Cannabis Weekly Round-Up: Shake Up for Canada’s Retail Market

The Canadian retail market saw some interesting movement as one giant cannabis company announced a new target, and two companies revealed they are set to join forces.

Alongside those retail developments, this past week a cannabis producer and a drink maker announced the launch of their cannabis drinks in the Canadian market through a partnership.

Keep reading to find out more cannabis highlights from this week.

Canadian cannabis retailers make moves

Canopy Growth (NYSE:CGC,TSX:WEED) told investors its retail efforts will expand into Alberta, arguably one of the most developed retail provincial markets in Canada.

The cannabis giant announced its Tokyo Smoke and Tweed retail brands will combine for 10 brand-new locations across the province, with seven stores going to Calgary right out of the gate.

“We’ve seen the value brick-and-mortar retail brings to our consumers,” Grant Caton, general manager for Canada with Canopy Growth, said in a statement.

Meanwhile, High Tide (CSE:HITI,OTCQB:HITIF) and Meta Growth (TSXV:META), two separate cannabis retailers, announced a plan to combine their operations.

Under the deal, High Tide will acquire all the issued and outstanding shares of Meta Growth at an implied price of C$0.133 each. All Meta Growth shareholders will receive 0.824 of a High Tide common share per Meta Growth share that they hold, resulting in a 14 percent premium for the transaction.

The executive leaders of both operations praised the deal and pointed to the resulting company’s potential to produce C$133 million in annualized revenue thanks to 613 retail locations across Canada.

“Both companies have complementary retail footprints and similar proven operational efficiency models,” Mark Goliger, CEO of Meta Growth, said. “We can immediately leverage synergies, increase margins and have double the scale for the combined company’s owned IP and private label initiatives.”

The two companies also confirmed that after the transaction is completed the resulting entity will apply for a TSX Venture Exchange listing.

Cannabis drinks market sees competition bubble up

Truss Beverages is the resulting company from a partnership between cannabis producer HEXO (NYSE:HEXO,TSX:HEXO) and Molson Coors Beverage Company (NYSE:TAP,TSX:TPX). The joint venture is designed to capitalize on the projected growth attached to cannabis drinks in the Canadian market.

On Tuesday (August 25), the company announced the official launch of its beverage lineup, which includes five branded products: Little Victory, House of Terpenes, Mollo, Veryvell and XMG.

These products will combine CBD and THC product offerings for consumers with different doses within the Health Canada regulation framework for beverages.

“This data shows just how ready Canadians are for a new cannabis experience that better fits their preferences and lifestyles,” Lori Hatcher, head of marketing with Truss Beverage, said. “Quite frankly, it shows how game changing cannabis beverages can be for consumers.”

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Securities Disclosure: I, Bryan Mc Govern, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.