Twinkies Back on Shelves by July, Faces Competition from Copycats
Nostalgic lovers of the classic creme-filled pastries, chill out — Twinkies are set to hit shelves by late July. “We expect to be making and selling in July,” Michael Cramer, executive vice president of Hostess Brands LLC, told NBC News. “Probably the later half of the month before the product hits the stores.”
Last month, Apollo Global Management and Metropoulos & Co purchased Twinkies, Cup Cakes, Ho Hos, Zingers, Ding Dongs and Suzy Q’s for $410 million, while the rest of Hostess’ lines (Wonder Bread, Nature’s Pride, Home Pride, Merita) went to Flower Foods and its Beefsteak brand to Grupo Bimbo. It was welcome news for everyone who grew up with the iconic treat.
However, going MIA for more than six months changes things. The new owners of Hostess face competition from copycats who scrambled to fill the gap when Twinkies filed for bankruptcy last year. Flower Foods rolled out with their own line of Twinkie lookalikes in the form of “Bingles” from its Blue Bird brand and “Dreamies” from its Mrs. Freshley’s label. Grupo Bimbo, a baking company based in Mexico, has had their own version of Twinkies, “Submarinos,” around for awhile but began to import the vanilla flavors to the US in 2012 — when talks of Hostess filing for bankruptcy began.
Although devoted Hostess fans will return to Hostess despite the faux pastries, the challenge lies in gaining back casual consumers. Luckily, Cramer assures that the OG will be “as delicious and fattening as it always was,” and that, dear readers, isn’t something just any ol’ fellow can do.
