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Bonk, Inc.: Form 10-K for the period ended Dec 31, 2023

Filed with the SEC on Apr 1, 2024 and accepted by EDGAR at Apr 1, 2024, 17:06 ET.

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Business

As filed, 30,429 characters, with its headings, lists and tables. Extracted from the main document; charts and exhibits are in the original on sec.gov.

Overview

Safety Shot Inc. (NASDAQ: SHOT) was formerly known as Jupiter Wellness Inc. In August 2023, the Company successfully completed the asset purchase of the functional beverage Safety Shot from GBB Drink Lab, Inc. (“GBB”), thereby gaining ownership of various assets, including the intellectual property, trade secrets, and trademarks associated with its dietary supplement Safety Shot Beverage (the “Safety Shot Beverage”). Concurrently with the asset purchase, the Company changed its name to Safety Shot, Inc. and changed its NASDAQ trading symbol to SHOT. The Company launched its e-commerce sale of the Safety Shot Beverage in December 2023.

The Safety Shot Beverage has been formulated to reduce the accumulation of blood alcohol. Noteworthy is the fact that the Safety Shot Beverage comprises 28 active ingredients, all falling under the Generally Regarded As Safe (GRAS) category. Under sections 201(s) and 409 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (the Act), any substance that is intentionally added to food is a dietary supplement, that is subject to premarket review and approval by FDA, unless the substance is generally recognized, among qualified experts, as having been adequately shown to be safe under the conditions of its intended use, or unless the use of the substance is otherwise excepted from the definition of a dietary supplement.

It’s crucial to note that the Safety Shot Beverage is currently manufactured in a facility adhering to Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), ensuring the highest standards of quality and safety throughout its production process. The Company currently maintains a workforce comprising eight full-time employees of its own.

Specializing in Consumer Packaged Goods, our focus centers on the commercialization of a 12-ounce beverage positioned as a dietary supplement. Beyond our existing product, we are actively pursuing a future product line, including a convenient powdered stick pack version. This strategic expansion aligns with our corporate vision to address evolving consumer demands, positioning the Company in the market for dietary supplements. We believe that this initiative not only enriches our product portfolio but also emphasizes our dedication to innovation and adaptability, catering to the discerning preferences of health-conscious consumers. The Company intends to continue its current product lines, except for its products which contain CBD, which the Company no longer sells. Our product pipeline also includes a diverse range of products, such as hair loss treatments, vitiligo solutions, and sexual wellness products, that cater to different health and wellness needs and our commitment to supporting health and wellness by developing innovative solutions to a range of conditions but will focus our efforts on the commercialization of the Safety Shot Beverage.

The Safety Shot Beverage has established a development infrastructure that the Company believes fits with its existing over-the-counter and prescription-grade health and wellness products.

To achieve our mission, we rely on our team of highly skilled and experienced professionals who are committed to advancing our vision of health and wellness. Our team includes individuals with scientific backgrounds, an experienced researcher, product developers, and business experts who collaborate to create new products and enhance existing ones. We also seek to partner with industry leaders and organizations to gain access to the latest technologies and expand our reach.

We generate revenue through various channels, our primary sales include our “nostingz” suncare products which are sold through e-commerce platforms, licensing revenues from Photocil and sales of the Safety Shot Beverage. Photocil is currently sold in India through a licensing agreement. We received FDA approval of our labelling and composition to sell Photocil as an OTC product in the US and plan to relaunch the product in the US in the fourth quarter of 2024 through e-commerce channels. Safety Shot Beverage is currently sold through e-commerce and social media platforms. Additionally, we are collaborating with other companies to license our intellectual property, to create additional revenue streams and expand our global presence. At present, we do not experience concentration risk or dependence on major customers.

