DALLAS, Nov. 26, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Freedom Leaf Inc. (OTCQB: FRLF), a Nevada corporation d/b/a Freedom Leaf Health, announced today its renaming and rebranding to GL Brands, Inc. (“GL Brands” or the “Company”). The announcement follows Freedom Leaf Inc.’s recent acquisition of ECS Labs LLC, including its two wholly-owned operating subsidiaries, Green Lotus™ and IrieCBD, which collectively constitute the “GL Brands” portfolio of premium hemp products.
GL Brands is evolving into a leading hemp consumer packaged goods company and global house of brands serving the rapidly expanding CBD consumer marketplace. Since the acquisition of Green Lotus in May 2019, the Company has been investing in its core premium hemp product portfolio through its two wholly owned operating subsidiaries, Green Lotus and IrieCBD, which have already generated strong growth for the Company. The Company has also divested non-core Freedom Leaf assets, such as Tierra Life Sciences, Cicero, Las Vegas Extraction, and the Spain Greenhouse, and is in the process of divesting from Accuvape, Freedom Leaf Magazine and La Marihuana in order to optimize its portfolio and future performance.
“CBD is rapidly becoming one of the main components of the modern health and wellness movement. Consumers are increasingly looking to access these non-psychoactive products and are relying on our Company and trusted brands to provide the education and consistency and quality they require,” said GL Brands CEO Carlos Frias. “As we continue to grow our business, it is essential that we develop a more defined and sophisticated brand that embodies our mission to deliver first-in-class consumer products, branding and packaging to the global CBD marketplace. Our evolution to GL Brands will reflect that mission as we continue to build out a robust portfolio of global hemp and CBD products, led by our premium Green Lotus™ and IrieCBD™ lines, that customers, retailers and distributors can turn to when looking for high-quality cannabis products.”
Green Lotus has recently signed several major distribution agreements since its acquisition. In October 2019, Green Lotus announced a distribution agreement with Greenlane Holdings, Inc., a sizeable North American distribution network of iconic cannabis accessory and CBD brands reaching 11,000 retail locations across the United States, including licensed cannabis dispensaries and smoke and vape shops. The distribution agreement should add between three to four thousand potential new points of sale for GL Brands.
In addition, GL Brands has established a robust distribution pipeline across the United States and Mexico. Within the United States, GL Brands products are now available in over 1,500 stores, including regional supermarket chains Wakefern, Giant Eagle and Wegmans. According to research and analysis from Cowen, by 2025, CBD offerings in all categories of products could conservatively generate $16 billion in retail sales.
Finally, GL Brands has a first-mover advantage globally as the first U.S. company to be approved for the distribution and export of commercial CBD to Mexico. The Company currently holds 21 product permits for CBD-specific products allowed to be imported into Mexico. Currently, no other permits are expected to be issued over the next 18-24 months, making GL Brands the sole distributor and exporter of hemp and CBD products to the Mexican market. Last month, the Company announced that its Green Lotus™ line had completed its second successful commercial shipment of CBD and hemp products to Mexico. The shipment is part of an exclusive partnership between Green Lotus™ and CBD Life SA to supply 4,000 major pharmacy retailers throughout Mexico.
Aside from these recent partnership agreements, GL Brands has secured several other strategic partnerships in its pipeline to further expand the reach of its premium hemp products across North America.
Mr. Frias also commented, “As we forge ahead, we believe our value proposition, rigorous quality and testing programs, as well as our multinational distribution agreements, will differentiate GL Brands in the crowded marketplace. This should allow us to capitalize on this rapidly expanding market while providing tremendous value to our customers, shareholders and partners. We will continue to focus our efforts on organic growth and strategic partnerships that we believe will yield shareholder value and position GL Brands for exponential growth.”
About GL Brands Inc.:
GL Brands is a global hemp consumer packaged goods company that creates authentic, enduring and culturally relevant brands engaged in the development and sale of cannabis-derived wellness products. Through its premier brands Green Lotus™ and IrieCBD, GL Brands delivers a full portfolio of hemp-derived CBD products, including tinctures, soft gels, gummies, sparkling beverages, vapes, flower and topical segments to promote greater wellness and balance, in the U.S. and throughout the world. For more information, please visit https://www.glbrands.com.
Forward-Looking Statements: This release may include forward-looking statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involves risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, the impact of competitive products, the ability to meet customer demand, the ability to manage growth, acquisitions of technology, equipment, or human resources, the effect of economic business conditions and the ability to attract and retain skilled personnel. Words such as “anticipate,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “project” and other similar words and expressions are intended to signify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are not guaranteeing of future results and conditions but rather are subject to various risks and uncertainties. Some of these risks and uncertainties are identified in the company’s filings with the SEC. The occurrence of any of these risks and uncertainties could have a material adverse effect on the company’s business, financial condition, and results of operations. The Company is not obligated to revise or update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this release.
Safe Harbor Statement
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, that are intended to be covered by the "safe harbor" created by those sections. Statements in this press release that are not strictly historical are “forward-looking” statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements generally can be identified by phrases such as “believes,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “foresees,” “forecasts,” “estimates” or other words or phrases of similar import. Similarly, statements herein that describe Freedom Leaf’s business strategy, outlook, objectives, plans, intentions or goals also are forward-looking statements. All such forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to differences include the uncertainty regarding viability and market acceptance of Freedom Leaf’s products and services, changes in relationships with third parties, and other factors described in Freedom Leaf’s most recent periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, changes in general industry or regional market conditions; changes in consumer and customer preferences for our products; loss of business from increased competition; changes in strategic relationships; unfavorable fluctuations in currencies or interest rates in the regions in which we operate; changes in regulatory conditions; changes in tax laws; import and export duty and tariff rates in or with the countries with which we conduct business; and negative impact of any governmental investigations and associated litigations.
The occurrence of any of these risks and uncertainties could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial condition and results of operations. The Company is not obligated to revise or update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this release.
Media Contacts:
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KCSA Strategic Communications
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Email: pcarlson@kcsa.com / ekay@kcsa.com