• Virtual auctions have unlimited potential amid massive industry changes brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic
• PowerBand and D2D cloud-based platform is highly efficient and convenient for both dealers and buyers, enabling consumers to buy, sell, lease and trade vehicles through their smartphones
• Current crisis exposes the fragility of the global supply chain, and automakers will have to start considering domestic options instead
• Online vehicle auction sector is expected to continue growing at a fast rate, further spurred by current pandemic-imposed social distancing rules

PowerBand Solutions Inc. (TSX.V: PBX) (OTCQB: PWWBF) (FRA: 1ZVA) has launched a new cloud-based platform that lets people buy and sell cars and trucks with never-seen-before simplicity, speed, and cost-efficiency. This development is proving pivotal during the Covid-19 pandemic, as automakers and dealers take a long, hard look at innovations to allow consumers to buy, sell, trade and lease on-line.

“Online shopping in our industry is going to snowball,” newly appointed Honda Canada CEO Jean Marc Leclerc told the special Windsor Star report analyzing the effects of the current pandemic on the automotive industry (http://ibn.fm/kcQkS).

“Traffic on our website and the utilization of our business tools has increased significantly. Cars and big-ticket items were the last bastion of what people would consider buying online.”

“The confidence level from their experience and word-of-mouth is changing that.”

Online vehicle auction growth is outpacing that of physical auctions at the speed of light, and the future of auto sales seems to be online. Online-only auctions experienced a 33 percent compound annual growth rate between 2013 and 2017, far outpacing the growth of physical auctions, which was just 2 percent. This has created a considerable opportunity for Powerband Solutions to gain a solid foothold in the U.S. automotive transaction marketplace via its cloud-based vehicle auction platform.

PowerBand and D2D Auto Auction LLC have already successfully launched and conducted ‘virtual’ auctions in the United States. D2D is co-owned by PowerBand and Arkansas-based financier Bryan Hunt, director of J.B Hunt Transport. The highly successful virtual auctions, held on April 7th and April 16th, testified to the speed and efficiency of D2D’s unique transaction platform, which provides an alternative to physical auctions and their associated costs (http://ibn.fm/AzoL3).

The new cloud-based platform will be offered across the United States in the coming weeks and will allow digital images and details of vehicles to be uploaded for potential buyers to view. More than 1,300 dealers were registered on the D2D platform when it was launched at the end of 2019. This number is increasing rapidly with social distancing. D2D’s sales team targets additional dealerships and commercial customers, including leasing, rental and fleet companies.

According to PowerBand CEO Kelly Jennings, the virtual auctions held earlier in April generate high demand, as dealerships are looking for ways to adapt to an environment where the purchase ad sale of vehicles at a physical auction is no longer a viable option. “Our cloud-based auction platform is now fully functional and can replace traditional physical auctions across North America, as well as greatly reducing the costs to dealers since we only take a fee when a vehicle is actually sold,” Jennings noted in a news release.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.PowerBandSolutions.com

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to PWWBF are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/PWWBF

• MVES set out to take advantage of booming global Video on Demand market
• Company disrupts traditional motion picture production and distribution
• Rapidly growing global VOD market projected to grow at 17% CAGR by 2024

The Movie Studio Inc. (OTC: MVES) is a vertically integrated motion picture production company focused on delivering video on demand (VOD) services leveraging a unique business model built to capitalize on the worldwide demand for online film content. MVES is providing subscription-based, over the top (OTT) services delivered through a wireless internet connection to the end user’s devices, such as smartphones, tablets and laptops.

Streaming wars between major Hollywood studios opened the door for smaller film-production companies such as MVES to emerge as major competitors. The Movie Studio’s growth approach is focused on the purchase of legacy film libraries upgraded to 4K resolution, along with the re-monetization of new content on popular VOD streaming platforms. MVES has successfully monetized film assets on platforms such as Amazon, Tubi tv, Comcast and Showtime.

