Astor Group, a consumer-focused advisory firm and merchant bank, has announced today that its portfolio company Brooklyn Brands has been acquired by Japanese bakery Taguchi & Co. Ltd. The deal reportedly represents the first noteworthy acquisition by a Japanese bakery of a U.S. dessert manufacturer and broadens Brooklyn Brands’ domestic and global distribution; the acquisition will enable Taguchi & Co. to expand within North America with plans to grow both organically and through additional acquisitions.

While the terms of the transaction were not disclosed, Brooklyn Brands has experienced rapid growth and is the nation’s largest manufacturer of artisanal New York desserts (the producer makes more than 18,000 babkas daily, for example) with distribution to over 10,000 retailers nationwide, including Kroger, Albertsons, Whole Foods Market, Publix, and Wegmans. Its private label products are among the most sought-after bakery products at top- ranked US supermarkets.

Brooklyn Brands was founded in 2015 by Astor Group to acquire a portfolio of underdeveloped yet beloved Brooklyn-based bakeries. Under the leadership of Seth Zalkin and Mickey Klein, Brooklyn Brands has seen notable growth, including the construction of a modern manufacturing facility, improved production processes, expanded distribution, and enhanced product development.

Zalkin and Klein, together with COO John Gibson and the leadership team, will continue to work with Taguchi to oversee operations from their headquarters in New York; Taguchi & Co’s acquisition will provide substantial resources to bring Brooklyn’s culinary heritage including its iconic black-and-white cookies and babkas to consumers in Asia and around the world. It will also provide a platform for Taguchi & Co. to introduce preeminent Asian baked goods to the U.S. market. The goal is to build a 10-figure platform through acquisitions and organic growth, and Brooklyn Brands is actively seeking additional acquisitions that provide similar or adjacent product categories, intellectual property and manufacturing facilities as it seeks to builds the premier baked goods platform in the U.S.

“We’re humbled for Brooklyn Brands to be joining Taguchi & Co., Ltd.” says Seth Zalkin, managing partner of Astor Group. “Brooklyn Brands has earned a passionate consumer following, and we’re elated by the opportunity to expand our global reach with Taguchi’s support. This transaction represents a milestone for both Astor Group and Brooklyn Brands, and we are confident that Taguchi’s resources and manufacturing expertise will provide rocket fuel to Brooklyn Brands’ growth.”

“Astor Group took a company that made great products and helped make a great company,” adds Mickey Klein, managing partner of Astor. “Consistent with Taguchi’s mission, providing an authentic, delicious indulgence has been at the heart of Brooklyn Brands since we acquired the business nearly eight years ago. Brooklyn Brands will continue to build the bakery business and offer the same babkas, cookies and other baked confections to more consumers across North America, Asia, and around the world.”

“Brooklyn Brands and Taguchi share a mutual excitement for the expanding in-store bakery segment,” says Sean Taguchi. “We are very excited to bring Brooklyn Brands into the Taguchi family and we’re investing deeply in the bakery’s accelerated growth. We look forward to planting deeper roots in the US by building upon Brooklyn Brands' existing bakery platform and vast retail network. More than anything, we are aligned on our love of consumer brands and we want to bring innovation and newness to the category."