We maintain a diverse network of raw material suppliers integral to our production processes. Acquisition strategies encompass both direct procurement and collaborative efforts with our co-packers. The selection of suppliers is contingent upon various factors, including ingredient specificity, availability, and other essential considerations. Notably, these suppliers coincide with those currently providing materials to other facilities engaged in the manufacturing of drinks, powders, tablets, and capsules. Our roster of suppliers comprises reputable entities such as Jiaherb, Compound Solutions, Kyowa-Hakko, Mitsubishi Ingredients, Nura, Sensapure Flavors, Brenntag, E3 Ingredients, Ingredients Online, among others. This strategic alliance with established industry players underscores our commitment to sourcing high-quality raw materials essential for the production of our innovative product line. Furthermore, our approach to supplier relationships reflects a dedication to maintaining a seamless and reliable supply chain. We believe that this not only ensures the consistency of our current offerings but also positions us favorably for future developments. The Management believes that as we continue to expand our product portfolio, we believe that these partnerships with trusted suppliers play a pivotal role in upholding the standards that we expect of our brand.

As a result of recent changes to the laws governing CBD products, as well as the declining popularity of CBD products, the Company no longer markets or sells any CBD products. The Company hopes to find a suitor or partner to dispose of its CBD related assets but has not entered into any agreements to do so.

Products Roadmap

The Safety Shot Beverage was launched on our own website and through Amazon in December 2023 and is currently speaking with Big Box stores with the intention to launch by the end of the first quarter or early second quarter of 2024.

The Company is advancing several formulations to address psoriasis and vitiligo (Photocil), increase the effectiveness of minoxidil to treat hair loss (JW-700 “minoxidil booster”), women’s sexual wellness (JW-500), and jellyfish sting prevention sunscreen (NoStingz). The Company halted testing related to its atopic dermatitis product and all other compounds and products containing CBD.

Photocil was launched commercially in India in Q3 2022 as a treatment for vitiligo and psoriasis. Photocil is a topical cream that works with natural sunlight to provide patients with safe and effective phototherapy at home by blocking harmful radiation and permitting the passage of therapeutic UV radiation from the sun. The Company plans to re-launch Photocil in the US in the fourth quarter of 2024. The product is an OTC cosmetic product using a USP monographed compound as a skin protectant. The product labelling and ingredients were approved by the FDA.

NoStingz provides an effective barrier against the stinging mechanism of jellyfish cnidocyte preventing the delivery of venom to the victim. Applied like other topical sun screen products, the product is clinically proven to protect users from jellyfish, sea lice, and UVA/UVB rays. It is not intended to treat jellyfish or sea lice bites. As the product contains ingredients with well-established safety profiles it did not require pre-market FDA approval ahead of product launch. Its manufacturing, labeling and components comply with FDA regulations for sunscreens.

JW-700, currently being licensed abroad and developed for US launch, the product has been clinically shown to increase the enzymes needed for minoxidil to work, sulfotransferase enzymes, by using the product topically in conjunction with topical minoxidil. Additional studies and formulation work are ongoing. The Company intends to launch JW-700 in the U.S in the fourth Quarter of 2024.

JW-500 was born out of clinical trials designed to establish a topical treatment for the restoration of nipple sensitivity for breast augmentation patients, in addition to patients who had undergone chemotherapy or lumpectomy surgery following a cancer diagnosis. The Company plans to complete the formulation and test launch the product in Q4, 2024.

Design of SS-100 formulation will be completed after the reviewing the results of the on-going clinical trial of the Safety Shot Beverage. Thereafter the Company plans to set up a Pre-IND meeting with the FDA, unlike Safety Shot Beverage which does not require FDA approval on grounds of being a dietary supplement product. SS-100 will be classified as a drug as it will used to treat acute alcohol poisoning which the Company believes meets the definition of a rare disease as described below, and will require filing an IND with the FDA and conducting clinical trials to determine safety and efficacy. The Company plans to seek Orphan Drug Designation for SS-100, a modified version of Safety Shot Beverage. Given that the FDA defines a drug as Orphan if it is used for the treatment, prevention or diagnosis of a rare disease or condition, which is one that affects less than 200,000 persons in the US (which equates to approximately 6 cases per 10,000) and that Acute Alcohol Poisoning (which has ~ 10% fatality rate and has ~20,000 cases in US) meets these criteria and therefor it meets the criteria for Orphan Drug Designation. Orphan Drug status provides certain benefits to the Company including exclusive marketing and development rights, tax credits and fee waivers. The development of the modified Safety Shot Beverage which we call SS-100 designed to treat acute alcohol poisoning will require the filing of an IND and controlled clinical trials to establish safety and efficacy. As with any other drug, the Company will be required to take the steps necessary to have any drug approved. The main steps are (i) the request for a pre-IND meeting with the FDA for feedback on clinical plans, (ii) based on the feedback from (i) to file an IND, (iii) subject to IND acceptance by the FDA conduct Phase 1, phase 2 and Phase 3 clinical trials and then submit an NDA for product approval. A company seeking orphan drug designation for a drug must submit a request for designation to the agency. The company requesting designation of the same drug for the same rare disease or condition as a previously designated product must submit their own data and information to support their designation request. Orphan drug designation is a separate process from seeking approval or licensing. Drugs for rare diseases go through the same rigorous scientific review process as any other drug for approval or licensing. Without receiving such product approval, the drug product can’t be sold.

