Nathan's Famous Partners With UAE Based Mezzan Group to Manufacture Halal Hot Dogs

NEW YORK, August 15, 2020 (Newswire.com) - ​​Nathan’s Famous, Inc., the American tradition serving New York favorites for more than 100 years, announces today it has signed a licensing, manufacturing and distribution agreement with Mezzan Holding KSC, one of the largest manufacturers and distributors of food, beverage, FMCG and pharmaceutical products in the Gulf. This partnership further solidifies Nathan’s Famous’ commitment to the Middle East through the manufacturing and distribution of Halal Nathan’s Famous products.  

“We believe our partnership with Mezzan provides a wealth of advantages for the Nathan’s Famous brand in and around the Gulf region, from growth opportunity to the ability to provide quality Halal product to our fans in the region,” said James Walker, SVP, Restaurants. “Through its storied history, Mezzan has worked with some of the world’s best-known consumer manufacturers to bring their products to the GCC, and we’re thrilled to add Nathan’s to the distinguished list of brands and expand our reach throughout the UAE and beyond.”

Mezzan Holding KSC subsidiary, Khazan Meat Factory, will produce 5-piece pack and 8-piece pack of hot dogs for both retail and food service vendors in the region. Khazan is recognized as the leading brand in the region, and is known for its state-of-the-art meat production division that features locally manufactured, fresh and premium Halal ingredients. Coupled with Mezzan’s far-reaching distribution abilities via its subsidiaries, its long-standing relationships with private and cooperative supermarkets and food services customers including multinational fast food chains, we believe this partnership sets Nathan’s Famous on a fast track for growth in the Gulf Region.

“We are very excited to be partnering with Nathan’s Famous as their distributor for the region,” states Lindsay Wakefield, commercial director Mezzan Holding. “With Nathan’s strong heritage in the USA and Mezzan’s manufacturing, marketing and distribution footprint in the region, this partnership will allow Middle East consumers to enjoy the flavor of New York locally. Mezzan’s expertise in the region will ensure the hot dog range available locally is 100% Halal to suit our local consumer needs.”

To learn more about Nathan’s Famous, visit www.nathansfamous.com

MEDIA CONTACT

Kate Laird
​Trevelino/Keller
404.214.0722 x.125
[email protected]

About Nathan’s Famous 

Nathan’s is a Russell 2000 Company that currently distributes its products in 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and 11 foreign countries through its restaurant system, foodservice sales programs and product licensing activities. Last year, over 700 million Nathan’s Famous hot dogs were sold. Nathan’s was ranked #22 on the Forbes 2014 list of the Best Small Companies in America and was listed as the Best Small Company in New York State in October 2013. For additional information about Nathan’s, please visit our website at www.nathansfamous.com.

About Mezzan Group 

·       Operates in seven countries through 30 subsidiaries with more than 9,000 employees

·       Distributes over 34,000 Stock Keeping Units (SKU), making it one of the largest operators in terms of SKUs, unit sales, market share and in terms of share of revenues of total consumer spending in consumer categories served by the company

·       Active in various segments of the consumer staple industry supported by long-standing relationships with Johnson & Johnson, Olayan Kimberly-Clark, Reckitt Benckiser, General Mills, Arla Foods, Sara Lee and many other leading brands and manufacturers

·       Serves over 120,000 meals a day in Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE through its catering business

·       Has a total of 138650 square meters in food, beverage and FMCG manufacturing facilities in Kuwait, Qatar, UAE and Afghanistan

·       Leverages long-standing relationships with private and cooperative supermarkets

·       Vertically integrated into complementary business operations, including packaging, catering, contract services and logistics

·       Food services customers include multinational fast food chains, airline catering services and large food services companies.

Mezzan Holding is a 70-year old company that was listed on the Kuwait Stock Exchange in the second quarter of 2015. The company is headquartered in Kuwait with direct operational activities in Kuwait, UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Jordan, and Afghanistan.

Except for historical information contained in this news release, the matters discussed are forward looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended that involve risks and uncertainties. Words such as “anticipate”, “believe”, “estimate”, “expect”, “intend”, and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements, which are based on the current belief of the Company’s management, as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to the Company’s management. Among the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include but are not limited to: the status of our licensing and supply agreements, including the impact of our supply agreement for hot dogs with John Morrell & Co.; the impact of the recent COVID-19 outbreak; the impact of our indebtedness, including the effect on our ability to fund working capital, operations and make new investments; economic; weather (including the impact on the supply of cattle and the impact on sales at our restaurants particularly during the summer months), and change in the price of beef trimmings; our ability to pass on the cost of any price increases in beef and beef trimmings; legislative and business conditions; the collectability of receivables; changes in consumer tastes; the ability to attract franchisees; the impact of the minimum wage legislation on labor costs in New York State or other changes in labor laws, including regulations which could render a franchisor as a “joint employee” or the impact of our new union contracts; our ability to attract competent restaurant and managerial personnel; the enforceability of international franchising agreements; the future effects of any food borne illness, such as bovine spongiform encephalopathy, BSE and e coli; and the risk factors reported from time to time in the Company’s SEC reports. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update such forward-looking statements.

Source: Nathan's Famous