company of Newport Global Advisors. In addition to owning the company, Newport Global Advisors also owns the real estate of the original downtown Chicago Uno and Due locations and is exploring various restoration options for the historic buildings.
“On behalf of the Newport team, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the Brynwood team for their partnership in bringing this transaction to fruition. I would also like to congratulate the Uno team for successfully completing the first major step in Uno’s strategic growth plan.” says Tim Janszen, CEO of Newport Global Advisors.