As an optimized combination of content and pricing has proven crucial to acquiring and retaining the audience, MVES has developed a unique business model based on creating independent movies and distributing them on main subscription video on demand (SVOD) platforms without the costs of hiring stars, thus reducing capital expenditures while increasing production quality. Server-driven, geo-fractured worldwide VOD distribution allows The Movie Studio to control its stream-generated revenue across global territories.

In addition, The Movie Studio has launched a proprietary application – The Movie Studio App – which enables users to view film content and even become part of it. The app, available on Google Play and the App Store, offers a ‘Watch Our Movies, Be in Our Movies!’ feature, which allows users to upload their photos and submit an audition video for potential casting in upcoming feature films. MVES is currently in the production of two upcoming feature films: Cause & Effect, a Miami-style version of Fast & Furious, and Pegasus, an emotional family movie.

MVES couldn’t have made its entry on the worldwide stage at a better time. With increased internet proliferation and penetration of smart devices resulting in growing customer preference for online streaming services, the global VOD market is projected to grow from $38.9 billion in 2019 to $87.1 billion by 2024, at an impressive CAGR of 17.5% (http://ibn.fm/O4LYG). The OTT segment, in which MVES operates, is expected to see the highest market share as it offers flexibility, convenience and personalization of the delivered film content.

Founded in 1961 and previously known as Destination Television Inc., The Moves Studio is championing innovative solutions in the most lucrative segment of the growing VOD global market, which is becoming an integral part of daily habits of viewers around the world. With its innovative content creation and distribution strategies, MVES is poised to disrupt the global film-delivery solutions and capitalize on a uniquely designed digital business model.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.TheMovieStudio.com

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to MVES are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/MVES

• POAI CEO exchanges $2.1 promissory note for shares of common stock
• Agreement enables Predictive Oncology to strengthen balance sheet, simplify capital structure at critical juncture in quest to commercialize highly valuable database
• POAI cancels outstanding debt of $2,115,000 in aggregate principal amount of 12% promissory note

Predictive Oncology Inc. (NASDAQ: POAI), a knowledge-driven company focused on applying artificial intelligence to personalized medicine and drug discovery, has entered into an agreement with its CEO to exchange a $2.1 million promissory note for newly issued equity (http://ibn.fm/lzYPh). The strategic move demonstrates the confidence CEO Dr. Carl Schwartz has in the growing company.

“This agreement enables the company to strengthen its balance sheet and simplify its capital structure at a critical juncture in our quest to commercialize our highly valuable database of cancer tumors for the advancement of predictive medicine,” Schwartz said in a news release. “At the same time, it reinforces my commitment and demonstrates my belief in our ability to emerge as a leader in the application of artificial intelligence to oncology therapies.”

According to the agreement, Schwartz will exchange the promissory note for shares of common stock, $0.01 par value of Predictive Oncology at market value. In addition, Schwartz agrees not to sell or otherwise transfer one-half of the shares for three months after the date of the exchange agreement and not to sell or otherwise transfer the remaining shares for six months after the date of the agreement. Negotiated between the POAI and Schwartz on an arms-length basis, the agreement was approved by the Audit Committee of the company’s board of directors in accordance with Nasdaq listing requirements.

POAI received the note from Schwartz, exchanging it for 1,533,481 shares of common stock, newly issued at an exchange rate of $1.43 per share, the closing price of POAI common stock on April 21, 2020, prior to the execution of the agreement. Upon receipt, Predictive Oncology cancelled outstanding debt of $2,115,000 in aggregate principal amount of its 12% promissory note; the note was due to Schwartz by September 2020.

Additional details regarding the agreement can be found at www.SEC.gov on the company’s Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 22, 2020.

