Gaithersburg, MD, March 12, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Verus International, Inc. (“Verus” or the “Company”) (OTCQB: VRUS) is pleased to announce that TJX Companies “TJX” has added HomeGoods stores, which has 716 locations, to its initial order for Major League Baseball (“MLB”) branded candy products from the Company’s Big League Foods (“BLF”) subsidiary. With this add on order, Verus gains its first sales in all three major TJX store brands -- TJ Maxx, Marshalls, and HomeGoods.
The Company has also received orders from Weis Markets (“Weis”), a Mid-Atlantic food retailer that operates 198 stores in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, West Virginia and Virginia. In addition to being the first supermarket customer, Weis is also the first to utilize BLF’s new display shipper, which includes the full line of baseball themed gummies and sour gummies, baseball gumballs and baseball foiled chocolates and caramels.
Verus is also excited to announce that it has received approval from the MLB to offer its product line to official club retail and stadium stores. Seattle, with 24 team stores, was the first to express interest in offering the products, followed by Houston, Baltimore, Cleveland, Toronto, Minnesota and Philadelphia. Verus expects to receive interest from additional teams in coming weeks as it works its way through all 30 MLB team offices. These placements are a key development, because Verus will now feature its candy as part of the stadium experience, enhancing the appeal of these products in other retail settings.
“When we invested in the molds for these new shapes and upgraded the packaging, we knew that buyers would like the changes,” said Verus CEO Anshu Bhatnagar. “But the universally positive reaction has been even better than expected, increasing our confidence that we will sign new customers at a faster rate than first anticipated. We expect to maintain very strong new order growth as store buyers receive additional samples of our new products.”
Operational Update
As previously announced, the Company sold out its first round of shipments, but has adequate capacity to fulfill its growing backlog. Verus will fulfill each of its newly announced customers’ orders in subsequent shipments and is already planning additional production for future reorder and new customer activity. Due to this exceptionally strong sales pipeline, the Company expects to have above average inventory turns for the foreseeable future, with all new supply quickly shipping to complete existing orders.
Additionally, the BLF division has now begun to offer display options to retailers to ensure better placement of its branded packaged goods. The Company believes that this effort, along with a full complement of products covering all 30 MLB teams, will help attract larger regional and national chains that prefer free-standing and counter-top displays. In future product cycles, Verus will begin offering player shaped gummies to complement the new baseball, bat, glove, and hat shapes, giving the line a fresh look during the course of the season.
Furthermore, while the coronavirus continues to present unknowns to businesses on a global basis, like many companies, Verus is now facing international travel restrictions. However, the Company’s supply chains continue to function normally as it ramps up business. Although professional sports leagues have been suspending live events and fan participation, and most recently portions of the sports season, the Company expects this to be a temporary condition which is not currently affecting its sales forecasts.
About Verus International
Verus is a global, emerging multi-line consumer packaged goods (CPG) company developing branded product lines in the U.S., South America, and the Middle East. The Company trades on the OTC market (OTCQB: VRUS). Investors can find real-time quotes and market information for the Company on www.otcmarkets.com. Additional information is also available at the Company’s website, www.verusfoods.com, and via the official Twitter feed @Verus_Foods and the Big League Foods subsidiary Twitter feed @BigLeagueFoods.
Safe Harbor Statement
This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are identified by the use of the words “could,” “believe,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “estimate,” “expect,” “may,” “continue,” “predict,” “potential,” “project” and similar expressions that are intended to identify forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Although we believe that our plans, objectives, expectations and intentions reflected in or suggested by the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we can give no assurance that these plans, objectives, expectations or intentions will be achieved. Forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from historical experience and present expectations or projections. Actual results could differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements and the trading price for our common stock may fluctuate significantly. Forward-looking statements also are affected by the risk factors described in the Company’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date on which the statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
Contacts
Investor Contact:
MKR Group Inc.
Todd Kehrli or Mark Forney
vrus@mkr-group.com