For a detailed timeline of the products, please see “Our Business – Product Roadmap” section on page 43.

Research and Development

Our research and development team in continually looking to develop new therapeutic products, while continually improving and enhancing our existing products and product candidates to address customer demands and emerging trends to develop more effective formulas for our JW-700 product.

We have conducted extensive research and experimentation involving a substantial number of volunteers under the influence of intoxicants. Our findings indicate that the Safety Shot Beverage can reduce a person’s Blood Alcohol Content, as measured by the premier Breathalyzer in the market. The observable enhancements in cognitive abilities among the test subjects have been carefully documented. See “Business-Research and Development”

The Company incurred research and development expenses of $100,591 and $1,637,117 for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Sales and Marketing

We primarily sell our products through e-commerce websites including Amazon. To drive loyalty, word-of-mouth marketing, and sustainable growth, we invest in customer experience and customer relationship management. Our marketing investments are directed towards driving profitable growth through advertising, public relations, and brand promotion activities, including digital platforms, sponsorships, collaborations, brand activations, and channel marketing. Additionally, we continue to invest in our marketing and brand development efforts by investing capital expenditures on product displays to support our channel marketing via our retail partners. We are currently speaking with Big Box stores with the intention to launch end of the first quarter to early second quarter of 2024.

Manufacturing, Logistics and Fulfillment

We outsource the manufacturing of our products to contract manufacturers, who produce them according to our formulation specifications. Our products are manufactured by contract manufacturers in India and the US. The majority of our products will then be shipped to third-party warehouses and to our corporate offices, which can either transport them to our distributors, retailers, or directly to our customers. Our third-party warehouses are located in the US. We use a limited number of logistics providers to deliver our products to both distributors and retailers, which allows us to lessen order fulfillment time, cut shipping costs, and improve inventory flexibility.

SRM Entertainment

The Company entered into a stock exchange agreement (the “Exchange Agreement”) with SRM Entertainment, Inc. (“SRM”) to govern the separation of SRM and the Company. On May 26, 2023, we amended and restated the Exchange Agreement (the “Amended and Restated Exchange Agreement”) to include additional information regarding the distribution and the separation of SRM and the Company. The separation as set forth in the Amended and Restated Exchange Agreement with the Company closed August 14, 2023. Pursuant to the Amended and Restated Exchange Agreement, on May 31, 2023, SRM issued to the Company 6,500,000 shares of SRM Common Stock (representing 79.3% of SRM’s outstanding shares of Common Stock) in exchange for 2 ordinary shares of SRM Ltd owned by the Company (representing all of the issued and outstanding ordinary shares of SRM) (the “Share Exchange”). On August 14, 2023, SRM consummated its Initial Public Offering (“IPO”), pursuant to which it sold 1,250,000 shares of its common stock at a price of $5.00 per share. In connection with the Share Exchange and SRM’s IPO, the Company distributed 2,000,000 shares of SRM’s common stock to the Company’s stockholders and certain warrant holders (out of the 6.5 million shares issued in May 2023) which occurred on the effective date of the Registration Statement but prior to the closing of the IPO. Following such distribution, the Company owns 4.0 million of the 9,450,000 shares of common stock outstanding and SRM is now a minority owned subsidiary of the Company.

