Canopy Growth Buys Vaporizer Giant Storz & Bickel

Canopy Growth has released the following press release:

Canopy Growth Corporation has finalized an all-cash transaction to acquire Storz & Bickel GmbH & Co. KG, related entities, and IP (collectively, “Storz & Bickel” or “S&B”) for a purchase price of up to approximately 145 million euros. With a 22-year track record of breathtaking innovations, Storz & Bickel is widely recognized as the global leader in vaporizer design and manufacturing.

Based in Tuttlingen, Germany, Storz & Bickel are designers and manufacturers of medically approved vaporizers, most notably the Volcano Medic and the Mighty Medic. Storz & Bickel has spent the last two decades developing an automated and internationally certified factory, achieving ISO 13485 certification in 2009. The company has exported devices to 50 markets around the world.

The acquisition will see Storz & Bickel’s eponymous founders Markuz Storz and Jurgen Bickel remaining as a part of the organization to continue driving the business forward alongside Canopy Growth’s management.

“Joining Canopy will enable S&B to take the next significant development step forward. Access to Canopy Growth’s extensive portfolio of test laboratories as well as pharmaceutical and medical-scientific know-how opens up entirely new product development opportunities ,” said Jurgen Bickel, CEO, Storz & Bickel. “I am looking forward to actively shaping this development personally in a senior leadership position. On the one hand to ensure continuity and on the other hand to accelerate the development together with the Canopy team to lead it to unprecedented heights.”

“We view this as a marquee acquisition of the most recognized technology company in the industry,” said Bruce Linton, Chairman & Co-CEO, Canopy Growth. “This company is well positioned for the next wave of federally-regulated products in Canada beyond dried flowers and edible oils. By combining Canopy’s existing designs and Canada’s open environment for federally permissible R&D with Storz & Bickel’s deep IP portfolio and management team, Canopy Growth is poised to lead the high-margin vaporizing category around the world.”

Drawing on talent from Ottawa’s world-renowned tech ecosystem, Canopy Growth has a team of hardware and software engineers developing a line of advanced vaporizing devices.

Peter Popplewell commented, “S&B quite literally invented the vaporizer market. They make the best performing, highest quality, and most respected products in the segment. Leveraging their IP into the tech-heavy vaporizer designs we have in progress will allow us to bring products to market that will set a new bar in terms of quality, functionality, and consumer safety.”

An ISO 13485 certification means that the Storz & Bickel facility has been scrutinized by external auditors and found to be compliant with all requirements needed to product medical devices. It is a prestigious and onerous standards designation that will give Canopy Growth a multi-year lead in the medically approved vaporizer market. The German facility has the capacity to satisfy growing product demand and based on Canopy Growth’s existing international footprint and access to Storz & Bickel’s production expertise, the company is now well positioned to lead the vaporizer segment moving forward.

In addition to strengthening Canopy Growth’s path to market with advanced vaporizer technology, bringing Storz & Bickel under the canopy strengthens the Company’s German operations. With European headquarters in Frankfurt, Canopy Growth also operates a GMP-certified import and export facility in St. Leon-Rot where medical cannabis is imported from Canada, packaged, labeled, and distributed to approximately 2,000 pharmacies in Germany and other European markets.

Canopy Growth’s substantial cash reserve is amongst its greatest strategic advantages. Management will continue to add to the largest and most sophisticated international production platform with strategic acquisitions that improve its IP portfolio and give Canopy Growth subsidiaries access to new materials by further strengthening supply capabilities.

During the acquisition process Greenhill & Co. Canada Ltd. acted as financial advisor to Canopy Growth and provided a fairness opinion to the Canopy Growth Board of Directors.

Here’s to future growth.