America’s Test Kitchen to acquire Food52 assets

America’s Test Kitchen has agreed to acquire certain assets of Food52, Inc., a beleaguered culinary media brand that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware late last night. America’s Test Kitchen is serving as the proposed stalking horse bidder.

In connection with the restructuring process, Food52, Inc. has reached an agreement with America’s Test Kitchen to provide the company with new capital in the form of a debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing facility, which it will use to continue operations during the bankruptcy proceedings, pending court approval. As part of the restructuring process, Food52, Inc. will file customary “First Day” motions to allow it to maintain normal business operations.

“We are delighted at the opportunity to acquire the Food52 brand assets and to grow this iconic brand that audiences love,” said America’s Test Kitchen CEO Daniel Suratt. “We believe Food52 remains a singular media property with a strong legacy and we are excited to build on that to continue to serve Food52 fans.”

It was unclear whether America’s Test Kitchen would acquire tabletop company Dansk or lighting and home décor company Schoolhouse, or their assets. Food52 acquired both companies in 2021.

Boston-based America’s Test Kitchen was founded in 1992 and is perhaps best known for its television shows — America’s Test Kitchen, Cook’s Country, and America’s Test Kitchen: The Next Generation — and its magazine, Cook’s Illustrated. It also produces cookbooks, podcasts and a short-form video series.

New York-based Food52 Inc. is the parent company of Food52, an online food community co-founded in 2009 by New York Times cooking editor Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs. It started out offering recipes, culinary commentary and advice to its food community, and later added an e-commerce store that sells housewares and food-related merchandise.

Former West Elm President Alex Campos was named co-CEO of the company, with Hesser, in September 2022, and later assumed the role entirely as Hesser became executive chair. At the time of Campos’ appointment, Food52 had 280 employees and a monthly audience greater than 30 million people. The Chernin Group made an initial majority investment in Food52 in 2019 and a second investment in 2021. Erika Ayers Badan was named CEO of the company in April 2024, and Hesser stepped away from the business in May of this year. Stubbs stepped down from day-to-day operations in 2020.

But the company laid off 40% of its workforce in March, according to a report in AdWeek, which also reported that the company was going to “dramatically” reduce the size of its drop-ship business and focus instead on selling items produced by Schoolhouse. Additional layoffs were reported in the media earlier this month.

“From the beginning, Food52 aspired to build a place where great food, thoughtful design and a deeply engaged community could live together,” said Ayers Badan. “We are excited at the prospect of bringing this into the future with the help of America’s Test Kitchen, one of the most trusted brands in culinary media.”