POAI is bringing precision medicine, or tailored medical treatment using the individual characteristics of each patient, to the treatment of cancer. Through the company’s Helomics division, the company leverages its unique, clinically validated patient derived (PDx) smart tumor profiling platform to provide oncologists with a road map to help individualize therapy. In addition, the company is leveraging artificial intelligence and its proprietary database of over 150,000 cancer cases tumors to build AI-driven models of tumor drug repose to improve outcomes for the patients of today and tomorrow.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.Predictive-Oncology.com

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to POAI are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/POAI

• SHRG ranked 48th on latest Direct Selling News Global 100 List
• Sharing Services doubled revenues for the fiscal quarter ended October 31, 2019, reaching remarkable $169 million since inception in 2017
• SHRG may be an attractive opportunity for investors who seek high-growth companies backed by a sound business model, strong market, robust fundamentals

Elepreneurs Holdings LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Sharing Services Global Corporation (OTCQB: SHRG) ranked 48th on the latest 2020 Global 100 List of top direct-selling companies, published annually by Direct Selling News (DSN) (http://ibn.fm/I9Kuh). Sharing Services, a diversified holding company owns, operates and controls an interest in a number of companies specializing in the direct-selling industry.

Announced in April 2020, the 11th annual DSN Global 100 List features top companies around the world achieving more than $100 million in revenue for 2019, showcasing a unique perspective on the true economic and social impact of this distribution channel on people’s lives and communities it serves globally. This influential list brings recognition to top-performing companies in the global direct-selling space, offering them numerous opportunities to leverage exposure to investors, researchers, and those seeking opportunities within the industry.

Although relatively young compared to others on the list, SHRG earned its place due to impressive growth on the back of a robust business model based on delivering excellence in the direct-selling market. Sharing Services and its subsidiaries – Elevacity Global LLC, responsible for manufacturing and distribution of innovative products, and Elepreneurs, responsible for promoting those products to consumers – customers built strong momentum in 2019 with revenues amounting to $38.9 million for the fiscal quarter ended October 31, 2019, bringing cumulative revenues to the impressive level of $169 million since the launch of its products in December 2017 (http://ibn.fm/jGMjy).

As a subsidiary of SHRG, Elepreneurs is leveraging a direct-selling business model structured to utilize an international network of home-based entrepreneurs called Elepreneurs. SHRG founded Elepreneurs as a response to the rising demand from individuals who are seeking not only new income opportunities but also greater flexibility and a path to living happier, healthier and wealthier lives.

With the rising uncertainty surrounding the global environment, these opportunities will become even more critical as they support individuals in their paths to financial independence and pursuit of happy, wholesome lives. Successfully leveraging this growing trend, Elepreneurs is also using the power of social media to increase competitiveness and create opportunities in a cost-effective yet more personal way.

Also a SHRG subsidiary, Elevacity Global harnesses the power of science through collaboration with food scientists and nutrition experts to create health and wellness products designed to enhance the lives of consumers. Its flagship line of products works to release hormones that support well-being and happiness. The unique formula is called D.O.S.E., representing an acronym that refers to the four key hormones being stimulated: dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin, and endorphins. With adversity in the world on the rise, D.O.S.E offers a response to those who strive for happiness and wholeness in the face of the rising challenges.

Committed to elevating lives, both through business opportunities for its independent representatives and through health and wellness products that enrich the lives of consumers, Sharing Services operates in a thriving global market, where it leverages its unique capability to latch on nascent trends and seize opportunities as they emerge. The global direct-selling industry is growing at impressive rates, reaching $189 billion in 2017.

It is estimated that 20.5 million people were involved in direct-selling activities in the United States in 2017, a 31% increase over the previous five years (http://ibn.fm/GtYFM). With robust financials and a proven track record of successful adaptation to growing market trends, SHRG offers investors a high-growth opportunity coupled with sound fundamentals and backed by a robust business model.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.SHRGInc.com

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to SHRG are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/SHRG

• SGMD expanding BudCars Cannabis Delivery Service into LA area
• Sugarmade forecasts BudCars business to top $30 million in annualized revenues in Sacramento alone
• Company sees potential for up to 20 new BudCars hubs across California over next two years

Sugarmade Inc. (OTCQB: SGMD), a product and branding marketing company investing in operations and technologies with disruptive potential and an early pioneer within California’s regulated cannabis industry, announced that its recently acquired BudCars Cannabis Delivery Service is expanding into the Southern California marketplace (http://ibn.fm/o7WiJ). Initially launched in the Sacramento area, the cannabis home-delivery service has seen unprecedented growth in its first months of operation.

