Unilever and P.F. Chang's China Bistro Announce Exclusive Licensing Agreement

“Unilever revolutionized frozen ethnic cuisine in 2005 by introducing consumers to the award-winning taste of Bertolli Frozen Italian Skillet Meals. We are excited by the prospect of doing it again, this time in Asian cuisine, in partnership with P.F. Chang’s.

18 Aug 2009 P.F. Chang’s China Bistro, Inc., known for its high-quality Asian cuisine and dining experience through its restaurants around the United States, and Unilever one of the world’s largest consumer products companies, jointly announced that the companies have entered into an exclusive licensing agreement to develop a line of frozen Asian entrées for the U.S. under the P.F. Chang’s brand. Terms of the licensing agreement were not disclosed.

“Unilever revolutionized frozen ethnic cuisine in 2005 by introducing consumers to the award-winning taste of Bertolli Frozen Italian Skillet Meals. We are excited by the prospect of doing it again, this time in Asian cuisine, in partnership with P.F. Chang’s,” said John LeBoutillier, Unilever’s senior vice president, Foods U.S. “The opportunity is significant. From research, Asian cuisine ranks only behind Italian among ethnic cuisines for consumers and P.F. Chang’s is their favorite.”

“Our biggest challenge was finding a partner we believed could help us produce a frozen meal that we’d be proud to put our name on, and we’ve found that in Unilever,” said Rick Federico, Chairman and Co-CEO, P.F. Chang’s China Bistro. “This represents a fantastic growth opportunity for our company and allows our brand to reach more people more often. We believe it will complement our core business at the restaurants.”

The companies will work together on the development and launch of the new premium line of frozen Asian-style entrées. A launch date for the new products has not yet been set.