Houlihan Lokey Advises La Rocca Creative Cakes

Houlihan Lokey is pleased to announce that La Rocca Creative Cakes (La Rocca), a Canadian company founded by the Givens family, has been acquired by Sammontana Italia, a company owned by the Bagnoli family and Investindustrial, through its newly formed entity Sammontana North America. The transaction closed on April 1, 2025.

Based in Toronto, Ontario, La Rocca is a leading manufacturer of premium desserts for retailers across North America. The company provides a turnkey solution to retailers’ in-store bakeries for fully finished premium cakes with unmatched taste and quality. The La Rocca name embodies a legacy of craftsmanship, Italian traditions, and passion for premium desserts. Nearly 40 years ago, Lina Givens and Harvey Easson, together with their sons, Marty and Michael, founded La Rocca with a vision to create high-quality desserts for the North American market. Under their leadership, the company became one of the largest premium dessert manufacturers in Canada. For the past 25 years, Michael Givens has led La Rocca through a period of significant expansion, maintaining the highest standards of quality and innovation.

Sammontana Italia is a leader in the production and distribution of bakery products, sweet and savory frozen pastries, and ice cream for HoReCa and large-scale retail channels in Italy. Headquartered in Empoli, Italy, Sammontana Italia employs more than 2,000 people generating a turnover of over €900 million in 2024. Sammontana Italia is the result of a successful Italian entrepreneurial journey, built with a forward-looking vision and a strong commitment to future generations. The La Rocca transaction is the first acquisition in North America for Sammontana Italia and represents an important step in its international expansion strategy.

Investindustrial is a leading European group of independently managed investment, holding, and advisory companies with approximately €17 billion of raised fund capital. With ESG principles deeply embedded into the firm’s core approach, Investindustrial has a 35-year history of providing middle-market companies with capital, industrial expertise, operational focus, and global platforms to accelerate sustainable value creation and international expansion.

Houlihan Lokey served as the exclusive financial advisor to La Rocca and assisted in structuring and negotiating the transaction on its behalf.

This deal represents another successful transaction for Houlihan Lokey in the North American bakery sector. Houlihan Lokey has advised on numerous landmark North American bakery transactions, including deals involving ARYZTA, Banneton Bakery, C.H. Guenther & Son, Dessert Holdings, Give & Go, Rise Baking Company, Steven Charles, Venice Bakery, and Weston Foods, among others.

RELATED: Food & Beverage, Consumer, Mergers & Acquisitions