Avant Brands hits German market with IM Cannabis deal

Canadian producer Avant Brands Inc. (TSX: AVNT) (OTCQX: AVTBF) and IM Cannabis Corp. (NASDAQ: IMCC), a medical cannabis company based in Israel and Germany, announced Tuesday that they signed an international trademark licensing agreement that grants IMC’s German subsidiary, Adjupharm GmbH, the exclusive right to launch Avant’s flagship BLK MKT brand in the German medical cannabis market.

Under the terms of the agreement, Avant will license its BLK MKT brand to Adjupharm. The products will exclusively feature cannabis cultivated by Avant in Canada and subsequently exported to Germany.

The collaboration comes on the heels of Germany’s recent loosening of medical cannabis restrictions on Monday and looks to capitalize on the growing market opportunity in the country, as the recreational question continues to bear out.

“This agreement signifies a significant milestone in our longstanding partnership with IMC,” Norton Singhavon, founder and CEO of Avant Brands, said in a statement. “Partnering with IMC is a strategic move; it not only bolsters our position as a global leader in the ultra-premium cannabis sector but also amplifies the reach of our flagship brand, BLK MKT, on the global stage.”

The companies think that combining Avant’s premium products with IMC’s sales, marketing, and distribution expertise will lead to success in the market.

Avant’s three largest cultivation facilities are certified with International Cannabis Certification Network – Good Agricultural Practices (ICANN-GAP) and Good Agricultural and Collection Practices (GACP), allowing the company to distribute internationally.

“By evolving our partnership with Avant, we continue to improve our supply chain and ability to provide ultra-premium, quality brand and product to the German medical cannabis market,” said Oren Shuster, CEO of IMC.

Adjupharm, which is the sixth largest distributor of medical cannabis flowers in Germany, touted its meaningful growth in 2023, with sales per SKU rising by 180%.

Adjupharm CEO Richard Balla said joining forces with Avant will “continue to accelerate the strong momentum we have established in the German medical cannabis market.”

“We have been working toward this moment for the last four years,” Balla, who is also the CEO of IMC Germany, said last month.

“We have the entire infrastructure in house. We are EU-GMP certified to repack bulk. We have an EU-GDP-certified logistics center to store cannabis and are delivering IMC cannabis to any pharmacy in Germany within 24 hours. Our team has extensive cannabis as well as pharmaceutical experience. We have all the necessary supply agreements in place to support accelerated growth.”