As part of an internal reorganization, CE Brands‘ wholly-owned subsidiary eBuyNow eCommerce made a voluntary assignment into bankruptcy under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (Canada). Harris & Partners was appointed as eBuyNow’s trustee in bankruptcy.
CE Brands’ board of directors has determined that, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting supply chain crisis on eBuyNow, bankruptcy is in the best interests of eBuyNow and its stakeholders. The bankruptcy is not expected to directly impact CE Brands’ relationships with its creditors or other counterparties. The decision about the voluntary assignment was made in consultation with, and with the support of, CE Brands’ largest secured creditor.
All past revenues were generated through eBuyNow and there is a material risk that existing contracts between eBuyNow and certain licensors, distributors and manufacturers may be terminated as part of the bankruptcy filing. While some of these contracts may be assigned to CE Brands by the Trustee there are no guarantees that such an assignment will occur and that any assigned contracts will be renewed at expiration. CE Brands remains committed to its core values of innovation, excellence and customer satisfaction and does not believe the termination of any of the current clients would materially affect the ability of CE Brands to be successful with its long-term business plans.
As announced on June 6, CE Brands intends to focus on expanding its product portfolio of smart watches and wearables with the launch of Vitalist, a connected health ecosystem that aims to deliver biometric and biomarker insights to consumers through the development of consumer electronics wearables paired with biomarker testing subscriptions. The company anticipates that the initial line of Vitalist products will be launched by the end of 2023.
CE Brands also announced the resignation of Carolyn Scissons as CFO. Scissons joined the company with a mandate from Vesta Wealth to bring enhanced financial discipline to the finance department of CE Brands’.
“Carolyn, has made significant improvements to the financial processes at CE Brands’ and has been invaluable during this reorganization of CE Brands’ subsidiaries”, Kalvie Legat, CEO of CE Brands, said. “CE Brands and its board of directors are grateful to Carolyn for her many contributions to the company and wish her all the best in her future endeavors.
