Marijuana retailer Fika’s winning Fire & Flower bid was CA$36 million

Canadian marijuana retail company Fika Cannabis bid 36 million Canadian dollars ($26.6 million) at auction to acquire retail chain Fire & Flower Holdings, according to a report filed by Fire & Flower’s court-appointed insolvency monitor.

The $36 million purchase price “is CA$12.3 million more than the value of the stalking horse bid” put forward by Fire & Flower’s majority shareholder, Alimentation Couche-Tard, according to the Aug. 26 report by monitor FTI Consulting Canada.

That stalking-horse bid was opposed by a group of other Fire & Flower shareholders, although a judge rejected their counterproposal in July.

Fika’s winning bid for Fire & Flower was announced earlier this month, but the value was not disclosed.

FTI Consulting called Fika’s offer “the best outcome for (Fire & Flower’s) business” and said it left money on the table for some of the insolvent retailer’s creditors.

The CA$36 million bid “is sufficient to repay all of (Fire & Flower’s) secured liabilities and leaves a significant recovery available to (the company’s) unsecured creditors,” according to FTI Consulting’s report.

Since the deal offers a going-concern solution to Fire & Flower’s insolvency, the monitor believes “a substantial number of F&F’s trade suppliers will continue to contract with (Fire & Flower) … and it is expected that a substantial number of the employees will be provided offers to continue their employment with F&F following the implementation of the transaction.”

Fika’s deal for Fire & Flower is subject to court approval, with a proposed closing date of Sept. 8.

It is still unclear exactly which Fire & Flower assets Fika is buying, and Fika has not responded to interview requests from MJBizDaily.

Fire & Flower, one of the biggest cannabis retailers in Canada, entered creditor protection in June.

Source: https://mjbizdaily.com/marijuana-retailer-fika-winning-fire-and-flower-bid-was-ca36-million/