Ferrero is buying Purely Elizabeth. Last year it bought WK Kellogg.
Both businesses compete in breakfast. They do not run the same way.
One is a founder-led brand built in the natural foods channel. The other is a large cereal business with established plants, brands, and retailer relationships. Their supply chains, economics, and ways of working are different.
I’ve sat in the meeting where someone says “platform” for the first time and everyone nods.
Six months later, the same room is arguing about whose forecast the new brand belongs to because no one wanted to answer that question while the deal was still exciting.
Whether breakfast is an attractive category is the easier question. The harder one is whether the operating model can support businesses that create value in different ways.
The people inside the acquired brand usually see the friction first. They know which parts of the business depend on the speed and judgment of a small team.
They should be in the room before the new operating model is set.