Painting with a Twist Owner Buys Competitor Pinot’s Palette | Franchise Mergers and Acquisitions

Twist Brands made another addition to its do-it-yourself craft-focused portfolio, acquiring paint-and-sip franchise Pinot’s Palette.

The purchase gives Twist Brands, the parent company of similar concept Painting with a Twist, its third franchise concept. The company formed in 2020 after Painting with a Twist bought paint-your-own pottery franchise Color Me Mine. It also owns suppliers Chesapeake Ceramics and TD Art Supply.   

The deal proved a “best fit opportunity,” said Painting with a Twist CEO Todd Owen, because 85 percent of Pinot’s Palette’s 69 locations are in markets where Painting with a Twist doesn’t have a presence, including Canada. Based in Louisiana, Painting with a Twist has a heavier concentration of units in states such as Texas, Florida and Pennsylvania, while Pinot’s Palette is more dominate in California and some Midwestern states.

“We’ve been on the hunt to acquire additional brands in the DIY space,” said Owen, and this purchase “provides room for growth without cannibalizing Painting with a Twist.” That brand finished 2023 with 220 units; the deal gives Twist Brands more than 400 studios across its three concepts.

The acquisition closed July 1.

Pinot’s Palette had 80 units in early 2023 when Code Ninja’s founder David Graham purchased it from founders Craig Ceccanti and Charles Willis and put the brand under his FranchiCzar Holdings with esports concept Valhallan and fitness franchise Iron 24.

“I directly messaged David and said if he was ever interested in selling to let us know,” said Owen as he noted “when a brand is contracting like that, it creates opportunities.”

“Two glaring gaps”—local studio marketing and technology—were apparent at Pinot’s Palette, said Owen, both of which Twist Brands is working to fill. Local marketing is a strength for Painting with a Twist, he continued, and adjustments being rolled out at Pinot’s Palette are already enhancing top line growth.

An “absolute game changer” on the marketing front has been the creation of connected TV advertising to run on streaming services in targeted ZIP codes. “That’s been an exceptional win with the Painting with a Twist brand, and we intend to bring it to Pinot’s Palette,” said Owen.

Pinot’s Palette franchisees will also benefit from supply chain and vendor partner efficiencies under Twist Brands, he added, and the sharing of best practices goes both ways. “Pinot’s Palette does food and beverage really well, and it’s a miniscule part of Painting with a Twist,” he said.

Pinot’s Palette, which Owen said has strong brand recognition in existing markets, will continue to operate as a separate concept.

Twist Brands, meanwhile, continues to test what Owen described as its “studio of the future” initiative, aimed at driving business during weekday hours.

“Eighty-five percent of sales are evenings and Saturday and Sunday across Pinot’s Palette and Painting with a Twist,” he said. “That’s a lot of dead or down time” during the week.

The company has 15 test studios in various markets trying out new packages of DIY projects geared toward parents and kids, “a whole new customer segment” different from those who typically attend date night-type events or tap Painting with a Twist for bachelorette or other parties. Twist Brands is likewise investing heavily in the customer-facing experience on its websites.

Feedback from franchisees in test markets, some of which are in their second year of package changes, is helping inform the final rollout, said Owen, and is indicative of Twist Brands’ collaborative approach.

“That’s totally embedded in our culture,” said Owen, who was a Painting with a Twist franchisee. “We exist” because of franchisees, “not the other way around.”

Owen, along with Teresa Johnson, a Painting with a Twist and Color Me Mine franchisee who’s now CEO of Color Me Mine, and partner Dave Chmura, each own 25 percent of Twist Brands. Painting with a Twist co-founder Cathy Deano is the fourth equal partner.

“There’s nobody else, and there won’t be,” added Owen of the ownership structure. “It enables us to invest back in the business like other franchisors can’t, in our opinion.”