“Our Sacramento locations will pass the $10 million mark for annualized sales within the next 60 to 90 days,” Sugarmade CEO Jimmy Chan stated in a news release. “The growth has been so dramatic that we have had to drastically revise our expectations to the upside, which demands expansion, both in terms of staff and fleet in Sacramento, and in terms of regional expansion into Southern California. As a result, we are acquiring two distribution hub locations in the LA area with cannabis licenses included so we can hit the ground running.”

In the expansion announcement, the company reported that BudCars’ primary Sacramento locations have seen tremendous growth, with revenues consistently increasing 10% week over week. While the growth has been attributed to exploding demand for contactless delivery of cannabis products due to the COVID-19 pandemic, company officials expect the upward spike to continue, even after social-distancing restrictions are loosened. SGMD forecasts its BudCars business to top $30 million in annualized revenues this year in Sacramento alone.

In addition, based on data gathered from its current operations as well as trends in the LA region, the Sugarmade team is confident that each of the two new LA BudCars hubs will provide an annual revenue run-rate of $15 to 20 million – as a moderate baseline estimate. Sugarmade officials pointed to its Sacramento locations, which are reporting a consistent 19–20% net profit on sales, noting that the same margins are expected in the Southern California market.

The two LA locations are just the beginning of the CarBuds expansion. Officials see further expansion potential for up to as many as 20 new BudCars hubs across California over the coming two years, funded primarily by cash from operations.

“We are hiring and expanding our fleet as fast as we can right now to keep up with demand,” said Chan. “We can’t expand fast enough. But that’s a great problem to have, and LA represents an ideal new market for BudCars.”

As one of the few cannabis companies pursuing a vertically integrated business model, SGMD is placing its current focus on the expansion of non-storefront cannabis delivery. In addition to BudCars, the Sugarmade brand portfolio includes CarryOutsupplies.com, SugarRush(TM) and Budcars.com. Sugarmade has benefitted from a remarkable growth spurt thus far in 2020 and will seek to maintain its recent trajectory going forward.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.Sugarmade.com

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to SGMD are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/SUGAR

• Sigma Labs provides critical in-process monitoring technology to unlock scalability needed to meet parts demand
• 3D printed medical devices of all source materials market forecast to reach $26 billion over two years
• As industry reacts to current crisis, demand for 3D metal printed parts expected to increase

From specialized surgical tools designed to meet a surgeon’s unique needs to customized cutting guides for knee replacements, the healthcare industry is poised to be transformed by additive manufacturing (AM), also known as 3D printing (http://ibn.fm/q3ROJ). However, scalability has been limited by the technology’s lack of in-process quality control monitoring. Sigma Labs Inc. (NASDAQ: SGLB), a company specializing in real-time quality assurance of 3D metal printing, presents a solution to alleviate the onerous burden of quality assurance in mass production – at a time when the 3D printed medical devices market is expected to reach $26 billion over the next two years.

While 3D printing technology (also known as additive manufacturing) has long been used to create product prototypes, the lack of product uniformity and onerous quality assurance costs had made engaging in mass production a pipe dream. Sigma Labs, one of the leading providers of third party in-process quality assurance software to the commercial 3D metal printing industry, has allowed companies to monitor the quality of each product part in the production process, layer by layer and in real time – leading to a dramatic decrease in error rates and higher manufacturing yields.

According to industry think-tank SME, the 3D printed medical devices sector – which already accounts for 17 percent of the total additive manufacturing (AM) market – will grow to roughly $26 billion over the next 24 months. A key segment spearheading growth in the sector has been the design and fabrication of replacement joints and artificial limbs. Over 30 million people worldwide are in need of artificial limbs and mobility devices, yet less than 20 percent have access to them, largely due to the extremely time-consuming and expensive process of producing customized prosthetics. 3D printing has sought to address this issue by enabling an ever-increasing number of patients, particularly from developing nations, to gain access to bespoke prosthetic limbs. Healthcare NGO e-NABLE has been one of the pioneers in the field, publishing free designs for prosthetic hands, which are available for anyone to print and can cost as little as $35 (http://ibn.fm/YddEE).

