What does the mythical phoenix bird rising from its own ashes after bursting into flames have in common with a Canadian supplement brand going public through a reverse takeover transaction? On December 19, 2024, a reverse takeover transaction involving Cizzle Brands was completed…and it was granted conditional approval to list its common shares on CBOE Canada (on December 30, 2024) under the stock ticker symbol CZZL. I’m sure most haven’t heard of Cizzle Brands yet...and that probably stems from the fact that CWENCH, the company’s flagship supplement brand, launched only seven months ago. Moreover, the second brand within the Cizzle Brands portfolio, Spoken Nutrition, hasn’t even launched yet. But I’m sure you’re now wondering why is (or how does) a “year one” company already go public…and that might be best answered if you understood the Cizzle Brands founder and CEO (and much of its leadership team). And that’s because before John Celenza started Cizzle Brands…he was a co-founder (and CEO) of BioSteel Sports Nutrition. But eventually, all good things must come to an end…and Canopy Growth (who acquired Biosteel in 2019) ceased its funding of hydration beverage brand in September 2023 (stating the brand was burning through $15 million in cash a month and failing to build momentum in the U.S. sports drinks market). When BioSteel was put up for sale in a court-supervised process, multiple parties expressed interest in potentially buying the company out of bankruptcy. And that included a group led by the Biosteel co-founder (and longtime CEO) John Celenza…ultimately losing to a more competitive offer by current owner Dan Crosby. But instead of wallowing in defeat, Cizzle Brands was created essentially out of those bankruptcy ashes…with previous leadership team members that were focused on recreating the specialness of the pre-acquisition Biosteel brand. And my latest first principles thinking content will analyze the strategic plan, financial performance, and innovation pipeline at Cizzle Brands.

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