The honeymoon of MMJ stock promotion is over. Investors have become savvy to the sector and vague promises of blue sky opportunity have lost their appeal to news rooted in real progress and material change. As a result, the seemingly endless line up of MMJ hopefuls is shrinking, leaving investors with a greater selection of possible sector opportunities based on performance.
However it hasn’t got any easier for those operating in the space. Companies still pushing for MMJ success while jockeying for investor interest are faced with the challenge of remaining on the leading-edge without losing the necessary versatility to change tack in an industry that continues to evolve at the speed of light.
Nutritional High International (CSE: EAT, Forum)(“EAT”) is prime example of living through this dilemma as the marijuana company, focused on oil extracts and marijuana-infused edible products for both the medical and recreational use segments, has been actively navigating the changing landscape in order to remain grounded without losing its aspirational appeal.
To that end, EAT appointed Jim Frazier, food industry veteran with over 23 years’ experience, as the company’s new Chief Operations Officer. Frazier has a long track record of creating and implementing branded and private label programs as well as driving profits. He also is the owner and operator of a wildly popular Florida-based candy and chocolate business that has been serving confectionaries for over 40 years. Nutritional High conducted an extensive search to find and recruit Frazier.
Frazier’s extensive experience in operational expansion, sales growth and customer base development across all retail channels made him the perfect candidate to help EAT bring a variety of unique and creative products to market. According to Nutritional High's other management personnel, Frazier has hit the ground running and has made significant strides in organizing the Company's launch in Colorado.
This is an important time for EAT as 2016 will be the year of completion. For the first part of the year, the company will be focused on finishing the build-out of the Pueblo facility as Frazier explained, “I was just there a few days ago and I spoke with the contractors. The process is underway and an update will follow shortly.”
He went on to add, “Beyond that, further into 2016, we plan to have the oil extraction running and we will have the edible programs in place as well. I keep talking about how innovation and creativity are the key elements that will drive our success as one of the top tier companies out there. In short, we’re going to be setting the standards for the industry by the end of the year.”
Those are some pretty aggressive goals. So where exactly is the Pueblo facility in terms of progress? Frazier answered, “Right now all the plans are in place. I’ve reviewed the build-out and made some adjustments, and the work is underway.”
Frazier will be busy as he will be tackling a job with multiple fronts. On the operational side, he is going to make sure EAT has the right people in the right places while he also works to drive the sales and marketing side of the company.
EAT will be playing into some key opportunities over the next 24 months as the company intends to build on its oil extraction and marijuana-infused edible core product line-up to step into the Vape end of things with gels and capsules.
Frazier explained one avenue of opportunity, “When you get into the edibles side of it, I think this is a place where we can really shine and show a lot of innovation when it comes to upscale gourmet product lines. There are a lot of products out there today, but there’s not a lot of stuff that’s really appetizing, innovative or creative. It’s just a lot of “me too” products. I’m going to focus on thinking outside of the box in regards to flavour profiles – fruits, nuts, chocolates and different things like that.”
Now some investors are chaffing at what they feel are continued delays in EAT achieving its milestones. Frazier responded, “You know, some of the delays have been delays on just getting the proper documentation and everything in place, but I think the other part is one of the reasons I’m sitting here talking to you today. The executive leadership have seen a need to bring somebody in to start executing these plans. We have everything we needed. We have the building and everything is ready to go. It’s going to be done, it’s going to be executed, things are going to start happening.”
He went on, “Obviously we understand the frustration with some of the time delays that have taken place, but as one of the new guys looking in right now, I see a lot of opportunity, I see a lot of energy, I see a lot of good things happening. All the executive management is very excited about the opportunities that are lying out there in front of us and we’re also very excited about the opportunity for investors as well.”
It may be worth noting that the company just announced an extension to its licensing agreement with Purple Haze Properties where EAT is allowed to manufacture and distribute various marijuana and hemp-infused edible products using the song titles and bearing the likeness of the legendary Jimi Hendrix. The extension of this deal at favourable pricing compared to the market indicates the confidence Purple Haze has in EAT and its objectives.
So if you’re circling this stock or already in, Frazier had this to say, “We will soon get to the point where we’re sharing information about the build-out. You’re going to see things start happening. If you look around at the people that are in charge now; the people making the decisions and really driving the company forward, I think that’s where the excitement is going to come from. Look at the success records of everyone that’s involved in Nutritional High right now, it paints a very solid picture of the future. There’s a lot of energy and ambition behind this to make sure it becomes very profitable long-term investment for everybody.”
So this year is very important for the company and will spell out its future, but Frazier had this to say, “Investors are going to find in me that this is where I am at my best; in situations where we’re building a brand, rolling out new products, developing new products. You know, the R&D side is going to be very important. When we come out with new flavour profiles, textures and different products that we’re going to put into the market, people are going to see the difference and they are going to see the innovation of Nutritional High.”
It may have been a long time coming, but the addition of Frazier seems like it will propel EAT forward significantly to not only reach a point of profitability, but also a point of solid and expanding market share in an explosive space that has yet to hit a ceiling. Don’t take my word for it, however. As always, do your due diligence before making any investment decision.
--Gaalen Engen
https://twitter.com/gaalenengen
FULL DISCLOSURE: Nutritional High International is a Stockhouse Publishing client.