Buitoni Food Co. has named Graham R. Corneck as its new president and CEO. He will be replacing Peter Wilson, who will rejoin Brynwood Partners as managing director and chairman of Buitoni Foods.
In June 2020, Buitoni Foods was established by Brynwood Partners VIII L.P. to acquire the North American Buitoni business from Nestlé USA Inc. Buitoni is an iconic brand in the refrigerated pasta, sauces and cheese categories. The company is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut and operates a 240,000-square-foot vertically integrated manufacturing facility in Danville, Virginia.
“We are excited to announce the addition of Graham Corneck to the Buitoni Foods’ team. Graham has demonstrated enormous success in his food centric career, working across many disciplines and in executive roles. His extensive background in managing brand driven companies with manufacturing operations in the food and snack sectors will immediately benefit the Buitoni Foods’ business,” said Henk Hartong, Brynwood Partners’ chairman and CEO.
Prior to joining Buitoni Foods, Corneck was an officer in the U.S. Navy, followed by many years with Campbell Soup Co. and Popcorn Indiana. During his tenure with Campbell Soup Co., he led a breadth of teams ranging from finance, IT and strategy to supply chain and business integration.
“Buitoni Foods is operated by a solid group of experienced executives who have previously rejuvenated similar brands with great heritage. With Brynwood Partners’ support, I am excited to lead this team of more than 525 loyal employees as we innovate and build on the famous Buitoni foundation of great tasting, authentic, high-quality foods,” Corneck said.
Buitoni was founded in 1827 in Italy and introduced in the U.S. in 1941. Buitoni Foods, with its approximate 525 employees, manufactures its products from its Danville, Virginia facility where it also co-manufactures Nestlé Toll House cookie dough products for Nestlé.
For more information, visit buitoni.com.
Brynwood Partners, founded in 1984 and based in Greenwich, Connecticut, is an operationally-focused private equity firm that makes control investments in North American-based lower middle market companies. The firm targets non-core brands or companies operating exclusively in the consumer sector. Since inception, Brynwood has acquired more than 55 brands from 21 different corporate sellers.
Brynwood Partners currently manages more than $1 billion of private equity capital for its limited partners, which include U.S. and international pension funds, fund-of-funds, endowments, foundations, high net worth family investment offices and financial institutions. Including Buitoni Foods, Brynwood Partners’ active portfolio companies include Harvest Hill Beverage Co., Hometown Food Co., Carolina Beverage Group LLC, Great Kitchens Food Co. and De Wafelbakkers LLC.
Brynwood Partners is currently investing out of Brynwood Partners VIII L.P., which has $649 million of committed capital. For more information on Brynwood, visit brynwoodpartners.com.
