Why the Cannabis Sector is Ripe for More Mergers and Acquisitions

The cannabis markets continue to grow globally and across the North American markets. In the U.S. with the possible legalization of recreational use on the radar, large marijuana companies are looking at a $22.7 billion national market by 2023, and Canada's direct cannabis market is projected to double to 11 billion Canadian dollars ($8.2 billion) in the next six years. The markets are growing and so are the companies. There are two main ways for companies to grow and they are organic growth of revenues and the shortcut; mergers and acquisitions. Experts expect much more of the latter in the coming months. In fact, the competition has already begun with key M&A transactions in both Canada and the U.S. The activity in Canada is focused on the acquisitions of Licensed Producers (LP) and in the U.S. it's the multi-state operators (MSO).  In Canada it has been the consolidation of LPs to grow revenue generation. In the U.S. is the addition of brands and retail outlets that is generating revenue growth.  Active companies in the industry making moves to ready that include:  Choom™ Holdings Inc.(OTCQB: CHOOF) (CSE: CHOO), Fire & Flower Holdings Corp. (OTCPK: FFLWF) (TSX-V: FAF), Green Growth Brands Inc. (OTCQB: GGBXF) (CSE: GGB), Trulieve Cannabis Corp. (OTCQX: TCNNF) (CSE: TRUL), National Access Cannabis Corp. (OTCPK: NACNF) (TSX-V: META.V).

In Canada, the size of the pool of targets is the approximately 140 - 168 companies with existing approved licenses. In the U.S. there are over 50 publicly-traded companies. Insiders say that many of these companies will diminish over time because they will be unable to have the resources to compete and we will see continued consolidation in this pool.  Many experts expect to see these companies 'get married' once it is shown that they cannot carry on or grow by themselves. They may be their only way to be able to survive, compete and even thrive.

Choom™ Holdings Inc.  (CSE: CHOO) (OTCQB: CHOOF) BREAKING NEWS:  Choom™, an emerging adult use cannabis company that has secured one of the largest national retail networks in Canada, is pleased to announce that it has signed a purchase agreement (the "Agreement") to acquire Ninetails Cannabis Inc. ("Ninetails"), a licensed cannabis retail store in Whitehorse, Yukon.

Ninetails is located in Whitehorse's downtown area at 204 Main St.  Upon closing of the acquisition and receiving the necessary regulatory approvals from the Yukon Liquor Corporation ("YLC"), the Ninetails store will be opened as a Choom-branded store once it has completed construction.

"We are excited for our cannabis retail network to expand into the Yukon," states Chris Bogart, President and CEO of Choom Holdings Inc. "We have identified the Yukon as a largely underserved cannabis market opportunity which falls in line with our aggressive expansion strategy across Canada.  Consumers in the Yukon can expect style and sophistication accompanied by knowledgeable staff in a welcoming retail environment, consistent with the Choom look and feel we're rolling out across the rest of our retail network."   Read this and more news for Choom™ at: https://www.financialnewsmedia.com/news-choo/   

Additional industry related developments from around the markets:

Fire & Flower Holdings Corp. (OTCPK: FFLWF) (TSX-V: FAF) and its wholly-owned subsidiary Fire & Flower Inc., recently announced that it has received two additional cannabis retail store licenses from the Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Commission (the "AGLC").

The Company anticipates these stores to be open and selling cannabis during the week of August 26 and will be located at: 9080 – 25 Avenue SW, Edmonton, Alberta; and at 252 – 91 Street SW, Edmonton, Alberta.

"The receipt of these two additional store licenses demonstrates Fire & Flower continuing to deliver upon its projected store roll out schedule. Receiving these licenses and our ability to rapidly open retail stores is a clear demonstration of Fire & Flower continuing to build upon its leading position in Canadian cannabis retail," shared Trevor Fencott , Fire & Flower's Chief Executive Officer. "We have heard from the South Edmonton community that they are eagerly anticipating the Fire & Flower experience and we are looking forward to welcoming them into our stores."

National Access Cannabis Corp. (OTCPK: NACNF) (TSX-V: META.V) Canada's largest cannabis retailer, recently announced it has received an additional license from the Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Commission (the "AGLC") to open a cannabis retail store in Medicine Hat, Alberta. The announcement comes following the previously released news that the AGLC has lifted the moratorium on new cannabis retail licenses. The Company also announces the planned opening of two new retail locations in August, with an additional 5 stores anticipated to open to the public in September and October.

"National Access Cannabis now has 10 new licenses granted in Alberta since the lifting of the moratorium by the AGLC, and we've been working hard to get these stores open to the public," said Mark Goliger , CEO of NAC. "With our plan to open 7 of our recently licensed locations across Alberta in the next three months, we look forward to the sales and revenues from this increased footprint. With our operating expertise and proven track record of retail expansion, we see a clear path to growing our store count, and we plan to continue successfully expanding our retail stores across multiple jurisdictions." 

Green Growth Brands Inc. (OTCQB: GGBXF) (CSE: GGB) recently announced that it opened its 100th Seventh Sense Botanical Therapy ("Seventh Sense") mall-based shop on Thursday, August 8th. The first Seventh Sense shop opened in early February. 

"This is a huge milestone for Green Growth Brands and Seventh Sense," said Peter Horvath, CEO of Green Growth Brands. "We believe we have created the largest and most valuable network of brick and mortar CBD shops in the country."  Seventh Sense shops retail high-quality botanical therapy CBD-infused personal care and beauty products at affordable prices. The product offering includes over 100 SKUs across bath, body, face, therapeutic, and sleep categories.

Trulieve Cannabis Corp. (OTCQX: TCNNF) (CSE: TRUL) a leading and top-performing cannabis company in the United States, recently announced that the Company will begin trading on the OTCQX® Best Market under the symbol "TCNNF", having graduated from the Pink® market.

"We are thrilled to begin trading on the OTCQX Market just ahead of our one-year anniversary as a public company," commented Kim Rivers, CEO of Trulieve Cannabis Corp. "This has been an exciting first year as we execute on our brand strategy and expansion plans to remain the dominant market leader in the fast-growing Florida market, gain momentum in California, Massachusetts and Connecticut, and enter into two new states by the end of 2019. This latest milestone should provide additional visibility within the investment community in order to build awareness of Trulieve more broadly and drive shareholder value."