Jenny Craig will be reintroduced to e-commerce in the coming months by the creator of a rival weight reduction meal supplier that has bought out the brand assets of a defunct company out of bankruptcy.
Wellful Inc., a consumer health company that also owns Nutrisystem, said it had acquired the rights to Jenny Craig’s mental property for an undisclosed sum. Court documents from June 2 show that the IP was valued at $10 million.
“Individuals who knew the Jenny brand – fundamental elements of the great food, coaching, overall program and success they’ve had before – can look ahead to seeing you again,” Wellful CEO Brandon Adcock said in an interview.
Jenny Craig website announced the reboot in recent weeks, saying it will “come to your own home this fall”. Adcock said all former Jenny Craig customers have been notified by email and on the brand’s Facebook groups of the relaunch.
“Our goal is to treat them as best we will to win back their interests,” he said.
After 4 many years in business, Carlsbad, California-based Jenny Craig filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in Delaware on May 5. court files to point out. The filing comes two days after NBC News reported that the company alerted employees of the impending closureWhich launched a category motion lawsuit accusing management of violating the 60-day notice period for mass layoffs.
Jenny Craig couldn’t be reached for comment at the time. HIG Capital, the $55 billion private equity firm that acquired the brand for an undisclosed sum in 2019, didn’t reply to requests for comment on the Wellful case or acquisition.
Adcock said the iconic weight reduction provider’s next act will be driven by digital and e-commerce. Members will still be in a position to order meals home and will proceed to access personalized coaching, a core feature that previously took place in tons of of physical locations but will now be completely virtual. He said the Wellful acquisition didn’t include any Jenny Craig properties.
Wellful is a non-public company formed by merger in 2021 Nutrisystem and Adaptive Health, which Adcock co-founded in 2009. The corporate is majority owned by Kainos Capital, a Dallas-based private equity firm specializing in food and consumer products, which closed $1 billion fundraising round in February.
Traditional brands of weight loss plan and exercise products have faced stiffer competition fast-growing board With slimming drugs equivalent to Ozempic are gaining popularity. Adcock said he’s confident each Nutrisystem and the revamped Jenny Craig can compete.
“The knowledge we have now of talking to consumers on this category through our partnership with Nutrisystem will definitely be in a position to try this for Jenny Craig,” he said. Nonetheless, he acknowledged that “it’s obviously a really changing environment” and said he was watching the role pharmaceuticals play in the industry.
Adcock said Jenny Craig and Nutrisystem, which also sell weight loss-focused ready meals but don’t provide coaching, will be run individually under Wellful. He said prices at Jenny Craig would remain just like pre-bankruptcy prices, but declined to supply further details.
Since Jenny Craig’s collapse, customers have expressed their sadness and frustration on social media. Some said they rushed to the brick-and-mortar stores just a few days after the announcement of the closure to select up last-minute meal orders before the establishments closed for good in early May. Several said they didn’t and are still attempting to get their money back.
In still-running private Facebook groups whose members once gathered to share weight reduction suggestions and support, nostalgic shoppers exchange recipes and cooking suggestions as they try and recreate their favorite Jenny Craig dishes. A number of wrote excitedly about the brand’s expected resurgence, while others vowed never to return.
Jenny Craig employed about 1,000 people in the United States when it closed, several company employees, including a human resources official, said at the time. Adcock said Wellful is considering hiring some former employees if needed.
“We have already talked to loads of trainers and will proceed to speak about starting work on the brand,” he said.
Jack Raisner, a lawyer representing former Jenny Craig employees in a category motion lawsuit filed in May, said the case is on hold as the bankruptcy court deals with the company’s remaining assets and liabilities. The category motion lawsuit doesn’t apply to Wellful.
Raisner’s clients are demanding wages that state and federal WARN Acts require corporations with 100 or more full-time employees to notify regulators and employees 60 days before mass layoffs or plant closures. The grievance alleges that tons of of Jenny Craig’s former employees are owed compensation.