Debra BorchardtNovember 4, 2022
YourWay Cannabis Brands Inc. (CSE: YOUR) (OTC: YOURF) provided an operational update, including initiatives being taken to address the management cease trade order and the delays in releasing the company’s audited annual financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2021.
“There has been significant change and evolution in our business over the past twelve months,” said YourWay Acting Chief Executive Officer, Jakob Ripshtein. “We have overhauled the organization from top to bottom, driven by a strategic corporate transformation and renewed corporate vision.” Ripshtein was named to the role in September.
Accounting Delays
YourWay said it was working with the auditors to finalize the 2021 Annual Financial Statements and that it expects to issue the report by the end of 2022. The company attributed some of the delay to a change in its auditors and changes in the company’s management personnel.
YourWay also stated that it was resolved to demand repayment of all amounts advanced, which total approximately $166,325 to Ionic Brands Corp. (OTC: IONKF) from a demand promissory note dated May 20, 2022. YourWay has provided notice to Ionic of its demand for repayment, but the funds have not yet been returned. YourWay acquired Ionic in April of this year in an all-stock transaction. The Ionic shares quit trading three months ago.
Arizona
Jacob Cohen resigned as Chief Executive Officer of YourWay in September to focus on his operational role as President of Arizona Operations. The company noted that the Arizona cannabis marketplace is in flux, and since recreational marijuana sales launched in 2022, the Arizona medicinal market has seen a downturn.
The company said in a statement, “This shift in the Arizona market has altered the focus of the company’s retail customers, and YourWay’s sales team is adapting to satisfy the shift from the medicinal market to the new demand for recreational cannabis products. The company is making an effort to balance out its portfolio by introducing several established brands to the Arizona marketplace. For example, Old Pal is a well-known and in-demand cannabis brand that has continued to be a strong performer since the Company began Arizona production and shipment in May of 2022. YourWay’s exclusive multi-year licensing agreement to manufacture, produce, promote, distribute, and sell certain Old Pal-branded cannabis products in Arizona, including whole flower, pre-ground flower, pre-rolls, and distillate cartridges in association with the Old Pal brand, has allowed YourWay to capitalize on the shift in demand in the Arizona market.”
YourWay also pointed out that throughout 2022 all wholesale product prices have decreased in the Arizona market. “The drop in the high-end market of the Arizona indoor flower price has dipped below those of California, with the breadth of quality and pricing adding to the complexity of retailing in the Arizona cannabis market. To combat this influx of competitors, the company’s growth strategy includes expanding the Venom Extracts brand, which has been part of the Arizona cannabis market since 2017 and as such, has developed significant brand awareness and loyalty amongst legacy cannabis users.”
The company was formerly known as Hollister Biosciences Inc. and changed its name to YourWay Cannabis Brands Inc. in December 2021. YourWay Cannabis Brands Inc. was incorporated in 2019 and is based in Phoenix, Arizona.
William Sumner
