Kaya generates US$2.2 million in year
Published:Wednesday | April 12, 2023 | 12:59 AM
KAYA GROUP, one of the largest ganja chains on the island, generated US$2.2 million ($330 million) for its December 2022 year end, or 25 per cent higher year on year with details emerging of its celebrity minority shareholders.
The company continues to invest in its expansion, which contributed to its net loss of US$2.7 million. That is more than three times the US$751,500 that they lost a year earlier, according to financials released this month. The company would have been affected by listing fees and other acquisition costs in the year.
“I believe we offer one of the finest hospitality experiences in Jamaica at our three Kaya Herb Houses and our wellness centre at The Gap Café,” stated chairman and CEO, Balram Vaswani, in a recent release.
“These are exciting times for Kaya as we develop our brand into a tremendous asset for our shareholders,” he added.
Kaya operates three retail locations in Kingston, Trelawny and St Ann; along with a farm in St Ann; and a wellness lounge in the Jamaica Blue Mountains. In April 2022 it merged with ganja search engine and marketing company NUGL, which resulted in its listing on the penny-stock or Over-The-Counter exchange in the United States.
Vaswani holds 23 per cent of the company’s total 872.1 million ordinary shares. During the year, the company issued US$8.17 million in additional paid-in capital compared to US$5.9 million a year earlier, according to financials.
Several persons were listed as acquiring the new issuance of shares, including the name of boxer Lennox Lewis; and the names of artistes Rohan Marley, Kymani Marley, Warren Marley, and Oje ‘Protoje’ Olivierre, according to the financials. None of the named celebrities acquired shares above 0.5 per cent in the offering.
Aside from Vaswani, the largest shareholders are the Taconic Group with 4.88 per cent, Crest Ventures at 5.5 per cent, Lorne Gertner at 7.2 per cent, and High Hat Investments at 8.7 per cent.
The corporation has funded its activities to date almost exclusively from debt and equity financings. The company holds a book value of US$1.8 million at December 2022.
“The corporation will continue to require funds to execute its business. Management’s plans to meet its operating cash flow requirements may include among other types of transaction the following private placements of its common stock, preferred stock offerings, and issuances of debt and convertible debt instruments,” stated the filings.