With legal online sales of recreational cannabis about 50 days away in Canada, there has been a steady string of supply agreements in the news, including Monday's release by Namaste Technologies (TSX-V:N)(OTCPK:NXTTF) that it has signed a bulk cannabis supply agreement with GTEC Holdings (TSX-V:GTEC)(OTCPK:GGTTF). Per the pact, GTEC will be supplying marijuana flowers and oils to Namaste's subsidiary, Cannmart. Cannmart is awaiting approval from Health Canada for its application that would make the company the nation's first Licensed Producer under Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations with a "sales-only" license, which it hopes will give it a competitive edge in leveraging Namaste's expertise in e-commerce to capture market share.
Namaste President and CEO Sean Dollinger said this morning that the company expects the sales license "very soon." It is expected that Kelowna-based GTEC will be a key supplier to Cannmart from one of its several cannabis production facilities. Companies have been moving quickly to lock-down supply chains against the backdrop of an expected supply shortfall when recreational marijuana becomes legal in Canada on October 17, 2018.
According to Namaste, the company is striving to integrate artificial intelligence for personalized product and strain recommendations to create the most comprehensive user experience in online shopping today. The company recently launched its NamasteMD's app for Android and crossed over 14,000 registered users.
Dollinger added, "Thanks to GTEC's management team for supporting Namaste in its efforts to become Canada's leading online cannabis retailer and we're looking forward to a strong partnership together."
Toronto-listed shares of Nemaste have been on a roll, gaining 33.6% last week and adding another 4.3% in early Monday trading to $1.95. Shares of GTEC closed Friday at $1.13, up 28.4% on the week, and have skipped ahead 5.3% to $1.19 to start the new week.
