Goodles has agreed to be acquired by the Barilla Group, a deal that would put the mac-and-cheese brand under the ownership of the world’s largest pasta company once regulators approve it. The financial terms were not disclosed.
The announcement lands now because it answers two questions customers and investors have been asking at once: who is buying Goodles, and what happens to the brand after the handoff. The company said it will stay in Santa Cruz, California, keep operating as a stand-alone brand and remain under the leadership of Jen Zeszut, who said the team has 73 employees.
For Goodles, the appeal of the deal is scale. The brand has built itself around a simple pitch — mac and cheese that is more nutritious, incredibly delicious and still fun — and Zeszut said the Barilla Group can help it innovate and grow internationally while preserving its quality and decision-making. Guido Barilla said his company had been following Goodles for some time and was impressed by the brand’s strength, its products and the momentum behind its growth. He also pointed to the management team led by Zeszut and said those qualities made Goodles the right choice for the future.
That future still has a gap in it. Zeszut said more than 90% of people in the U.S. have never tried Goodles, which shows how much room the brand still has to grow even as it talks about going global. Goodles was founded in October 2020 as Gooder Foods, and among its founding investors were Gal Gadot and Jaron Varsano. Gadot is also an investor in the company. The brand says it was born from the idea that mac and cheese could be more nutritious, incredibly delicious and bring joy.
So the next step is clear: regulatory approval, then closing. If the deal goes through, Goodles will keep its own name, its own headquarters and its own team, but it will do so with the backing of a company that dominates the category it hopes to challenge.