However, the industry’s prodigious growth rate has not been limited to well-documented manufacturing breakthroughs such as the design of hearing aids, dental implants and prostheses. In northern Italy’s Lombardy region, a shortage of ventilators in the midst of the viral outbreak was compounded by a lack of replacement valves for faulty machines. With medical suppliers unable to provide spare parts at short notice, 3D printing experts and local business owners were able to collaborate and come to the rescue by rapidly fabricating the replacement parts within a matter of hours (http://ibn.fm/E8xDs). Similarly, in the United States, Massachusetts-based Formlabs, a manufacturer of 3D printers, was able to swiftly reformat over 250 of their printers to produce 100 thousand nasal swabs for COVID-19 testing a day (http://ibn.fm/67WPy). With the scope of 3D printed medical devices widening on a daily basis, product safety has increasingly become a factor alongside other variables such as production cost, product longevity and functionality. As such, the need for a robust, efficient and easily implementable quality assurance process has become paramount.

To meet this requirement, Sigma Labs PrintRite3D(R) caters to the highly technical and precise nature of the Additive Manufacturing 3D metal branded equipment being created. In early April, the company launched the newest iteration of its revolutionary PrintRite3D(R) software, providing manufacturers with the ability to remotely monitor their 3D printing process in real-time while offering actionable information and AI-driven metrics on a production management user-interface platform. Moreover, Sigma’s technology can be used on 3D printers from multiple manufacturers to provide a consistent standard of quality assurance, thereby allowing for the technology to be deployed throughout a manufacturer’s supply chain (http://ibn.fm/ejfV5).

Following the launch and during a recent interview with Proactive Investors, Sigma Labs Chairman Mark Ruport went on to reaffirm that the company was now eyeing a “tremendous opportunity” to become the de facto standard for third party in-process quality assurance of metal parts production (http://ibn.fm/XnYS3).

The application of 3D printing within medical hardware and healthcare has allowed the industry to access critical components as and when they are needed – all at reduced cost, time, and wastage relative to traditional manufacturing methods. However, 3D printing will only truly surpass traditional techniques when the additive manufacturing industry moves from ‘post-process’ quality control to ‘in-process’ quality assurance. As one of the leaders in its field, Sigma Labs and its technological solutions are well positioned to capitalize on the industry’s explosive growth going forward.

For more information about Sigma Labs, please visit www.SigmaLabsInc.com

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to SGLB are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/SGLB

• The specialized insurance provider is expanding into multiple specialized sectors, focuses on higher service speed and personalization
• Hospitality Liability Policy covers theft and damage of personal property, accidental medical expenses, and accidental death and dismemberment
• Insurtech sector growing at a fast pace, attracting billions in investment

InsuraGuest Insurance Agency LLC, wholly owned by insurtech software company InsuraGuest Technologies Inc. (TSX.V: ISGI), is now licensed to sell all lines of insurance in 48 out of the 50 U.S. states and Washington, D.C. “As the world navigates and accommodates to new changes due to COVID-19, we continue to forge forward and build InsuraGuest to produce more product offerings so we can better serve our customers and build shareholder value,” InsuraGuest Technologies CEO and Chairman Douglas Anderson stated in a company press release (http://ibn.fm/8ZwFu).

The Agency is registered and licensed to sell accident and health, casualty, life and property insurance in Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming and the District of Columbia.

The Agency has applied and expects to be approved to sell insurance in the remaining two states of Massachusetts and New York within the next 30 days.

