The Company is a manufacturer of shelf-stable, high-protein, gluten-free, naturally lactose-free, baked cheese snack made with organic quinoa and no artificial preservatives and has also launched Parmesan Crisps, Cheddar Crisps and Bacon Cheddar Crisps, with real bacon and no added nitrates or nitrites.
Sonoma Creamery, a manufacturer and marketer of premium cheeses and cheese snacks has announced that it has received a $10 million equity investment from private equity firm Svoboda Capital Fund IV, L.P. Specific terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Founded in 1931, the company’s product is available on stores such as Amazon, Costco, HEB, Kroger, Safeway/Albertsons, Target and Wegmans among others. The company intends to use the proceeds from the transaction to support its growth initiatives that includes developing new products, hiring key personnel and building additional production capacity.
According to media reports, John Crean, president and chief executive officer of Sonoma Creamery said “We are excited to have a new partner who shares our belief in making addictively healthy cheese snacks from the highest quality, simplest ingredients.”
“Teamwork is our secret weapon. We believe deeply in delivering the absolute best, most compelling, most innovative products to our consumers and retailer partners. We are enthusiastic that the team at Svoboda shares our objectives as the surest way to build long-term value for our shareholders, partners and employees,” he said.
Svoboda Capital Partners LLC is a private equity firm based in Chicago with more $350 million of capital under management. Founded in 1998, the firm identifies, invests in and helps build businesses in its targeted business niches which include consumer products, value-added distribution and business services.
“We have been impressed with Sonoma’s ability to innovate and grow in the exciting Healthy Snack category,” said Jeff Piper, Managing Director at SC. “We are looking forward to collaborating with the Sonoma management team to enhance the long-term growth and success of the Company.”
