Minneapolis-based Rise Baking Company has closed its acquisition of Jimmy's Gourmet Bakery, a 40-year-old wholesale bakery operating three Northeast facilities totaling more than 350,000 square feet. The deal bolsters Rise's position in the cookie category and adds meaningful manufacturing scale for convenience-store and foodservice accounts.
What Rise Is Getting
Jimmy's brings a portfolio that includes the Jimmy's Cookies brand, the King Krumb Cookie line, and Ecce Panis artisan breads — all positioned as thaw-and-sell items, a format that has strong traction in c-store in-store bakery sets where labor is limited. The company has served retail and foodservice customers nationwide since 1985 and carries deep private-label capability alongside its branded lines. For convenience operators sourcing grab-and-go bakery, the expanded cookie assortment and ready-to-merchandise artisan bread SKUs address two of the fastest-moving daypart segments at the forecourt.
Rise CEO Mark McNeil pointed to talent and culture as central to the rationale. "What makes this acquisition special is the people," McNeil said. "Jimmy's has built an outstanding team, a strong culture and a reputation for delivering innovative products and service." Jimmy's CEO Howard Hirsch and President Michael Pisani both indicated the brand's operational focus will continue unchanged during integration, with Jimmy's running independently while the companies work through a phased transition.
C-Store and Foodservice Context
Rise already supplies leading national grocery chains, convenience stores, QSRs, and mass merchandisers across categories including cakes, cookies, muffins, icings, and pies — operating under brands such as Brill, Table Talk, Best Maid, and Bakestone Brothers. The Jimmy's addition deepens the cookie category specifically, which has proven resilient in convenience foodservice as operators expand their in-store bakery and fresh grab-and-go programs.
Thaw-and-sell bakery continues to gain share in the channel because it requires no back-of-house baking equipment and minimizes shrink — two persistent pain points for single-store operators and regional chains alike. Northeast manufacturing proximity also matters for freshness-dating and transportation cost on ambient and thaw-and-sell items, giving Rise improved logistics reach into a dense retail and foodservice market.
The acquisition fits a pattern Rise has followed since its 2013 founding: bolt-on deals that add category depth or geographic manufacturing coverage without disrupting existing customer relationships. For c-store buyers, that track record of continuity-first integration reduces the sourcing risk that often accompanies supplier M&A. Operators evaluating their bakery and snack supplier base should note that the combined entity now operates meaningful Northeast capacity alongside its existing Midwest and broader national footprint.
No financial terms were disclosed.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
