Canopy Growth completes sale of Tokyo Smoke and Tweed retail assets

OEG Retail Cannabis has closed on its purchase of the Tokyo Smoke brand and several Tweed stores from Canopy Growth, marking the latter’s full divestiture from the cannabis retail sector.

OEG has acquired ownership of 23 Tokyo Smoke and Tweed store locations across Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador. Tweed stores will be rebranded to Tokyo Smoke, joining the 64 OEG previously owned in Ontario under an exclusive licensing deal with Canopy Growth.

Five Canopy Growth-owned retail locations in Alberta that were not part of the OEGRC deal have been bought by 420 Investments, which will rebrand them under its Four20 banner.

While Tweed will no longer be a retailer, Canopy Growth still owns the brand and will continue to operate it as part of its portfolio of cannabis products.

OEG Retail Cannabis is owned by the Katz Group, which also owns the Edmonton Oilers and hospitality brand Oliver and Bonacini.

First announced in September, Canopy Growth is seeking to exit the retail industry in order to cut costs and focus resources on its cannabis products, as well as entry into the U.S. market. In its most recent financial quarter, the company’s net revenue declined by 10%; however, revenue increased by 2% when excluding retail operations and C3, the pharmaceutical cannabinoid company it divested from last year.

The company added during its Q2 earnings call that exiting retail would also reduce channel conflict and give it the opportunity to work with more than 100 additional stores in Canada.

Appeal date set in Rogers-Shaw merger ruling

The Federal Court of Appeals has set Jan. 24 as the date when it will hear the Competition Bureau’s appeal of a ruling that would clear the path for Rogers’ $26 billion takeover of Shaw.

The Competition Tribunal – an independent adjudicative body that hears cases brought by the Competition Bureau – dismissed the Competition Bureau’s application to block the Rogers-Shaw merger in late December. The Bureau is appealing on the grounds that a rush to issue a ruling just 15 days after closing arguments were made led to legal errors, including considering the sale of Freedom Mobile to Videotron, which was not proposed until after the initial application was made.

The appeal will be heard one week before the Jan. 31 deadline for the takeover to go through. Lawyers for Rogers and Shaw have said the deal, the deadline for which has been extended multiple times since it was first announced nearly two years ago, would be in jeopardy if it does not close by the end of the month, when Videotron’s financing to acquire Shaw’s Freedom Mobile expires.

Bed, Bath & Beyond is exploring bankruptcy

In a regulatory filing made Thursday, Bed Bath & Beyond said it was exploring all options to address its declines in sales and increasing debt load, including bankruptcy.

The retailer said it expects its third-quarter loss to be $385.5 million USD, following a 33% sales drop. Last year, the retailer announced a turnaround plan to cut back on its own store brands and re-establish relationships with national brands after a strategy focused on private label failed to resonate with customers.

The home goods retailer has roughly 65 stores across Canada.