Westleaf to Become One of the Largest Premium Cannabis Retailers In Canada

Westleaf Cannabis Inc. (P.WL, Forum) – a truly vertically-integrated, soon-to-be TSXV-listed company – has announced a $7.5 million dollar investment and option to purchase Canadian cannabis retailer Canndara Canada Inc. who has a portfolio of over 50 prospective, high-quality locations across Canada with 17 development permits awarded. The strategic investment and associated option to purchase 100% of Canndara looks to position Westleaf as one of the largest players in the premium Canadian cannabis retail market.


Transaction Highlights

• Increased Retail Footprint: The vertically integrated company will have one of the largest premium retail footprints in Canada.
• Premium Retail Portfolio: Western Canada and Ontario in Tier-1 real estate locations with attractive demographics.
• Accelerated Build Out: Under a licensing agreement, Canndara will begin building the highly-differentiated and unique Prairie Records retail concept to accelerate the rollout of the brand and the portfolio.

Scott Hurd, President and CEO of Westleaf, commented:

“We continue to be extremely impressed with both the quality and quantity of retail locations that the Canndara team has amassed and look forward to continuing to grow the portfolio with the goal of developing the largest cannabis retail company in Canada. Our combined retail expertise and market relationships are expected to enable the continued addition of premium locations, greater market share, and acceleration of our retail development.”

As the purchase and acquisition of Canndara moves ahead, John Radostits, CEO ofCanndara, had this to say:

"The synergy that exists between Canndara and Westleaf is rooted in our collective vision to build a leading cannabis brand in Canada. Our team’s hard work to build a robust portfolio of strategic locations along with Westleaf’s strong team, the Prairie Records brand, and unique retail strategy have established a formula for success. Together, we are carving out our position as a trailblazer in the cannabis industry with a truly differentiated cannabis purchasing experience for Canadians.”


Transaction and Option to Purchase Summary

Westleaf will purchase $7.5 million of the existing shares for cash, resulting in ownership of 21.4% of the company, and IGC has been granted the Option to purchase the remaining shares of Canndara for $48.4 million. Subject to completion of the RTO Transaction, IGC may exercise the Option at any time following the Investment, on any day that is on or before the Option termination date, which is 75-days from the closing of the Investment. Consideration under the Option will be in the form of IGC common shares, and the number of IGC common shares will be determined by a volume weighted average price for the five trading days immediately prior to the exercise of the Option.

On October 5th, 2018, Westleaf announced a proposed reverse takeover (RTO) transaction with IGC and on December 4th, 2018, announced the closing of the associated subscription receipt financing of $20 million. For investors, this represents big news moving forward into the public financing phase of the company. Westleaf has further announced that it anticipates closing the RTO transaction with IGC on December 28, 2018, with the resumption of public trading to occur in early January 2019.


Prairie Records

Focusing exclusively on densely-populated neighborhoods, high traffic areas, and tourist destinations, Prairie Records retail stores will be situated in some of the most premium retail locations across the country. The foundation of the retail concept is ingrained with a desire to create an unparalleled cannabis purchasing experience through tactile in-store features and product offerings that celebrate and promote the inherent relationship between music and cannabis.



Featuring a rollout of upwards of 30 retail locations in markets across Western Canada by 2020 – including its first Alberta location in Calgary’s iconic Palace Theatre – Westleaf says they’re “committed to becoming a leader in the cannabis retail market in Canada”.

Westleaf also plans to service the Saskatchewan retail cannabis community by launching a Prairie Records store in Warman, just north of Saskatoon, with an extended product offering through its e-commerce platform that will serve the entire province of Saskatchewan. Other retail plans include evaluating and securing numerous cannabis retail options throughout Alberta, Saskatchewan, British Columbia, and potentially Ontario (subject to provincial regulations) – all of which is in addition to Westleaf being added to the pre-qualified list for the Manitoba lottery for cannabis retail licenses.


About Westleaf

Westleaf is a cannabis company focused on innovative retail experiences and engaging cannabis brands. Westleaf is rolling out a national retail footprint for its retail concept "Prairie Records", with stores planned for British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario, which leverages the instinctual tie of recreational cannabis and music and redefines the cannabis purchasing experience.


www.westleaf.com


FULL DISCLOSURE: This is a paid article produced by Stockhouse Publishing.