New Jersey deli worth $100 million to merge with bioplastics maker

In New Jersey, a small-town deli with an inexplicable market cap of $100 million—and viral fame as an example of stock market excess and insufficient regulatory oversight—has filed with the SEC to merge with hemp-based plastic company Makamer.  

The deli’s owner, Hometown International, first came to public attention in April 2021 when hedgie David Einhorn used it as an example of public market chicanery.  “The pastrami must be amazing,” Einhorn said in an investor letter, a couple of months after the Gamestop short squeeze caused market chaos and introduced “meme stonks” into public lexicon. CNBC reported at the time that Hometown’s CEO, Paul Morina, was also the local high school’s wrestling coach. 

Alex Mond, the head of Makamer, said last week that he expects the merger with Hometown, first disclosed in an SEC filing on the eve of April Fool’s Day, to be completed “in a few weeks.” The company has 45 bioplastic blends, mostly using hemp. 

The fate of the deli remains unclear, although CNBC reports employees at the sub shop expect it to remain open.