The Middleby Corporation, which owns appliance brands including Viking, AGA Rangemaster, La Cornue, Kamado Joe, Marvel, Novy and U-Line, has announced entry into a definitive agreement under which it will sell a 51 per cent stake in its Residential Kitchen business to affiliates of 26North Partners LP in a transaction valuing Residential Kitchen at $885 million (£664.7m).
Following this transaction, Middleby will own a 49 per cent non-controlling interest in a new standalone joint venture holding the Residential Kitchen business, while receiving upfront cash proceeds of approximately $540 million and holding a $135 million (£101.4m) seller note provided to the joint venture.
This transaction, along with the previously announced spin-off of the Food Processing business that is expected to be completed in H1 2026, marks a significant milestone in Middleby’s transformation into a pure-play commercial foodservice leader.
As a pure-play commercial foodservice company, Middleby is positioned for higher growth as a leader in automation and innovation, with a comprehensive portfolio of leading commercial foodservice products poised to address attractive market opportunities. Commercial foodservice is focused on delivering customer solutions around labour savings, reducing food costs, and maximizing kitchen efficiencies, while entering new growth markets in ice and beverage.
As a standalone company, the commercial foodservice platform has an attractive, best-in-class financial profile with 2024 annual revenue of $2.38 billion, $654 million in Adjusted EBITDA and an Adjusted EBITDA Margin above 27 per cent.
“Today’s announcement is a definitive step in the evolution of Middleby” said Tim FitzGerald, President and Chief Executive Officer of Middleby. “Over the past 12 months, the Middleby team has accelerated our portfolio transformation, including announcing the spin-off of Middleby Food Processing, while investing in organic growth opportunities and returning capital to shareholders.
“This transaction enables Middleby to partially monetize the Residential Kitchen business at an attractive valuation and provides significant upfront cash proceeds to invest in shareholder return and growth initiatives, while enabling Middleby to participate in Residential Kitchen’s upside potential,” continued Mr. FitzGerald.
“We are excited to partner with 26North given its successful history of value creation in collaboration with corporate partners. We look forward to working closely with 26North to create a stronger Residential Kitchen business and to ensure continuity for employees and customers.”
Mark Weinberg, Partner and Head of Private Equity at 26North, continued: “This investment in the Residential Kitchen business reflects the creative, proprietary and tailored solutions that define how 26North collaborates with corporate partners to unlock value in world-class businesses. It creates a dedicated platform for the most influential and iconic brands in residential and outdoor cooking, allowing them to continue setting the pace for the industry.”
Middleby will retain a noncontrolling common equity stake in the standalone Residential Kitchen business. Residential Kitchen’s financial results will be reported as discontinued operations as of Q4 2025 and reported as income from minority interest upon closing.
The transaction has been unanimously approved by Middleby’s Board of Directors and is expected to close in the first quarter of calendar year 2026, subject to receipt of regulatory approvals and satisfaction of customary closing conditions.
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