Toronto: October 4, 2018 – Molson Coors Canada (MCC), the Canadian business
unit of Molson Coors Brewing Company (NYSE: TAP; TSX: TPX), and HEXO Corp.
(TSX: HEXO) today announced that they have closed the transaction announced
on August 1, 2018, to form a joint venture to pursue opportunities to
develop non-alcoholic, cannabis-infused beverages for the Canadian market
following legalization.
The joint venture, Truss, will be led by former Molson Coors
executive, Brett Vye, in the role of Chief Executive Officer. Vye will
report to the Truss board of directors consisting of three members
appointed by MCC and two members appointed by HEXO.
“With the backing of two partners with deep Canadian roots, proven success,
and market-leading experience in the respective beverage and cannabis
industries in Canada, Truss will hit the ground running,” said
Brett Vye, Chief Executive Officer at Truss. “When consumable cannabis is
legalized in Canada, Truss will be ready to make its mark as a
responsible leader in providing high-quality beverages for the Canadian
consumer. Why “Truss”? We are joining together the extensive
experience and excellent practices of each partner to build a powerful
foundation for the future.”
Vye brings a decade of experience in leading successful brand building and
integration efforts, as well as executing long-term growth strategies. Vye
served as the Chief Commercial and Strategy Officer for the fast-growing
International division of Molson Coors from 2015 to September 2018.
Previously, he served as Chief Commercial Officer of Global License and as
Managing Director of IOP Sales at Molson Coors. Vye has also worked in a
number of commercial roles internationally for Colgate Palmolive/Hills Pet
Nutrition.
Truss
is structured as a standalone company with its own board of directors and
independent management team. MCC has a 57.5% controlling interest with HEXO
holding the remaining 42.5%. The five-member board of directors for the
joint venture will initially comprise Frederic Landtmeters, President and
CEO of MCC; Paul Holden, VP of Legal and Industry Affairs of MCC; Scott
Cooper, VP, Global Innovation of Molson Coors (Chairman of the Truss Board); Sebastien St-Louis, CEO and co-founder of HEXO, and
Ed Chaplin, CFO of HEXO.
In connection with the closing of the transaction, HEXO has issued to MCC
11,500,000 warrants, each of which is exercisable to purchase one common
share of HEXO at an exercise price of $6.00 for a period of 3 years.
MCC has been advised by Gowling WLG (Canada) LLP, and HEXO has been advised
by Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP.
Contacts
News Media
mediarequests@national.ca
416-848-1703
Molson Coors Investor Relations
Kevin Kim
Kevin.Kim@molsoncoors.com
303-927-2515
HEXO Investor Relations
Jennifer Smith
invest@hexo.com
1-866-438-8429
About Molson Coors Canada
Molson Coors Canada is the Canadian business unit of Molson Coors Brewing
Company. Headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, MCC is North America’s oldest
brewer and Canada’s second largest brewer by volume, selling approximately
one-third of the total Canadian beer market in 2017. Its portfolio consists
of leading brands in all major product and price segments, including global
priority brands Belgian Moon, Coors Banquet, and Coors Light, regional champion Molson Canadian, and other
key owned brands, including Creemore Springs,Granville Island, Molson Dry, Molson Export, Old Style Pilsner, and Rickard’s, and strategic
distribution partnerships, including those with Heineken. MCC also includes
partnership arrangements related to the distribution of beer in Ontario,
Brewers’ Retail Inc., and in the Western provinces, Brewers’ Distributor
Ltd.
About HEXO
HEXO creates and distributes innovative, easy-to-use and easy-to-understand
products to serve the Canadian cannabis market. One of the country’s
lowest-cost producers, HEXO is rapidly increasing its production capacity
in the lead up to the adult-use cannabis market. The Company currently
operates with over 300,000 sq. ft. of production capacity with construction
on another 1,000,000 sq. ft. expansion set to be complete by year-end. HEXO
will serve the adult-use market under the HEXO brand, while continuing to
serve its medical cannabis clients through the well-known Hydropothecary
brand.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes “forward-looking statements” within the
meaning of applicable securities laws. Generally, the words “believe,”
“expect,” “intend,” “anticipate,” “project,” “will,” “outlook,” and
similar expressions identify forward-looking statements, which
generally are not historic in nature. Although the companies believe
that the assumptions upon which their respective forward-looking
statements are based are reasonable, they can give no assurance that
these assumptions will prove to be correct. Important factors that
could cause actual results to differ materially from the companies’
projections and expectations are disclosed in Molson Coors Brewing
Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission,
including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and its Quarterly
Reports on Form 10-Q, and in HEXO Corporation’s Annual Information Form
and continuous disclosure filings with the Canadian Securities
Administrators, which are available on SEDAR’s website at
www.sedar.com
. These factors include, among others, failure to complete or realize
anticipated benefits and synergies from the joint venture; potential
negative consumer, investor or public perception of our respective
current brands or companies; changes in consumer preferences and
product trends; and political, legal and regulatory uncertainty
relating to cannabis products generally. All forward-looking statements
in this press release are expressly qualified by such cautionary
statements and by reference to the underlying assumptions. Neither
Molson Coors Brewing Company nor HEXO Corporation undertakes to update
forward-looking statements relating to their respective businesses,
whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.