Flowers Foods

Did You Know?

• Flowers Foods acquired Dave's Killer Bread in 2015 for $275 million in cash, and Simple Mills in 2025 for $795 million in cash.
• The Flowers Foods Heritage Center, which opened on May 24, 2019, is housed in a former post office and library built in 1919—the same year the bakery was founded.

History

The company began in 1914 when brothers William Howard and Joseph Hampton Flowers founded the Flowers Ice Cream Company in Thomasville, Georgia. To meet local demand for fresh bread, they established the Flowers Baking Company in 1919, selling 500 loaves of "Flowers Quality Bread" on its first morning with equipment capable of 30,000 loaves daily. During the 1920s, distribution expanded by rail into southern Georgia, Alabama, and Florida. William Howard Flowers managed the bakery while Joseph Hampton Flowers oversaw ice cream; in 1929 the firm sold the ice cream division to Foremost Dairies. After William Howard Flowers died in 1934, his son, William Howard Flowers Jr., took over the bakery. The first acquisition came in 1937 with the purchase of Tally Maid Bakery in Tallahassee, Florida. During World War II, the bakery ran continuously to supply bread to U.S. military camps across the southeastern United States. In 1942, Flowers became the sixth bakery in the country to franchise Quality Bakers of America's Sunbeam brand, incorporating the Little Miss Sunbeam mascot. In 1968, the company launched an initial public offering, changed its name to Flowers Industries Inc., and began trading over-the-counter; it listed on the American Stock Exchange the next year. The offering raised over $2 million, funding acquisitions across Virginia, Alabama, Louisiana, and the Carolinas. In 1976 it entered the frozen foods market by purchasing Stilwell Foods, a frozen vegetable producer. Headquarters moved in 1975 to a new 15-acre corporate complex south of Thomasville. During the 1980s, the company temporarily diversified into selling sandwiches and cookies, exiting both ventures by the end of the decade while continuing to acquire bakeries across the southeastern and southwestern United States. In 1996, Flowers Industries expanded by acquiring the Mrs. Smith's frozen dessert brand and entering a joint venture to purchase the Keebler Company. By the early 2000s, the company refocused on its core snack cake and bread operations, divesting its interest in Keebler in 2001 for $1.2 billion, restructuring and rebranding as Flowers Foods, then selling Mrs. Smith's in 2003. Flowers Foods continues to pursue acquisitions to expand into emerging product categories, including targeting the Hispanic market with its Mi Casa tortilla line, offering organic products like Dave's Killer Bread and Alpine Valley Bread, alongside keto-friendly items and smaller loaf variations under its Nature's Own Brand.

Acquisitions

Flowers Foods first moved into frozen foods in 1976, buying Stilwell Foods of Stilwell, Oklahoma, along with its Rio Grande Foods unit in McAllen, Texas. In 1996, it acquired both the Keebler Company and Mrs. Smith's Pies, but sold its Keebler stake to the Kellogg Company in 2001. The remaining business units, Flowers Bakeries and Mrs. Smith's Bakeries, were spun off into a new entity named Flowers Foods. In 2002, the company restructured into three divisions: Flowers Bakeries, Flowers Snack, and Mrs. Smith's Bakeries. Later in 2002, Flowers purchased Ideal Baking Company and acquired Bishop Baking Company from Kellogg, expanding into north Arkansas, southern Missouri, and parts of Tennessee, including Memphis. In 2003, Flowers sold its Mrs. Smith's frozen dessert business to the Schwan Food Company and renamed the Flowers Snack division, resulting in two divisions: Flowers Bakeries and Flowers Specialty. In 2005, Flowers acquired Royal Cake Company and continued operating its bakery in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. In February 2006, Flowers purchased Derst Baking Co. of Savannah, Georgia, which retained its name under the Flowers Foods Bakeries Group. In 2008, the company acquired ButterKrust Bakery in Lakeland, Florida and Holsum Bakery in Phoenix. In 2009, it purchased Leo's Foods, a tortilla manufacturer. Acquisitions continued into the 2010s. In 2011, Flowers acquired Philadelphia-based snack cake maker Tastykake, expanding into the mid-Atlantic region. In 2012, it purchased Lepage Bakeries in Maine and acquired assets and licenses from Bimbo Bakeries for the Sara Lee and Earthgrains brands in California and Oklahoma City. In 2013, the company purchased most of the bread brands of Hostess Brands, including Wonder Bread, along with 20 closed Hostess bakeries. Flowers Foods made three acquisitions in 2015: Dave's Killer Bread of Milwaukie, Oregon, for $275 million in cash; Alpine Valley Bread Co., an organic bakery in Mesa, Arizona; and the North American rights to the Roman Meal trademark for bread, buns, and rolls. At the end of 2018, Flowers Foods acquired Canyon Bakehouse, a privately held gluten-free bread company based in Johnstown, Colorado. With that purchase, the company had acquired 16 companies since 2003. Flowers Foods bought Papa Pita for an undisclosed amount in 2023. Most recently, in the first quarter of 2025, Flowers Foods acquired Simple Mills for $795 million in cash.

Heritage Center

The Flowers Foods Heritage Center is housed in a historic building in Thomasville, Georgia. Constructed in 1919, the building initially served as the local post office and was later repurposed as the Thomas County Public Library. After the library relocated to the corner of Jefferson and Madison Streets on May 13, 1993, the structure remained vacant for over two decades. In 2015, Flowers Foods acquired the property and funded a comprehensive restoration of the two-story building and its basement. Register Construction managed the project, which included exterior excavation and waterproofing, interior demolition, the installation of an elevator, and finishes corresponding to the building's Victorian Architecture. The project was completed two months ahead of schedule, and the renovation subsequently received an Excellence in Rehabilitation Award from the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation. The Flowers Foods Heritage Center officially opened on May 24, 2019, featuring a self-guided, interactive exhibition titled "History in the Baking." The exhibit details the company's 100-year evolution from a local, family-owned bakery into a multi-billion-dollar enterprise listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Additionally, the center features displays dedicated to the regional history of Thomasville, the architectural history of the building, and the genealogy of the Flowers family.