Longtime Fort Wayne bakery sold

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (Inside INdiana Business) — An industrial baking company in Fort Wayne is under new ownership. Michigan-based private equity firm Blackford Capital says it has sold Ellison Bakery to Tilia Holdings in Chicago, though financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The 75-year-old bakery produces cookie, snack bar, crunch and inclusion products for the industrial market, food service industry, and retail and private label customers. 

The sale comes just three years after Blackford Capital acquired the bakery.

“Since our initial investment, our team has been honored to partner with the Ellis family, Ellison Bakery’s management team, and our esteemed group of co-investors to successfully grow and refine the company’s business model,” said Jeff Johnson, managing director of Blackford and former chairman of Ellison Bakery. “The investments we made to expand its capabilities should position the company to accelerate and achieve its next phase of expansion. We have high confidence in the established leadership’s ability to realize their numerous growth initiatives.”

Ellison Bakery was launched by Donald Ellis in 1945 inside his family garage. Blackford Capital did not specify whether any jobs would be affected by the sale.