Alcanna to Rapidly Establish "Significant
Presence" of Aurora-Branded Cannabis Stores in Ontario
TSX: ACB & CLIQ
EDMONTON, Aug. 14, 2018 /CNW/ - Aurora Cannabis Inc.
("Aurora") (TSX: ACB) (OTCQB: ACBFF) (Frankfurt: 21P; WKN: A1C4WM) and Alcanna Inc.
("Alcanna") (TSX: CLIQ) applaud the Ontario Government on its new
plans for the responsible sale of recreational cannabis products
through government-operated online sales, and the private
sector.
Aurora and Alcanna have entered
into a license agreement which – as soon as regulations permit –
will allow Alcanna to open retail cannabis stores under the brand
name "Aurora". Alcanna has made considerable progress in preparing
for this exciting opportunity and has identified over 100 potential
retail locations throughout the province already. This agreement
represents a significant competitive advantage and will allow for
the rapid establishment of a robust network of cannabis retail
stores that comply with all provincial and municipal requirements,
making product, consumer and public safety a top priority.
Together, the two companies have the technology,
relationships, and supply chain and retail expertise to quickly
establish a full network of stores across the province as soon as
they are permitted.
"Allowing a private retail channel in Ontario for recreational cannabis is good news
for industry, consumers, and taxpayers, and will go a long way to
making a meaningful impact on the grey market," said Aurora CEO
Terry Booth. "It's the right thing
to do, and we commend Premier Ford and his government for taking
this bold step. Through Alcanna, the nation's largest private
retailer of a controlled substance, we will leverage long-standing
relationships with landlords, regulators and other stakeholders,
and through superior capitalization, we will rapidly establish a
significant presence in the province."
"Alcanna has made considerable progress in preparing for this
exciting opportunity. We started leveraging our existing
relationships with commercial landlords across Ontario the day after the June 7th election. We have identified
over 100 potential retail locations throughout the province
already, and we will be ready to go with fully functional stores as
soon as we are permitted," said James
Burns, CEO of Alcanna. "For the last six months, our expert
teams in store development, merchandising, training and product
knowledge have been working steadily toward bringing the first
cannabis retail stores to life in Alberta. We're thrilled about the prospect of
bringing that expertise to Ontario
and will open as many stores as the government will allow after
April 1, 2019."
Aurora and Alcanna will
reimagine the customer retail experience with fully immersive,
state-of-the-art stores that offer an inviting and educational
brand experience. Highly trained Category Specialists will engage
new and experienced customers with superior product knowledge and
socially responsible advice.
In February, Aurora announced
its strategic investment in Alcanna (formerly Liquor Stores NA),
the Edmonton, Alberta-based
beverage alcohol retailer with approximately 230 retail outlets in
Western Canada and Alaska, with a view to establishing a leading
brand of cannabis retail outlets. This forward-thinking partnership
leverages Aurora's brand leadership, high-quality products,
customer care and scientific innovation with Alcanna's
well-established retailing infrastructure and expertise,
particularly it's 25-year history of safely selling controlled
substances in retail settings requiring strict compliance with
government regulations. In preparing for the roll-out of this
network, the companies have entered into an agreement governing the
branding and operational aspects of the new cannabis stores.
Highlights
- Alcanna will build and operate the new cannabis stores,
leveraging its 25-year track-record of operating an extensive
network of retail stores, selling a government-controlled substance
(alcohol)
- The stores will operate under the Aurora name, providing immediate brand
recognition based on the company's high visibility as a producer of
high-quality cannabis products, combined with its reputation as a
provider of an industry leading customer experience.
- Alcanna has leveraged its deep connections with commercial
landlords and, initially, is targeting approximately 90 locations
throughout Ontario, if permitted.
Locations have been selected based on an in-depth economic
analysis, of household income, population density and anticipated
growth rates, and have been cross-referenced with LCBO data on its
top-performing locations.
- Alcanna has deep connections to general contractors and trades,
enabling it to quickly mobilize teams in its various locations to
develop new retail outlets.
- All staff will be trained by Aurora through CanvasRx, CanniMed and
MedReleaf, which have deep experience working with cannabis users,
and unparalleled data regarding efficacy and customer
experience.
About Aurora
Headquartered in Edmonton,
Alberta, with funded capacity in excess of 570,000 kg per
year and sales and operations in 14 countries across five
continents, Aurora is one of the
world's largest and leading cannabis companies. Aurora is vertically integrated and
horizontally diversified across every key segment of the value
chain, from facility engineering and design to cannabis breeding
and genetics research, cannabis and hemp production, derivatives,
high value-add product development, home cultivation, wholesale and
retail distribution.
Highly differentiated from its peers, Aurora has established a uniquely advanced,
consistent and efficient production strategy, based on
purpose-built facilities that integrate leading-edge technologies
across all processes, defined by extensive automation and
customization, resulting in the massive scale production of high
quality product at ultra-low costs. Intended to be replicable and
scalable globally, these production facilities are designed to
produce cannabis of significant scale, with high quality,
industry-leading yields, and ultra-low per gram production costs.