Insurance is one of the oldest and most traditional industries. Over the past few years, insurtech software company InsuraGuest Technologies have begun to encroach on major players’ territory by providing an insurtech software platform which can deliver digital insurance to multiple sectors. Insurtech in particular has seen a sharp increase in funding, with approximately $16.5 billion invested in the sector over the past 10 years. The pace of investment is on the rise (http://ibn.fm/Ck9uq), with $2.2 billion raised in the first half of 2019 alone (http://ibn.fm/VNo47).

InsuraGuest Technologies’ insurtech software currently targets hotels and vacation rentals, with the long-term goal to expand offerings to a wider audience and into revenue streams. The company aims to move into providing its software, that alleviates the process of insuring mainstream sectors, with a focus on providing higher service speed, ease of purchasing insurance, and personalization. InsuraGuest is working to expand its product offering and the reach of its platform via brokers and agents who can sign up instantly through a fully automatized agency/broker software program. These agents and brokers can then take InsuraGuest’s current Hospitality Liability product to their own customers, helping speed up the platform and products’ expansion.

The company’s proprietary insurtech software platform is already operational in the hospitality industry, where it provides specialized gap insurance, which can address accidents or theft incurred by a guest during their stay at hotels and vacation rental properties. Traditional travelers’ insurance doesn’t cover a number of things that can happen inside hotels or other travel properties, putting both the traveler and the hotel or property owner at risk. InsuraGuest’s proprietary insurtech platform delivers its specialized Hospitality Liability coverages to its hotel and vacation rental members, which becomes the first line of defense for the properties if an accident or theft is incurred by a guest or their occupants during their stay. The Hospitality Liability coverages address a wide range of issues, from theft and damage of personal property to accidental medical expenses, death and dismemberment.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.InsuraGuest.com

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to ISGI are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/ISGI

• PLUS well-prepared to respond to current coronavirus crisis, says CEO
• Strengthening PLUS presence in the California market remains critical to becoming global cannabis brand
• When objectives are met, few companies will be better positioned to build global portfolio of cannabis brands

Plus Products Inc. (CSE: PLUS) (OTCQX: PLPRF) has identified three critical objectives to focus on in the coming year, according to a letter from PLUS co-founder and CEO Jake Heimark (http://ibn.fm/g9qEv). The letter outlines those objectives and also discusses COVID-19 and the impact it is expected to have on the company.

After observing that the company is “well-prepared to respond to the current coronavirus crisis,” Heimark noted that the company “continues to have a strong foundation as a leader in the California cannabis market.”

“We have set three critical objectives as a company over the next four quarters,” he stated. “1) to ensure the safety and health of our employees and customers, 2) to continue to establish ourselves as a clear, long-term leader in the California edibles space and 3) to become a cash-flow positive business.”

Heimark then went on to explain that PLUS is “capitalized with enough cash on hand to continue executing through the entirety of 2020 without any additional fundraising.” Heimark noted that “Plus Products was the largest brand in the largest category of the California edibles market in 2019, and had the two best-selling cannabis products, across all categories, in the state over that same period.”

In his letter, Heimark explained that, in 2019, the state’s emerging adult-use cannabis market was 38% of the global adult-use cannabis market, and it is expected to stay at least 27% of that market through 2024. “Edibles remain the most attractive space to build a brand, with price premiums remaining constant, while other categories continue to see significant price degradation,” Heimark said. With that in mind, it makes sense that maintaining – and even building – the PLUS presence in the California market remains critical to becoming a global cannabis brand, he concluded.

Calling 2019 a difficult year for the entire cannabis industry, Heimark observed that “macro events – ranging from the vaping crisis to slow growth in emerging markets – contributed to underwhelming results and immense pressure from the market on operators across the board, a pressure that has continued to impact the industry into the new year.” Heimark acknowledged that PLUS hadn’t escaped the challenges.

“We have faced a home market in California that continues to battle growing pains as it works to compete with a highly active illicit market, streamline a disorderly regulatory environment, and support undercapitalized operators across an adolescent supply chain,” he said. “As a result, growth has been less robust than anticipated, and we were not spared from the broader market downturn.”

