Hostess: Dead by Murder, Suicide, or Natural Causes? Uh ... Yes?
In this week's cover story, we examine the demise of Irving-based Hostess, purveyor of Wonder Bread, Ho Hos, Twinkies and Ding Dongs -- basically all the stuff you should never put in your body. These days, pretty much everything is political, even the fate of snack food.![]()
Catherine Downes
Can blame for the company's ongoing liquidation following nearly a year in Chapter 11 proceedings be placed at the feet of the unions, which some say are grand, burdensome anachronisms in a contemporary marketplace? Others pin it on Wall Street. Like all the other companies that have been Bain Capital-ed by private equity barons, they say, Hostess got ransacked, and no wonder it went under. Look at all that debt. The company was completely upside-down!
Over the course of my reporting, however, I reached a different conclusion. There's nuance (shocker!) in the tale of the Twinkie's last, rattling gasps. Rest easy, everybody. There's plenty of blame to go around! Oh, and you probably won't be without you cream-filled sponge cake for long, if you actually eat that stuff. Like Jesus, Twinkie will almost assuredly rise from death.
In the meantime, take a look at this brief history of its storied life:
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