Each of Aurora's facilities is
built to meet European Union (EU) GMP standards, and both its first
production facility and its wholly owned European medical cannabis
distributor Pedanios have achieved this level of certification.
In addition to the Company's rapid organic growth and strong
execution on strategic M&A, which to date includes nine
companies acquired - CanvasRX, Peloton Pharmaceutical, Pedanios, H2
Biopharma, Urban Cultivator, BC Northern Lights, Larssen, CanniMed
Therapeutics, Anandia Labs and MedReleaf - Aurora is distinguished by its reputation as a
partner of choice and employer of choice in the global cannabis
sector, having invested in and established strategic partnerships
with a range of leading innovators, including: The Green Organic
Dutchman Holdings Ltd. (TSX: TGOD), Radient Technologies Inc.
(TSXV: RTI), Hempco Food and Fiber Inc. (TSXV: HEMP), Cann Group
Ltd. (ASX: CAN), Micron Waste Technologies Inc. (CSE: MWM), Choom
Holdings Inc. (CSE: CHOO), Namaste Technologies Inc. (TSXV: N),
Evio Beauty Group (private), Wagner Dimas (private), CTT
Pharmaceuticals (OTCC: CTTH), and Alcanna Inc. (TSX: CLIQ).
For more information about Aurora, please visit our investor website
www.investor.auroramj.com
About Alcanna Inc.
Alcanna (formerly Liquor Stores North America) is one of the top
three largest private sector retailers of alcohol in North America and by far the largest in
Canada – owning and operating 229
locations in Alberta, B.C. and
Alaska. With revenues in excess of
$600 million per year, Alcanna
processes over 20 million individual retail transactions of
beverage alcohol.
Alcanna's innovative Wine and Beyond brand brought an entirely
new concept to alcohol sales in Alberta in a large format experiential
environment with over 12,000 different products to choose from,
many sold only at Alcanna stores, at extremely competitive prices.
Our Liquor Depot brand is ubiquitous throughout Alberta and our new Deep Discount Liquor
banner has brought the lowest prices in an attractive
consumer-friendly environment to Albertans. Aurora Cannabis
invested $138 million to buy a 25%
stake in Alcanna in 2018 and will partner with Alcanna in entering
cannabis retail on any jurisdiction where private cannabis stores
are allowed.
Alcanna's common shares and convertible subordinated debentures
trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbols "CLIQ" and
"CLIQ.DB", respectively.
Additional information about Alcanna Inc. is available at
www.sedar.com and the Company's website at
www.alcanna.ca/investors.
Forward looking statements
This news release includes statements containing certain
"forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable
securities laws ("forward-looking statements"). Forward-looking
statements are frequently characterized by words such as "plan",
"continue", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate",
"estimate", "may", "will", "potential", "proposed" and other
similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions
"may" or "will" occur. In particular, this news release contains
forward‐looking statements regarding, without limitation: the
license granted by Aurora to
Alcanna to brand its retail cannabis stores and the option to use
the Aurora brand in other Canadian jurisdictions; the timing and
receipt of required regulatory and third party approvals, including
the receipt of retail cannabis licenses in Alberta and Ontario; Alcanna's proposed retail cannabis
operations in Canada, including
its ability to secure retail locations; Alcanna's ability to build,
own and operate retail cannabis stores and convert existing liquor
stores into retail cannabis stores in a timely manner; the design,
completion and operation of retail cannabis stores; the branding,
staffing and customer experience of retail cannabis stores; product
selection; and the growth of a retail cannabis business in
Canada and Aurora's and Alcanna's anticipated market
share thereof.
These statements are only predictions. Various assumptions
were used in drawing the conclusions or making the projections
contained in the forward-looking statements throughout this news
release. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and
estimates of management at the date the statements are made. Any
number of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could
cause actual events or results to differ materially from those
projected in the forward-looking statements including, but not
limited to: the ability of the parties to receive and maintain, in
a timely manner, the required government, regulatory and other
third party approvals required to participate in the retail adult
use market for cannabis in Canada,
including retail cannabis licenses in Alberta; that, under applicable laws or rules
in respect of cannabis, Aurora and
its affiliates will be permitted to take certain actions with
Alcanna in furtherance of the development of a retail cannabis
business together, including permitting Alcanna to own and operate
Aurora-branded retail cannabis
stores; the availability of appropriate retail locations in the
identified areas; the timing and opening of retail cannabis
locations; the assets and employees of Alcanna and Aurora; the availability of retail-cannabis
products; the timing and legalization of recreational cannabis
products; changes to cannabis laws; and changes in general market
conditions.
Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list of risk factors
is not exhaustive. Additional information on other factors that
could affect the operations or financial results of Alcanna and
Aurora are included in reports on
file with applicable securities regulatory authorities which may be
accessed on Alcanna's and Aurora's
respective company profiles on SEDAR at
www.sedar.com.
Aurora and Alcanna are under
no obligation, and expressly disclaim any intention or obligation,
to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a
result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as
expressly required by applicable law.
Terry Booth, CEO
Aurora Cannabis Inc.
James Burns, Vice Chair &
CEO
Alcanna Inc.
SOURCE Aurora Cannabis Inc.