Krispy Kreme focuses on core business, sells ownership stake in cookie company for $172M

Doughnut giant Krispy Kreme is giving up majority ownership in Insomnia Cookies for $172.4 million to focus on its core business.

Charlotte-based Krispy Kreme received $127.4 million for selling its majority ownership in the Philadelphia-based cookie company to private equity firms Verlinvest and Mistral Equity Partners on July 17, according to a news release from Krispy Kreme Monday. Krispy Kreme expects to receive an additional $45 million in the coming weeks.

Krispy Kreme will retain about a 34% minority shareholder stake in Insomnia Cookies. The late-night bakery has over 250 stores worldwide, including four in Charlotte.

Krispy Kreme plans to focus on producing, selling and distributing fresh doughnuts daily and paying down debt, CEO Josh Charlesworth said in the news release.

Krispy Kreme’s rapid growth has included selling daily-made doughnuts in grocery and convenience stores, and through partnerships with McDonald’s .

In September 2018, Krispy Kreme purchased a 74.7% stake in Insomnia Cookies for about $139.5 million, Krispy Kreme told The Charlotte Observer on Monday.

About Krispy Kreme

The 84-year-old doughnut company, best known of its “Hot Now” glazed doughnuts, started in Winston-Salem.

Four years ago, Krispy Kreme moved its corporate offices and test kitchen to Charlotte’s South End at 2116 Hawkins St.

The publicly-traded chain operates in over 35 countries and has more than 20,000 employees worldwide.

Charlesworth became CEO on Jan. 1, succeeding Michael Tattersfield , The Charlotte Observer previously reported. Tattersfield led Krispy Kreme through a global expansion that resulted in revenue growth from $550 million in 2016 to more than $1.6 billion last year.

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