· Supreme Cannabis achieves 122% year-over-year net revenue growth, Q1 2020 gross margin of 62%, and reports Adjusted EBITDA of $(4.9 million)
· Secures $90 million in corporate credit facilities with Bank of Montreal as Lead Arranger and Agent
· 7ACRES wins “Brand of the Year” at the Canadian Cannabis Awards
· Confirms forecasted net revenue for fiscal 2020 of between $150 million and $180 million, and positive Adjusted EBITDA for fiscal 2020
TORONTO, Nov. 14, 2019 /CNW/ – The Supreme Cannabis Company, Inc. (“Supreme Cannabis” or the “Company”) (TSX: FIRE) (OTCQX: SPRWF) (FRA: 53S1) announced the release of its financial and operating results for the first quarter ended September 30, 2019.
The Company also announced that it has entered into a credit agreement with Bank of Montreal (“BMO”) as Lead Arranger and Agent on behalf of a group of lenders (collectively, the “Lenders”) for $90 million of senior secured credit facilities consisting of a term loan of $70 million and a revolving credit facility of $20 million (the “Credit Facility”).
“In the first quarter of fiscal 2020, we operated through challenging market conditions while integrating new businesses and product planning for the second half of the year. Overall, our financial results reflect the inherent difficulties of operating in a newly regulated industry and the transitionary period we are in as we evolve from a predominantly wholesale business to a leading cannabis CPG company in Canada. Despite these challenges, in the quarter we improved production operations to generate industry-leading margins of 62% and made the strategic decisions necessary to position our businesses for meaningful revenue generation from the flower, flower convenience products, and select derivative products in the remainder of fiscal 2020,” said Navdeep Dhaliwal, CEO of Supreme Cannabis. “The closing of up to $90 million in credit facilities from tier-one lenders is a significant achievement that positions the Company to execute on our strategy and prudently grow the business in fiscal 2020 and beyond.”
“In connection with the Credit Facility, the Company underwent a rigorous due diligence process to secure this favorable, non-dilutive financing from leading financial institutions,” continued Mr. Dhaliwal. “There is only a select group of Canadian federal license holders who have obtained such financing over the past year. In the current challenging operating environment, our ability to secure credit facilities with tier one lenders speaks to the strength of our management, business and operations, and our ability to deliver strong financial results.”
Q1 2020 Select Financial and Operational Results.
| ($ thousands) | Three Months Ended September 30, 2019 | Three Months Ended September 30, 2018 |
| Net Revenue | 11,433 | 5,140 |
| Operating expenses | 18,491 | 5,938 |
| Net Loss after taxes | (16,525) | (5,385) |
| Basic and Diluted Loss per common share | (0.05) | (0.02) |
| Adjusted EBITDA | (4,932) | (849) |
| Cash | 36,420 | 31,197 |
Supreme Cannabis’ wholly-owned subsidiary, 7ACRES, accounted for the Company’s year-over-year increase in net revenue, growing 122% from $5.1 million in Q1 2019 to $11.4 million in Q1 2020. The net revenue achieved during Q1 2020 was comprised of $10.5 million from 7ACRES and $0.9 million from Blissco. Quarter-over-quarter, net revenue decreased 40% from $19 million in Q4 2019. The quarter-over-quarter decrease in net revenue is predominately attributable to the combination of a rapid deterioration of pricing and demand in the wholesale market and the previously announced 7ACRES mechanical failure in grow rooms 1, 2 and 3, which was an isolated one-time event with all three grow rooms recommissioned and replanted in September 2019.
In Q1 2020, in response to wholesale market conditions, the Company prioritized its annual performance objectives by product planning for future quarters and holding back product from wholesale channels. In the second half of fiscal 2020, the Company expects this inventory of high-quality products to serve as inputs for flower convenience products and select cannabis derivative products, including pre-rolled joints, CBD oils, and vaporizer oils. The Company continues to reduce its reliance on the wholesale market as it increases packaging capacity at its 7ACRES facility and transitions 7ACRES to solely recreational sales. In Q1 2020, wholesale sales accounted for 57% of cannabis flower sales, as compared to 65% in Q4 2019 and 100% in Q1 2019. As Supreme Cannabis transitions into a CPG company, sales from recreational markets continue to increase. In Q1 2020, the company saw strong demand for its consumer-facing brands, with net revenue from recreational sales increasing 68% quarter-over-quarter.