With that in mind, the Plus Products leadership team made adjustments to the business to ensure that the company is in the ideal position to survive – and succeed – in 2020 and 2021. Those adjustments included executive salary reductions, executive reorganization, general personnel reductions, the conclusion of the John Legend engagement and an employee equity incentivization restructure. “The decisions made were driven by a strategic commitment to prioritize growing our footprint in markets in which we are already operational over entry into new markets, with a particular focus on our home state of California,” Heimark explained.

“PLUS has built one of the most successful brands in the world’s largest cannabis market,” he concluded. “Moving ahead we intend to build a strong portfolio of edibles brands, leveraging our core capabilities in markets where we have established distribution channels and a dedicated customer base… We believe that we have a clear path to achieving our three critical objectives set forth above. If we do, there will be few, if any, companies better positioned to build a global portfolio of cannabis brands. And while these are uncertain times, we know that we will emerge from this moment in time together.”

Headquartered in San Mateo, California, PLUS is a cannabis and hemp food company focused on using nature to bring balance to consumers’ lives. PLUS’s mission is to make cannabis safe and approachable, beginning with high-quality products that deliver consistent consumer experiences.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.PlusProducts.com

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to PLPRF are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/PLPRF

• SHRM appoints former Red Bull Canada president to Special Advisory Committee
• New member’s background in heavily regulated industries coupled with experience in CPG space provides great complement
• Effective immediately, Champignon common shares being traded on OTCQB Venture Market

Champignon Brands Inc. (CSE: SHRM) (OTC: SHRMF) (FWB: 496), a Canada-based company dedicated to applying novel and natural treatment protocols with an emphasis on psychedelic medicine, announced the appointment of Jim Bailey as a new member of its Special Advisory Committee. The appointment of Bailey, a former president of Red Bull Canada, is designed to strengthen SHRM’s pharmaceutical, nutraceutical and CPG marketing/distribution competencies (http://ibn.fm/UjO9v).

“I am very excited to be part of a company that is leading the way in finding alternative solutions to traditional pharmaceuticals with science-based research and functional products,” Bailey noted in a news release. “My background in heavily regulated industries coupled with my experience in the CPG space provides a great complement to an already talented and experienced advisory board.”

In his position at Red Bull Canada, Bailey played a key role in introducing the Red Bull brand in Canada and growing the business to $150 million in annual revenue with more than 300 employees. In addition to his experience at Red Bull, Bailey served as the global chief marketing office for Merrell Outdoors, overseeing both product and consumer marketing; during his tenure, Merrell Outdoors reported annual revenues of up to $600 million.

In his new position on Champignon’s Special Advisory Committee, Bailey will “champion the marketing, distribution and commercialization of the company’s Novoformulations-branded novel delivery systems for the pharmaceutical, nutraceutical and psychedelic medicine industries,” the company announced.

A wholly owned subsidiary of Champignon, Novoformulations is focused on working with ketamine, anaesthetics and adaptogenics, along with other pharmaceuticals and natural molecules at a purpose-built good manufacturing practice (GMP) and pharmaceutical (DIN) licensed facility located in Quebec. As part of these efforts, Novoformulations is formulating, developing and working to commercialize bioavailable transdermal, intranasal and sublingual delivery platforms.

In addition, Champignon announced that, effective immediately, its common shares are being traded on the OTCQB Venture Market, a U.S. trading platform operated by the OTC Markets Group; the shares will be traded under the ticker ‘SHRMF’ (http://ibn.fm/8mF7O). Champignon’s common shares will continue to trade on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the ticker symbol ‘SHRM’, as well as on the quotation board of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol ‘496’.

The OTCQB is the foremost exchange for entrepreneurial and development-stage U.S. and international companies focused on providing superior experience for U.S. investors. To trade on the market, companies must be current in their financial reportings, pass a minimum-bid price test, and undergo an annual company verification and management certification process. Companies that are approved to trade on the OTCQB exchange have met quality standards that provide a strong baseline of transparency and are committed to improving the information and trading experience for investors.

