Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - July 5, 2021) - VIVO Cannabis Inc. (TSX: VIVO) (OTCQX: VVCIF) ("VIVO" or the "Company"), a leading provider of premium cannabis products and services, is pleased to announce the results of its annual general and special meeting of shareholders held today (the "Meeting").
As announced this morning, certain directors of the Company withdrew their nominations as directors prior to the Meeting, resulting in amendments to the resolutions regarding the fixing of number of directors, and to management's slate of director nominees. At the Meeting, shareholders approved fixing the number of directors at four, and the election of Ray Laflamme, Eric Shipman, Holly Workman and Michael Bumby as directors of the Company.
Mr. Laflamme is a founder and the current President of Canna Farms Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, and Mr. Bumby is the Company's Chief Financial Officer.
Mr. Shipman is Associate Counsel at BBL Broadway Business Lawyers, a firm of business lawyers, with 40 years of experience advising entrepreneurs, financiers, film producers, and software and real estate developers. He has expertise in negotiating and documenting complex commercial contracts and transactions, corporate reorganizations and mergers and acquisitions. He has served on the boards of several companies, as well as on the governance and audit committees of those boards. Mr. Shipman attended the University of Waterloo where he focussed on environmental studies and he holds an LLB from the University of Ottawa.
Ms. Workman has been an independent contractor and consultant for 30 years, with a focus on integrating transactional operating systems with their corporate counterparts, with a strong emphasis on accounting, data collection and reporting. She has been a key player in a number of system conversions and implementations, primarily in the communications industry.
"I could not be happier with the outcome of today's AGM," stated Ray Laflamme, VIVO's new CEO and Chair of the Board. "VIVO has strong assets and relationships in Canada and internationally as well as a great culture and staff with tremendous expertise and potential. It will be a pleasure to have Eric, Holly and Mike along to help guide the Company as we work towards reduced costs and increased revenue and profitability. We plan to continue to leverage our assets and team strengths in every way possible to elevate and enhance our excellent customer service, fair pricing and quality brands."
The Company intends to begin a search identifying potential independent candidates to add to its board of directors.
The Company also announces that the board has appointed the following officers of the Company:
| Name | Office Held | |
| Ray Laflamme | Chief Executive Officer | |
| Michael Bumby | Chief Financial Officer and Secretary | |
| Carole Chan | Chief Commercial and People Officer, and President, Harvest Medicine | |
| Tim Hayden | Chief Operations Officer | |
| Mariana Fonar | General Counsel | |
| Andreas Sander | President, European Operations |
All of the officers are previous officers of VIVO, with the exception of Mariana Fonar, who has recently joined the Company as General Counsel. Ms. Fonar was most recently General Counsel & Corporate Secretary at Lift & Co., a public company in the cannabis space. There she oversaw corporate, commercial, governance and privacy strategy and played a lead advisory role with respect to various matters, including disclosure requirements, risk management, compliance, equity raises, retail strategy and international expansion considerations in Canada's heavily regulated cannabis industry. Ms. Fonar was called to the Ontario Bar in 2013 after obtaining her Juris Doctor from the University of Western Ontario and completing a Master of Business Administration at the Richard Ivey School of Business. She also completed an Honors Bachelor of Administrative Studies at York University. Ms. Fonar is an advocate for empowering female leadership and promoting women on boards.
A total of 99,293,675 common shares were voted at the Meeting, representing 26.8% of the votes attached to all outstanding common shares of the Company. The election of directors was voted upon by ballot and the detailed voting results on that matter are set out below:
| Director | Number of Votes FOR | Number of Votes Withheld | Percentage of Votes Cast FOR Matter |
| Ray Laflamme | 73,633,198 | 3,231,939 | 95.8% |
| Eric Shipman | 76,865,137 | - | 100.0% |
| Holly Workman | 76,865,137 | - | 100.0% |
| Michael Bumby | 76,865,137 | - | 100.0% |
The Company's shareholders also approved the appointment of MNP LLP as auditor of the Company for the 2021 fiscal year and the adoption of a new omnibus equity incentive plan. Detailed voting results for the Meeting will be included in the Report on Voting Results to be filed under the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.
About VIVO CannabisTM
VIVO CannabisTM is recognized for trusted, premium cannabis products and services. It holds production and sales licences from Health Canada and operates world-class indoor and seasonal airhouse cultivation facilities. VIVO has a collection of premium brands, each targeting different customer segments, including Canna FarmsTM, Beacon MedicalTM, FiresideTM, and LuminaTM. Harvest MedicineTM, VIVO's patient-centric, scalable network of medical cannabis clinics, has serviced over 150,000 patient visits. VIVO is pursuing several partnership and product development opportunities and is focusing its international efforts on Germany and Australia. For more information visit: www.vivocannabis.com.
For further information:
VIVO Investor Relations
+1 416-848-9839
ir@vivocannabis.com
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Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Information
Certain statements in this news release are forward-looking statements, which are statements that are not purely historical, including statements regarding the beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions of VIVO and its management regarding the future. Forward-looking statements in this news release include statements regarding the Company's intent to identify an additional independent director, and plans to work towards lower costs, increased revenue and profitability. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, performance or developments to differ materially from those contained in the forward‐looking statements, including: that the Company may not be able to achieve competitive margins; that new products, if launched, may not be accepted by the market or may become subject to product liability claims; that the Company may not be able to obtain necessary licences; that demand for the Company's products may not meet management's expectations; that the COVID‐19 pandemic may last longer and have a more significant impact on the Company's operations, the Canadian cannabis industry, or the global economy generally, than currently expected; that the Company faces competition from existing and new market entrants and participants; that the Company may be unable to retain its key talent or attract new talent and/or potential independent directors; that the Company may not be able to execute on its strategic partnerships; that the Company may not obtain any other necessary regulatory approvals as required from time to time; that the Company may be unable to protect its intellectual property; and other factors beyond the Company's control. No assurance can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward‐looking statements will occur or, if they do occur, what benefits the Company will obtain from them. Readers are urged to consider these factors carefully, and the more extensive risk factors included in the Company's management's discussion and analysis for the three months ended March 31, 2021, which is available on SEDAR, in evaluating the forward‐looking statements contained in this news release and are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward‐looking statements, which are qualified in their entirety by these cautionary statements. The forward‐looking statements in this news release are made as of the date hereof and the Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update publicly any such forward‐looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws.
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