Taat Herb Co., flagship brand of Taat Lifestyles & Wellness Ltd., is preparing to launch its Taat brand of hemp cigarettes, a tobacco alternative that uniquely replicates the experience of smoking a traditional cigarette. Initial users have indicated that the experience of smoking a Taat hemp cigarette is comparable to a tobacco cigarette between the cigarette-style packaging, a proprietary blend of tobacco flavouring, and an enhanced volume of smoke exhaled. Taat hemp cigarettes contain a minimum of 50mg of CBD in each stick, which has been shown effective in mitigating tobacco withdrawals and reducing dependency. With an expected product launch in fall 2020, the Company plans to carry out a strategic go-to-market plan to cultivate awareness of Taat hemp cigarettes and prompt user trials. The Company began trading today on the CSE under the symbol TAAT.
LAS VEGAS and VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TAAT LIFESTYLES & WELLNESS LTD. (CSE: TAAT) (the “Company” or “TAAT LTD”) is pleased to announce it is preparing to launch its flagship brand Taat Herb Co., which has developed a tobacco-free and nicotine-free alternative to traditional tobacco cigarettes to be marketed under the Taat brand name. Taat hemp cigarettes are flavoured with naturally-occurring terpenes as well as a proprietary blend of tobacco flavouring which contributes to a user experience emulating that of a traditional cigarette. Taat hemp cigarettes also contain a minimum of 50mg of cannabidiol (“CBD”, a non-psychoactive derivative of hemp), which has been shown to impart numerous benefits to tobacco users who wish to quit, including the alleviation of tobacco withdrawals and the overall reduction of tobacco dependency. The Company anticipates that Taat hemp cigarettes will officially be launched in fall 2020. With worldwide tobacco-related deaths now topping eight million fatalities per year1, it is clear that the time has come to introduce attractive alternatives to traditional cigarettes to encourage and facilitate positive long-term change for tobacco users.
Data from the CDC2 indicates that 68% of adult smokers said in 2015 that they wanted to quit smoking, and 55.1% of adult smokers said in 2018 that they had attempted to quit in the past year, though only 7.5% successfully quit smoking in that timeframe. A common approach to quitting smoking is the use of nicotine replacement therapy (“NRT”) which has been shown to double a smoker’s chances of quitting; however NRT does not mitigate withdrawal symptoms or cravings3. To address this, the user experience of Taat hemp cigarettes has been meticulously engineered to replicate each and every aspect of the experience of smoking traditional cigarettes. This includes an identical packaging format, a scent that matches natural tobacco with no trace odours of hemp, and an enhanced volume of exhaled smoke that resembles smoke exhaled from smoking a tobacco cigarette. By duplicating these seemingly minor attributes as well as satisfying the “hand to mouth” habit, anecdotal responses from users in informal trials of Taat hemp cigarettes have indicated that there are no significant experiential differences between Taat hemp cigarettes and legacy tobacco products. Taat hemp cigarettes are offered in “Original” and “Menthol” flavours.
TAAT LTD founder Joe Deighan is an experienced entrepreneur in the tobacco alternatives space. In 2012, Deighan founded vapourizer liquid producer JJuice LLC (“JJuice”) as a result of his passion for the smoking alternative commonly known as “vaping”, which was instrumental to Deighan in overcoming his tobacco habit. JJuice was “bootstrapped” with no investor capital, ultimately perfecting a proprietary formula that gained popularity, leading to a presence of JJuice in stores across all 50 U.S. states and in 26 countries internationally, in addition to private label production for other brands. In August 2017, JJuice was acquired from Deighan with no debt by Dallas-based Global Tobacco LLC for the cash sum of US $840,000. As part of this acquisition deal, Deighan was appointed CEO of America Juice Co. (“AJC”), another vapourizer liquid producer for other brands on a private label basis as well as AJC’s own in-house brands. While in this role, Deighan was inspired to create a “hemp cigarette”, something that did not yet exist on the market. Deighan ultimately elected to pursue this idea independently, leading to resignation from his role as CEO of AJC in June of 2019, and subsequently forming the Company.
The Company’s go-to-market plan is currently being finalized with a planned large-scale test sampling of Taat hemp cigarettes on a trial basis in retail storefronts throughout the state of Nevada. At this time, the Company is pursuing relationships with retail and distribution partners with an objective of establishing initial points of sale for Taat hemp cigarettes. Upon the launch of Taat hemp cigarettes, which is expected to occur in Q4 2020, the Company will utilize online channels to facilitate sales. Shortly thereafter, the Company expects that Taat hemp cigarettes will be available in retail stores in select markets in the United States.
