For Tony’s, the sale means a transition away from decades of family ownership. Italian immigrants Tony Ingraffia and Domenico Gambino started the company in 1979, opening the first location on Fullerton Avenue and Central Park avenues.
The founding family will continue to partner with Apollo in management roles and as shareholders, said Partner Andrew Jhawar. Founder Tony Ingraffia will step back from day-to-day operations and serve on the board. His son will continue as CEO.
Ingraffia said three new stores were in the pipeline, including one in Chicago and one store each in Joliet and Schaumburg.
Tony’s Fresh Market has been acquired by New York private-equity company Apollo Global Management.
The purchase digs Apollo deeper into Chicago’s grocery world. The firm invested $1.75 billion into Jewel-Osco parent Albertsons in 2020. Outside of Chicago, it invests in Sprouts Farmers Market and other grocery stores.
For Tony’s, the sale means a transition away from decades of family ownership. Italian immigrants Tony Ingraffia and Domenico Gambino started the company in 1979, opening the first location on Fullerton Avenue and Central Park avenues. The two worked 12 hours a day for their first decade in business, according to the store’s website.
Tony’s now has 18 Chicago-area locations, with several more in development, according to the news release.
“My family has been feeding our communities for generations and are incredibly excited to partner with Apollo to build upon that legacy of fresh and healthy food, at an affordable price and delivered with respect to the many cultures of our customers,” CEO Frank Ingraffia said in the news release.
The founding family will continue to partner with Apollo, according to the news release. Apollo Partner Andrew Jhawar said in a statement that Tony’s has “built an incredible reputation in Chicago,” and is known for high-quality and international food options.
“Having spent more than 20 years leading Apollo’s private-equity investments in grocery and retail, I firmly believe the business is poised for strong organic growth,” he said. “Together we see additional opportunities to support Tony’s through go-to-market execution, customer loyalty programs, e-commerce and more.”
Representatives from Tony’s and Apollo were not immediately available for comment.
seebee wrote:Check your local Tony's for my cherry pick of the week:
$4.99/lb Choice skirt steak.
spinynorman99 wrote:seebee wrote:Check your local Tony's for my cherry pick of the week:
$4.99/lb Choice skirt steak.
At that price are we sure it's sourced from cattle, or is it more like the Simpson's Ribwich (does it come from pigs? "Think smaller, and with more legs").
pudgym29 wrote:[color=#976638]
By now, you should know that both Jay's and Vitner's are under the same corporate umbrella. I can envision Jay's getting more midwestern distribution, but not Vitner's.
Thank you. I'll scribe this in my notes for future references.tjr wrote: More detail: Jays is owned by Snyder-Lance, in turn owned by Campbell. So Jays and Vitners are part of rival Pennsylvania pretzel makers. Jays are the usual alternative to Lays in southeastern Wisconsin. Moving westward, the superior Old Dutch chips take over.