Dear Valued Supplier:
It is with great regret that I am writing to you with some unfortunate news. Hostess Brands must immediately begin to wind down all operations and conduct an orderly sale of all company assets. Many people have worked incredibly long and hard to keep this from happening, but now Hostess Brands has no other alternative than to begin the process of winding down and preparing for the sale of our iconic brands.
As you know, for many months the company has been working with our unions, lenders and other stakeholders to reach a consensual resolution to legacy costs and labor contracts. Despite everyone’s considerable efforts, when we began implementing the company’s last, best and final offer, the Bakers Union chose to stage a crippling strike. This affected Hostess Brands’ ability to continue to make products and service its customers’ needs and pushed Hostess into a wind-down scenario. As a result, the company was forced to proceed with an orderly wind down and sale of our operations and assets. We deeply regret taking this action. But we simply cannot continue to operate without the ability to produce or deliver our products.
Any orders in process are cancelled immediately. Any product in transit will be or has been returned to the shipper. We have retained a wind-down team that will continue on to assure that the business shuts down in an orderly fashion. It is unknown at this time what will happen to unpaid vendor invoices or whether sufficient funds will be ultimately made available for payment.
Thank you for your support of Hostess Brands.
Sincerely,
Rob Kissick
Senior Vice President Purchasing
Hostess Brands