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TORONTO, April 11, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Emblem Corp. (TSXV:EMC) (TSXV:EMC.WT) (“Emblem” or the “Company”), announced today that it has entered into a supplier agreement (the “Agreement”) pursuant to which Emblem, through its wholly owned subsidiary, Emblem Cannabis Corp., will become a preferred cannabis supplier to Fire & Flower Inc. (“Fire & Flower”).



Subject to the approval and subsequent Royal Assent of Bill C-45, the proposed Cannabis Act (Canada) and the receipt by Fire & Flower of all required licensing under the applicable provincial cannabis regimes, pursuant to the Agreement, Emblem will supply Fire & Flower with Emblem branded cannabis products for an initial period of three consecutive years. It is expected the products will be sold in-store in all provinces in which Fire & Flower operates and, if applicable, in which Emblem has received a provincial listing.

Nick Dean, CEO of Emblem, says the deal presents an incredible opportunity for Emblem to get their adult-use brands into the hands of consumers across Canada. “The retail environment will be critical to generating brand awareness, educating the consumer about products and ultimately driving market share for our adult-use brands,” says Dean. “Today’s deal with Fire & Flower reinforces our belief that the greatest shareholder value will be achieved in the long-run via channels that give the greatest access to consumers. As Fire & Flower is building a leading retail concept in the cannabis space, we anticipate that this arrangement will assist us in our single-minded focus on driving shareholder value.”

“We are excited to enter into this agreement with Emblem. Their awareness of the importance of the retail channel in cannabis as well as their commitment to creating adult-use brands that resonate with consumers aligns well with Fire & Flower’s best-in-class retail cannabis strategy,” explains Trevor Fencott, CEO of Fire & Flower. “There is a lot to accomplish preparing for legalization in Canada, and having partners like Emblem that can move as quickly and decisively as us in the space is definitely an asset.”

Certain directors and officers of Emblem have interests in Fire & Flower. In particular, Harvey Shapiro, a director and the Chairman of the Company, is also a director of Fire & Flower. In addition, Mr. Shapiro owns approximately 19.5% of the common shares of Fire & Flower and controls and directs approximately an additional 65% of the common shares through a voting trust. Further, Maxim Zavet, a director of the Company, owns approximately 4.2% of the common shares of Fire & Flower and Nick Dean, the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company owns approximately 0.3% of the common shares of Fire & Flower.

Due to the ongoing nature of the negotiations surrounding the Agreement, there will be less than 21 days between the date on which the Company files a material change report with respect to the entering into of the Agreement. The Company considers this is reasonable and necessary in order to ensure the Company’s ability to become a preferred supplier and to obtain the benefits associated with the Agreement.

About Emblem

Emblem Corp., through its wholly-owned subsidiary Emblem Cannabis Corporation, is a fully integrated licensed producer and distributor of medical cannabis and cannabis derivatives in Canada under the ACMPR (Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations). Led by a team of cannabis experts and former health care and pharma executives, it has three distinct verticals – cannabis production, patient education centers, and pharmaceutical dosage form development. Emblem trades under the ticker symbol EMC on the TSX Venture Exchange.

About Fire & Flower

Founded by successful cannabis entrepreneurs from the legal Canadian cannabis industry, Fire & Flower is a corporately-owned retail cannabis-lifestyle brand and store concept. Fire & Flower specializes in elevating the Canadian cannabis experience through the thoughtful curation of products, experiential offerings and education-based programming. Fire & Flower is poised to serve customers across the country in Provinces where private retail is permitted.

For further information contact:

Ethan Karayannopoulos

Investor Relations

Emblem Corp.

647.748.9696

ethank@emblemcorp.com

Alex Stojanovic

Chief Financial Officer

Emblem Corp.

416.923.1331

alexs@emblemcorp.com

Chris Bolivar

Vice President, Brand & Marketing

Fire & Flower Inc.

780.903.6782

cbolivar@fireandflower.com

Forward-looking statements

This news release may contain “forward-looking information” and “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation (together, "forward-looking statements"), including statements regarding the Agreement, the successful fulfillment of the Agreement, the Company’s ability to satisfy its obligations under the Agreement, the financial benefit of the Agreement, and the approval of the TSXV. All statements and information contained herein that is not clearly historical in nature may constitute a forward-looking statement. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by management, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive risks, uncertainties and contingencies that may cause actual financial results, performance or achievements to be materially different from the estimated future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by those forward-looking statements.

Forward-looking statements are not a guarantee of future performance and are subject to and involve a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the control of the Company, which may cause the Company's actual performance and results to differ materially from any projections of future performance or results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the risks identified in the Company's annual information form dated October 18, 2017 which has been filed with the Canadian Securities Administrators and is available on www.sedar.com, risks of non-performance by Fire & Flower, the risk that the Company and/or Fire & Flower do not receive the required licenses and permits to perform the obligations under the Agreement and the risk that the proposed operations of Fire & Flower do not conform with the provincial regulatory regime. Any forward-looking statements contained herein are made as of the date hereof and, except as required by law, the Company assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise such statements to reflect new information, subsequent or otherwise.

Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. This news release contains information obtained by the Company from third parties and believes such information to be accurate but has not independently verified such information.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.