RYU Apparel Inc. to Provides End of Year Update From CEO
VANCOUVER, BC, Dec. 30, 2020 /PRNewswire/ - RYU Apparel Inc. (TSXV: RYU) (OTC: RYPPF) (FWB: RYAA) ("RYU" or the "Company"), creator of award-winning urban athletic apparel, is pleased to share an update and year review for RYU.
Dear Fellow Shareholders,
As we approach the end of 2020, RYU have achieved a great deal which has set a solid and diverse foundation to propel us into 2021 with strength and purpose.
We have raised close to $6M this year. The addition of the new capital resources will enable RYU to continue to establish itself as a global lifestyle and purpose performance activewear brand with approved trademark Urban Athletic Apparel™. Over the next 3 years, I see an enormous opportunity to build RYU into a brand that embodies the value of integrity, endurance and provides great value to its shareholders and customers.
This new capital bolsters RYU in several ways:
- WHOLESALE: We have launched and are scaling RYU's North American wholesale division. On our team, we have Grant Matzen who is an experienced sales and marketing professional with over a decade of experience working with iconic brands in the sports and lifestyle apparel industry such as Under Armour (NYSE: UAA), Vans, Quiksilver, and Roxy. Just this past week, we have successfully nationalized our wholesale sale teams across Canada and now turn our attention building our US and Mexico sales and distribution teams.
- GOLF APPAREL DIVISION: In one the company's most acknowledged announcements of the year, RYU's new Golf Apparel design team will be led by industry talent, James Chapman - an expert in innovation, trend, suitability, and cutting-edge 3D digital design technology. James has worked with Perry Ellis Golf and Callaway and will lead this division.
Joining James as a leader in our Golf Division is Andrew Parr. Andrew has a rich and diverse background in athleticism and athletic development. As a golfer, Andrew played pro in forty plus countries over an eight-year career. Andrew currently serves as assistant coach of the Canadian National team — Golf Canada.
I also could not be more thrilled with the foundational partnerships established in 2021, some in just the past few months. Excitingly, the full activation and launch of many of these partnerships are still in front of us. These include:
- A landmark partnership as the official high-performance clothing and bag providers for Canada Skateboard and team representing Canada at the upcoming Tokyo Olympic Games along with 7-Eleven, Red Bull and Swatch. We are excited with the opportunity to work alongside these globally, recognized companies to help promote sport and achievement for our young emerging athletes.
- Product placement in Branded Entertainment Inc's (BEI) new television series, The Count. This partnership aligns us with an incredible host of potential marketing affiliates and platform partners including, but not limited to, FITE TV, Triller, OF, PokerStars, FanDuel/DraftKings, 888poker, OMG Cannabis and more. Through this marketing and branding arrangement, RYU and its clothing will be featured in BEI's new flagship scripted series, "The Count", premiered on www.FITE.TV on November 28th. This product placement partnership is projected to be realized in 2022.
- A partnership to launch a North American wide campaign for Generation Active with Zoom Media and media proprietor François de Gaspé Beaubien. I would like to thank François for his support and mentorship in our digital expansion strategy. Considering his illustrious career and experience, we are very fortunate to benefit from his experience and network. François acquired Zoom Media, an indoor advertising company. Since he became CEO, the company has experienced tremendous growth (and focus), digitally entertaining and educating over 35 million fitness members every month across all of Canada, the USA, and the United Kingdom. He is the sole owner of Zoom. The businessman is also the co-Founder and Executive Chairman of Hivestack, a global company that allows advertisers to target custom audiences digitally, based on physical world behaviors (combining the engagement of mobile devices with digital billboards). He is very involved in the industry and serves as Chairman of the board of the Digital Place Based Advertising Association (DPAA), a worldwide initiative based out of NYC seeking to foster the growth of Digital Out Of Home (DOOH) media by bringing together market participants (media owners and tech suppliers) and educating marketers.
- This past month, our e-Commerce team lead by industry veteran's Justin Frost and Brett Pawson, completed the launch of 46 new styles on RYU's updated Shopify (TSE: SHOP) website and our partnership with Afterpay (ASX: APT), who top fashion, beauty and lifestyle retailers to give consumers a flexible way to spend their own money by paying over time has proved to be our top performing affiliate.
Entering 2021, all these recent milestones put RYU in a very positive position with global exposure.
As those who are familiar with our brand story at RYU know, alongside you our valued shareholders, I am so impressed and committed to this brand that I have personally invested millions of dollars into the company. Indeed, 2020 marks my first year at the helm of this great organization, lead by such an outstanding and accomplished management team. At the beginning, I became deeply passionate about RYU and its products as a shareholder and it has since become the foremost project of my 30-year professional career in business building and capital markets.
Like you, our customers and investors, I was immediately captivated by the power and potential of the brand name "Respect Your Universe." In times like these there may be no word or ideal more imperative than "Respect" and it is an honour for us all to represent that through the apparel we proudly make and the ideals we aim to live and share.
COVID-19 has changed the face of retail, which has evolved from the effects on how buyers' shop and accelerated adoption of digital commerce. I will be utilizing my 30 years of experience in commercial retail rollout, completing thousands of turnkey locations with major commercial franchises in North America such as Shoppers Drug Mart, Marshalls, Trade Secrets and Public Mobile to name a few. My decades of experience and knowledge has given me the familiarity to be focused and disciplined to successfully execute our 3-year goals.
In summary, I would like to thank all of the RYU shareholders and especially those who have participated in this year's financings, for your ongoing commitment to our vision and support throughout our transformation. I am committed to the successful achievement of joining the ranks of the Lululemon, Roots, and Canada Goose as a globally recognized Canadian apparel brand.
Sincerely,
Cesare Fazari
About RYU Apparel
RYU Apparel (TSXV: RYU, OTCQB: RYPPF, FWB: RYAA), or Respect Your Universe, is an award winning urban athletic apparel and accessories brand engineered for the fitness, performance and lifestyle of the athletic man and woman. Designed without compromise for fit, comfort, and durability, RYU exists to facilitate optimal human performance. For more information, please visit the RYU website at: http://ryu.com
Forward Looking Statements Disclaimer
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange Inc. nor its Regulation Service Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange Inc.) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release.
This news release contains forward-looking information that involves various risks and uncertainties regarding future events. Such forward-looking information can include without limitation statements based on current expectations involving a number of risks and uncertainties and are not guarantees of future performance of RYU, Zoom Media, Canada Skateboard, BEI or "The Count"; Such statements as regarding the development and implementation of product placement in the series, celebrity product seeding, viewership or the increase of RYU's visibility to investor, viewers or customers. There are numerous risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and RYU's plans and objectives to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking information, including those arising from the COVID-19 pandemic or otherwise, and which may result in the inability to develop and/or implement a comprehensive investor relations strategy and/or enhancement of RYU awareness with the investment community, including any capital market strategy, the investor relations providers failing to deploy their best-in-class platforms or to otherwise communicate any compelling value proposition of RYU, the failure of the campaign to highlight renewal of the RYU brand and subsequent successes under the its CEO, the possibility that RYU does not achieve positive cash flow operations. Except as required by law, RYU does not intend to update these forward-looking statements.
SOURCE RYU Apparel Inc.
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