Credit Facility.
The Credit Facility is secured by the assets of the Company including the 7ACRES facility. Pricing is based on a set margin over the BMO CAD Prime Rate or Bankers’ Acceptance and a pricing grid linked to certain financial ratios. It is expected to be at the outset between 5-6% per annum. The Credit Facility has a three-year term and contains customary financial and restrictive covenants. Supreme Cannabis may repay any portion drawn under the Credit Facility at any time without penalty. Supreme Cannabis has the option to increase the revolving credit facility by $10 million subject to agreement by the Lenders and satisfaction of certain legal and business conditions. In connection with the closing of the Credit Agreement, the Company has initially drawn $55 million of the term loan under the Credit Facility.
Cultivation.
In Q1 2020, the final phase of construction at 7ACRES’ premium cultivation facility accounted for the majority of capital expenditure in the quarter. Subsequent to quarter-end, the 7ACRES facility reached a pivotal point in its construction process. In October, the Company completed construction on the facility’s two-story central processing, administrative and laboratory spaces (the “Center Core”), adding approximately 48,900 square feet of operational space to the facility. As production scales, the additional space will be licensed to accommodate the facility’s growing processing needs.
In addition to completing construction on the Center Core, 7ACRES has commissioned an automated bottling line capable of filling up to 12,000 3.5-gram containers per day with best-in-class auto-filling features, which meet 7ACRES’ high standards for its final packaged product. The Company expects that 7ACRES will commission a second and third automated bottling line in fiscal 2020. The additional in-house packaging capabilities will complete 7ACRES’ transition from a wholesale business to a premium consumer brand by Q3 2020.
The Company expects the 7ACRES facility, including all administrative infrastructure, to be completed by the end of the calendar year 2019. With 7ACRES’ major infrastructure completed, the Company expects construction on the facility to have a lower impact on capital expenditure in Q2 2020.
Processing.
Additional licensed space in the Center Core will be dedicated to the production of 7ACRES pre-rolls. 7ACRES branded pre-rolls will be produced in-house with whole flower inputs from 7ACRES’ premium strains. 7ACRES expects this format to appeal to both its existing consumers and new consumers. Approximately 15% of frequent cannabis consumers report using a pre-rolled joint as their last consumption format and approximately 23% of all cannabis consumption in Canada is made up of pre-rolled joints.1 7ACRES expects to launch this new high-margin and in-demand product in Q3 2020.
In addition to in-house pre-roll capacity, the Company aims to bring this high-margin product form to market under different Supreme Cannabis brands through contract manufacturing agreements. Subsequent to quarter-end, the Company signed a definitive agreement with Indiva Inc. (“Indiva”), pursuant to which Indiva will manufacture and distribute pre-rolls for select Supreme Cannabis brands.
In Q1 2020, the Company closed the acquisitions of Blissco and Truverra, expanding its focused operating assets. Subsequent to quarter-end, Blissco’s 12,000 square foot extraction facility in Langley, British Columbia received its Cannabis Oil Sales License from Health Canada. In November, Blissco completed construction on its large-scale ethanol-based extraction lab, expanding upon Blissco’s existing CO2-based extraction capability. By the end of the calendar year 2019, Supreme Cannabis expects that the Blissco facility will have the capacity to produce over 7,000,000 tincture bottles annually and meaningfully contribute to net revenue in second half of fiscal 2020.Blissco expects to ship its first full-spectrum CBD oil product to the Canadian market in Q2 2020 to satisfy the unmet demand for CBD oils nationally.
