Country Home Bakers Inc.- Readi-Bake Ltd.

Client Profile
Country Home Bakers, Inc. (“Country Home’ or the ‘Company’) is a manufacturer of frozen pies, breads and cookies. The Company’s subsidiary, Readi-Bake Ltd. (‘Readi-Bake’), is a United Kingdom-based manufacturer of American-recipe cookies sold throughout the United Kingdom, as well as continental Europe.
Situation
Readi-Bake had maintained an impressive track record of growth and profitability over the last several years. However, the Chapter 11 filing of its parent company required the immediate sale of Readi-Bake to provide liquidity for the stakeholders and facilitate an emergence from bankruptcy.
Solution
SSG was retained to sell Readi-Bake, went to market quickly and identified a platform bidder for a Section 363 auction of the stock of the company. SSG also attracted a competing bidder, leading to an auction comprised of 16 bids and an 18% increase in the purchase price above the platform bid. Readi-Bake was ultimately acquired by Netherlands-based CSM nv. The strategic valuation that was realized allowed for a full recovery by the senior lenders of Country Home Bakers. The transaction closed in July 2003.