Goodles is being acquired by the Barilla Group, and the deal still needs regulatory approval before it closes. The mac-and-cheese brand will remain headquartered in Santa Cruz, California and keep operating as a stand-alone label after the transaction.
Jen Zeszut said she could not dream up a better partner for the brand and its 73-employee team. She also said more than 90% of people in the U.S. have never tried Goodles, adding, "so we’ve only just begun!"
Jen Zeszut on Barilla Group
"I could not dream up a better partner for our little brand and our beloved, hard-working team." That was Zeszut’s response to a sale that keeps her in charge of the company’s day-to-day work while moving ownership to the world’s largest pasta company.
"They can help us innovate and grow internationally while letting us make gooder decisions and maintain our quality." Zeszut framed the deal as a way to widen distribution and keep the brand’s product standard intact, not as a reset of the business itself.
Guido Barilla and Goodles
Guido Barilla said his company had been following Goodles closely for some time and became increasingly impressed by the strength of the brand, the quality of its products and the momentum behind its growth. He also said that as the management team led by Zeszut became better known, Barilla was impressed by its unity and forward-looking mindset.
Goodles was founded in October 2020 as Gooder Foods, and it was built around the idea that mac and cheese could be more nutritious, incredibly delicious and bring joy. Gal Gadot and Jaron Varsano were founding investors, and a representative for Goodles said Gadot is an investor.
Santa Cruz, California remains
Financial terms were not disclosed, so the size of the transaction cannot be measured against the company’s growth or the brand’s penetration in the U.S. The structure is the more important clue for readers: ownership changes, but the headquarters, the brand name and Zeszut’s leadership stay in place once approval clears.
That leaves the practical question for the business side of the deal: what value Barilla assigned to a brand that says it has reached fewer than 10% of U.S. consumers. Until the transaction closes, the clearest takeaway is simple — Goodles gets a larger parent, while keeping the identity that made it a distinct target in the first place.