In the quarter, Supreme Cannabis gained an additional operating asset with the closing of its acquisition of Truverra. Truverra’s subsidiary, Canadian Clinical Cannabinoids Inc. (“CCC”), operates a 5,000 square foot licensed facility in Scarborough, Ontario. In the near-term, the CCC facility will be equipped to process high-quality inputs for cannabis 2.0 products, including concentrates.
Brands.
In the quarter, 7ACRES continued to establish itself as the leading premium flower brand nationally with the launch of its new premium strain, Jack Haze. Jack Haze is 7ACRES’ first Sativa-dominant strain with rare sensory characteristics. With the successful launch of Jack Haze, 7ACRES achieved premium pricing across all provinces the strain entered. Based on sales data from the Ontario Cannabis Store, in its first two months of sales, the Jack Haze strain achieved the highest sales velocity of any 7ACRES strain. To date, Jack Haze is 7ACRES’s highest-priced and most successful launch into the market.
The successful launch of Jack Haze demonstrates the Company’s proven ability to bring winning consumer-centric products to the market. Supreme Cannabis’ product development team identified and anticipated consumer demand for a high-THC, Sativa dominant strain with rare sensory characteristics. The Cambium Plant Sciences’ genetics team was responsible for selecting Jack Haze’s proprietary genetics and based such selection on consumer demand. 7ACRES cultivated this leading strain and the Company’s marketing team ran a targeted campaign to support its launch into the Canadian market. 7ACRES’s ability to foresee consumer taste, create custom flower products and market to consumers is what positions it as a leading Canadian flower brand and “Brand of the Year” for the second year in a row at Lift & Co’s Canadian Cannabis Awards in November 2019.
Outlook.
Supreme Cannabis confirms its financial outlook for fiscal 2020, which was previously announced on September 17, 2019:
· Expected net revenue of between $150 million and $180 million.
· Expected positive Adjusted EBITDA on aggregate over the course of the year.
· 7ACRES’ to complete its transition from a wholesale business to a premium consumer brand by Q3 2020, with complete in-house packaging capabilities for all flower products under the 7ACRES’ brand.
· Fully funded to execute on all planned initiatives.
In addition to the above outlook, the Company will host its Annual and Special Meeting of Shareholders (the “Meeting”) on Monday, December 9, 2019, at 10:00 AM EST. All registered shareholders are welcome to attend the meeting, which will be held at 22 Adelaide St. West, Toronto Ontario, Floor 34, Room 302. In conjunction with the Meeting, the Company has filed its Information Circular and related proxy materials under its profile on SEDAR.
Supreme Cannabis’ MD&A and consolidated financial statements for the first quarter ended September 30, 2019, along with all previous public filings of The Supreme Cannabis Company, Inc., which may be found on SEDAR at www.SEDAR.com.
| 1 | Cannatrack, Cannabis Consumption Study (Canada, Oct 2018 to Sep 2019, general population, n=11,639) |
| All figures are in Canadian dollars |
About Supreme Cannabis.
The Supreme Cannabis Company, Inc. is a globally diversified portfolio of distinct cannabis companies, products, and brands. Since 2014, the Company has emerged as one of the world’s fastest-growing, premium plant driven-lifestyle companies by effectively deploying capital, with an emphasis on disciplined growth and high-quality products.
Supreme Cannabis’ portfolio includes 7ACRES, its wholly-owned subsidiary, and multi-award-winning brand; Blissco, a wellness cannabis brand and a multi-licensed processor and distributor based in British Columbia; Truverra Inc., a global medicinal cannabis brand and licensed cultivator; Cambium Plant Sciences, a plant genetics and cultivation IP company; Medigrow Lesotho, an cannabis oil producer located in southern Africa; Supreme Heights, an investment platform focused on CBD brands in the UK and Europe and a brand partnership and licensing deal with Khalifa Kush Enterprises Canada.
Supreme Cannabis trades as FIRE on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: FIRE), SPRWF on the OTC Exchange in the United States (OTCQX: SPRWF) and 53S1 on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (FRA: 53S1). Follow us on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.
We simply grow better.
SOURCE The Supreme Cannabis Company, Inc.