More information about TAAT LTD can be found on its website at http://taatusa.com. The Company’s most up-to-date developments can also be found on its social media channels:
Instagram: @TaatGlobal
Twitter: @TaatGlobal
The Company’s investor presentation can be found on its website under the Investors header. Inquiries from interested parties may be directed to investor@taatusa.com.
“Tobacco-flavoured cigarettes with CBD can make a significant difference in helping people to quit smoking,” said TAAT LTD founder Joe Deighan. “I can understand the complexity of tobacco addiction both from the perspective of being a former smoker myself, and from the perspective of creating vapourizer liquid using proprietary formulas that proved wildly popular in the U.S. and internationally. By replicating every aspect of the experience of smoking tobacco cigarettes, Taat hemp cigarettes are designed to potentially provide a seamless transition from tobacco in a manner that does not feel like a transition at all. What users expose their body to changes, but the habitual motions and sensations stay the same. Reception of Taat hemp cigarettes by test subjects has been excellent, and we look forward to bringing this better-for-you tobacco alternative to the mainstream market as we align ourselves to take on the USD $814 billion tobacco industry.”
References
1 - https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/tobacco
3 - https://smokefree.gov/tools-tips/how-to-quit/busting-nrt-myths
On behalf of the Board of Directors of the Company,
TAAT LIFESTYLES & WELLNESS LTD.
“Joel Dumaresq”
Joel Dumaresq, CEO and Director
For further information, please contact:
Joel Dumaresq
+1 604 336 3193
info@taatusa.com
About TAAT Lifestyles & Wellness Ltd.
Taat Herb Co., the flagship brand of TAAT Lifestyles & Wellness Ltd. is an early-stage life sciences company based in Las Vegas, Nevada innovating nicotine-free and tobacco-free alternatives to traditional cigarettes. With a unique proprietary blend of all-natural ingredients and meticulous engineering of the user experience, Taat hemp cigarettes are designed to emulate every aspect of legacy tobacco products with no significant difference to the user. Enhanced with CBD, a non-psychoactive derivative of hemp, Taat hemp cigarettes provide benefits that include mitigation of tobacco withdrawals, and reduction of tobacco dependency. With an expert-led go-to-market strategy, the Company’s objective is to position itself in the US $814 billion (2018)1 global tobacco industry to capitalize on the growing worldwide demand for better-for-you alternatives to traditional cigarettes.
For more information, please visit http://taatusa.com.
References
1 British American Tobacco - The Global Market
Statement Regarding Effects of CBD on Smoking Cessation
The Beckley/Exeter research program (University of Exeter) carried out a pilot study that found after several weeks following cannabidiol ("CBD") treatment, CBD helped tobacco smokers to reduce the amount of cigarettes smoked by as much as 40%. A follow-on study is planned, which will include a brain imaging component to examine the brain activity patterns underlying the probable therapeutic effects of CBD.
Source: https://beckleyfoundation.org/cbd-for-smoking-cessation/
Link to Study: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S030646031300083X
Forward Looking Statements
This news release contains “forward-looking information” within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Often, but not always, forward-looking information and information can be identified by the use of words such as “plans”, “expects” or “does not expect”, “is expected”, “estimates”, “intends”, “anticipates” or “does not anticipate”, or “believes”, or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might” or “will” be taken, occur, or be achieved. Forward-looking information in this news release includes statements regarding the potential launch of Taat brand hemp cigarettes, in addition to the following: Occurrence of the Company's go-to-market plan either according to the timeline provided or at all, and completed actual launch of the Company's Taat brand hemp cigarette products either at the anticipated time or at all. The forward-looking information reflects management’s current expectations based on information currently available and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause outcomes to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking information. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information and no assurance can be given that such events will occur in the disclosed timeframes or at all. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations include: (i) adverse market conditions; (ii) changes to the growth and size of the tobacco and CBD markets; and (iii) other factors beyond the control of the Company. The Company operates in a rapidly evolving environment. New risk factors emerge from time to time, and it is impossible for the Company’s management to predict all risk factors, nor can the Company assess the impact of all factors on Company’s business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ from those contained in any forward-looking information. The forward-looking information included in this news release are made as of the date of this news release and the Company expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.
The statements in this news release have not been evaluated by Health Canada or the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. As each individual is different, the benefits, if any, of taking the Company’s products will vary from person to person. No claims or guarantees can be made as to the effects of the Company’s products on an individual’s health and well-being. The Company’s products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
This news release may contain trademarked names of third-party entities (or their respective offerings with trademarked names) typically in reference to (i) relationships had by the Company with such third-party entities as referred to in this release and/or (ii) client/vendor/service provider parties whose relationship with the Company is/are referred to in this release. All rights to such trademarks are reserved by their respective owners or licensees.
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