With over 50 years of combined experience in the tobacco and convenience industries, TAAT® welcomes Pat Bell and Phillip Krumlauf to its executive management team following the Company’s acquisition of ADCO; a convenience wholesaler in Ohio with over CAD $87 million in net revenues in 20211.
LAS VEGAS and VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 25, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TAAT® GLOBAL ALTERNATIVES INC. (CSE: TAAT) (OTCQX: TOBAF) (FRANKFURT: 2TP) (the “Company” or “TAAT®”) hereby announces that as a result of its acquisition of ADCO Distributors, Inc. (“ADCO”) as announced in the Company’s May 20, 2022 press release, the TAAT® management team has been further strengthened by onboarding accomplished executives from the tobacco and convenience industries as a continuation of their respective engagements with ADCO. In 2022, TAAT® is ambitiously pursuing additional market share in the USD $812 billion global tobacco category, and believes that these enhancements to the Company’s management team with over 50 years of combined experience in the United States could prove instrumental to its ability to grow the current TAAT® footprint of over 2,700 stores nationwide.
Two key appointees to the TAAT® management team are profiled below:
Pat Bell: After becoming ADCO’s Chief Operating Officer in 2016, Mr. Bell grew ADCO’s net revenues from USD $45 million to over USD $80 million. In addition to this role, Mr. Bell is also the Chairman and President of the Ohio Wholesale Marketers Association; whose Associate Trustees include personnel from Altria Group, ITG Brands, and R.J. Reynolds2. For five years, Mr. Bell was a Territory Manager at Swisher International, maker of the world’s best-selling cigar Swisher Sweets, who currently ships over two billion cigars per year to 70 countries3. Right before joining ADCO, Mr. Bell was an Account Manager for Commonwealth-Altadis; a U.S. division of the global tobacco giant Imperial Brands4. Mr. Bell provided insights about his vision for TAAT® and ADCO after closing the acquisition in a video released by the Company on May 20, 2022.
Phillip Krumlauf: During his 34-year career at R.J. Reynolds, Mr. Krumlauf held positions in U.S. markets to include California, Maryland, and Ohio. In addition to sales roles, Mr. Krumlauf was also a Training and Development Manager for new sales representatives of R.J. Reynolds, providing ongoing evaluations and follow-up coaching to optimize performance. From 1999 to 2021, Mr. Krumlauf managed and grew a USD $100 million territory based in Akron, Ohio for R.J. Reynolds. In this capacity, Mr. Krumlauf negotiated favourable wholesale and retail contracts, while cultivating long-term business relationships.
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/c8f0e79d-fccf-4803-8892-89ee59f45908
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TAAT® Founder Joe Deighan commented, “The benefits of acquiring ADCO go far beyond their distribution infrastructure and wholesale network, as we are also onboarding some exceptionally talented veterans of the tobacco and convenience industries to our management team. As we continue to grow our presence in the tobacco space, this type of industry experience is invaluable to us for creating and maintaining a competitive edge. We are delighted to be welcoming individuals such as Mr. Bell and Mr. Krumlauf to the TAAT® team, and we look forward to working together in leveraging our respective strengths to drive long-term growth.”
Sources
1 - https://www.globenewswire.com/en/news-release/2022/02/26/2392598/0/en/TAAT-Enters-into-Agreement-to-Acquire-Ohio-Based-Distributor-to-Enhance-its-Position-in-the-U-S-Tobacco-Industry.html
2 - http://ohiowholesalers.org/aws/OWMA/pt/sp/board
3 - https://swishersweets.com/pages/about
4 - https://www.imperialbrandsplc.com/about-us/our-companies/itg-brands.html
On behalf of the Board of Directors of the Company,
TAAT® GLOBAL ALTERNATIVES INC.
“Joe Deighan”
Joe Deighan, COO and Director
For further information, please contact:
TAAT® Investor Relations
1-833-TAAT-USA (1-833-822-8872)
investor@taatglobal.com
THE CANADIAN SECURITIES EXCHANGE (“CSE”) HAS NOT REVIEWED AND DOES NOT ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ACCURACY OR ADEQUACY OF THIS RELEASE, NOR HAS OR DOES THE CSE’S REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER.
About TAAT® Global Alternatives Inc.
The Company has developed TAAT®, which is a tobacco-free and nicotine-free alternative to traditional cigarettes offered in "Original", "Smooth", and "Menthol" varieties. TAAT®'s base material is Beyond Tobacco™, a proprietary blend which undergoes a patent-pending refinement technique causing its scent and taste to resemble tobacco. Under executive leadership with "Big Tobacco" pedigree, TAAT® was launched first in the United States in Q4 2020 as the Company seeks to position itself in the $812 billion1 global tobacco industry.
For more information, please visit http://taatglobal.com.
References
1Statista: Consumer Markets - Tobacco Products
Forward-Looking Statements
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