Former bankers gobble up tasty firms

Apparently there really is life, and a sweet one at that, after banking.

Officials with Fort Lauderdale-based BBX Capital, former owners of BankAtlantic, which once had 19 branches in the Tampa region, have taken that theory to the Willy Wonka extreme: BBX, through a subsidiary, BBX Sweet Holdings, is buying chocolate companies.

It most recently acquired the assets of Solana Beach, Calif.-based Jer's Chocolates. Terms of the deal, announced July 1, weren't disclosed. It follows the acquisition of Boynton Beach-based chocolate manufacturer Williams & Bennett from earlier this year and Lake Worth-based Hoffman's Choclates from late last year. All three chocolate businesses have large gift and corporate sales departments, in addition to significant mail-order operations. “We believe Jer's Chocolates is an ideal fit to our platform and we welcome CEO Jerry Swain and the Jer's brand to our family of BBX Capital companies,” BBX Capital President Jarett Levan says in a release.