Champignon seeks opportunities to promote the health and wellness benefits of functional mushrooms, which are used in a wide variety of health-care and pharmaceutical products. The company’s flagship e-commerce store, VitalitySuperTeas.com, takes advantage of the burgeoning craft mushroom industry with a selection of mushroom-infused teas and accessories; SHRM is also expanding its preclinical trial pipeline and branching out into alternative medicine and pharmaceuticals.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.ChampignonBrands.com

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to SHRM are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/SHRM

• DRIVRZ will become PowerBand’s consumer-facing brand in the months and years ahead
• The platform is designed to simplify online vehicle transactions allowing users to place orders for cars and trucks from their smartphones, from any location
• Company actively participating in the $10-billion cross-border used vehicle export market with receipt of its Exporter License
• Over 10 million vehicles are bought and sold through auctions every year

PowerBand Solutions Inc. (TSX.V: PBX) (OTCQB: PWWBF) (FRA: 1ZVA) has announced that it is trademarking the brand DRIVRZ as its top-level logo and wordmark for ongoing consumer interactions and future leasing and finance operations. The company applied to register the DRIVRZ wordmark and DRIVRZ logo in the U.S. and Canada. Trademark protection for DRIVRZ is underway for these countries and world markets. The mark family includes DRIVRZ FINANCIAL and DRIVRZ SOLUTIONS marks.

The company ­– enabling the buying, selling, leasing, financing and auctioning of cars on mobile devices, from any location – will continue to use PowerBand as its corporate name and retain its current ticker symbols on public markets for investors and regulators.

“As we advance our cloud-based vehicle transaction platform into Canada and the United States, as well as automotive markets around the world, we believe it is essential to have a brand that is clear, unified, easily recognizable and consumer-friendly,” PowerBand Solutions CEO Kelly Jennings stated in a news release (http://ibn.fm/yWgN3). “DRIVRZ will become PowerBand’s consumer-facing brand in the months and years ahead. DRIVRZ is for drivers, taking the unnecessary middlemen out of the automotive retail sector, to make buying, selling, trading and leasing a car or truck as easy as ordering a product from Amazon or ordering an Uber on your smart phone. It is the future of automotive retail.”

In related news, PowerBand and D2D Auto Auctions LLC successfully launched and conducted ‘virtual’ auctions on April 7th and April 16th in the United States, testifying to the speed and efficiency of D2D’s unique transaction platform. This platform provides a much-needed alternative to physical auctions and their associated costs and allows dealers to create an instant, online auction that launches a used vehicle to a vast network of the industry’s top used vehicle buyers. The cost of delivering a vehicle to a physical auction is eliminated (http://ibn.fm/S7d9A).

D2D is co-owned by PowerBand and Arkansas-based financier Bryan Hunt in a 50-50 partnership. More than 1,300 dealers were registered on the D2D platform when it was launched at the end of 2019. This number is increasing rapidly as social distancing takes effect and D2D’s sales team targets additional dealerships and commercial customers, including leasing, rental and fleet companies. The established DriveAway app, piloted by D2D, will continue to operate under its brand in the United States for the buying, selling and trading of cars.

PowerBand also acquired FinTech industry leader MUSA, to carry out transactions in the United States. MUSA will continue to operate under its name in the United States. Its technology takes applications, calculates leases, auto-decisions applications, provides approvals back to dealer partners and prefills lease contracts accurately. MUSA has been used with success by Tesla, which resulted in lease approval in a matter of seconds using the platform.

These developments have helped PowerBand gain a firm foothold in the massive U.S. automotive transaction marketplace. The company also owns an Exporter License, allowing it to actively participate in the $10-billion cross-border used vehicle market. Its leading-edge used-vehicle online remarketing auction platform also incorporates inventory management, the latest auction technologies in the industry, and appraisal processes.

The overall automotive dealership and commercial fleet vehicle auction industry is a $100-billion sector with more than 40 million used vehicles transacted in the U.S. each year. Over 10 million of these vehicles are bought and sold through auctions.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.PowerBandSolutions.com

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to PWWBF are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/PWWBF