Our Competitive Strengths

We are committed to driving continuous improvement through innovation. Since our inception, we have made significant investments in research and development and have acquired a substantial portfolio of intellectual property, which continues to grow each year. Our commitment to innovation has allowed us to create unique products that address unmet needs in the market, all backed by rigorous clinical research. We believe that our focus on research and development is designed to enable us to stay ahead of the curve and provide our customers with products that are not only effective but also innovative. We take pride in our patent portfolio and the continuous growth we have achieved, as we believe that it showcases our dedication to creating new and unique solutions for our customers. By staying committed to innovation, we are confident in our ability to meet the ever-changing needs of the health and wellness market. We believe that the Safety Shot Beverage stands as a unique product in the dietary supplement beverage market. Nevertheless, our competitive landscape includes many companies involved in the production of health and welfare products, including beverages.

Recent Developments

On January 19, 2023, the Company entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement (the “PIPE Agreement”) with certain purchasers, for the issuance of 8,631,574 common stock warrants (the “PIPE Offering”) at a price of $0.125 per warrant, comprised of two common stock warrants (the “Common Warrants,”), each to purchase up to one share of Common Stock per Common Warrant with an exercise price of $1.00 per share, with (a) 4,315,787 Common Warrants being immediately exercisable for three years following 6 months from the closing of the PIPE Offering, and (b) 4,315,787 Common Warrants being immediately exercisable for five years following 6 months from the closing of the PIPE Offering. Concurrently to the PIPE Agreement, the Company entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement (the “RD Agreement”) with certain purchasers, pursuant to which on January 23, 2023, 4,315,787 shares of common stock, par value $0.001 (the “Common Stock”), at a price of $0.70 per share were issued to the purchasers (the “RD Offering”). The Common Stock was issued pursuant to a Registration Statement on Form S-3 filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) on September 28, 2022 (File No. 333-267644) and declared effective on November 9, 2022. The aggregate gross proceeds to the Company from both the PIPE Offering and the RD Offering were approximately $4.1 million, with the purchase price of one share, one 3-year warrant and one 5-year warrant as $0.95. The net proceeds were $3,450,675.

On March 31, 2023 the Company entered into a Financial Advisory Agreement (“FSA”) with Greentree Financial Group, Inc. to render certain professional services to the Company. In connection with the FSA, the Company issued 500,000 restricted shares of its common stock to Greentree.

On July 10, 2023, the Company entered into an asset purchase agreement (the “Agreement”) with GBB Labs, Inc., a Delaware corporation set up as an acquisition company (“Buyer”), GBB Drink Lab Inc., a Florida corporation (“Seller”), 2V Consulting LLC, a Florida limited liability company, the Jarrett A Boon Revocable Trust Dated October 22, 2014, Gregory D. Blackman, an individual and Brothers Investment 7777, LLC. Pursuant to the Agreement, the Buyer purchased certain assets relating to the Safety Shot Beverage for a consideration comprising of: (a) the sum of Two Hundred Thousand U.S. Dollars (US $200,000) (the “Cash Purchase Price”); and (b) 5,000,000 Common Shares (the “Consideration Shares” and together with the Cash Purchase Price, collectively, the “Purchase Price”). The asset purchase was closed on August 31, 2023.

Intellectual Property

We filed Provisional Patent (CBD Formulations and Uses Thereof: USAN: 62/884,995) on a combination of CBD and Aspartame on August 8, 2019. The patent is to cover any products that contain a combination of CBD and Aspartame. This initially was intended to cover the products under the CaniDermRX Brand. The provisional patent application was converted into a full US patent application (No.: 16/987,941) and PCT application (PCT/US2020/045408I) on August 9, 2020. If issued, the patent will give patent protection until 2040. The Company no longer sells CaniDermRX products.

We filed Provisional Patent (CBD Sunscreen Formulations and Uses Thereof: USAN: 63/005,854) on our CBD-infused sunscreen products on August 6, 2020. The patent is to cover any products under our CaniSun product line that contains CBD. The priority date starts at the time the provisional is converted into a full patent application, which occurred on April 6, 2021. If issued, the patent will give patent protection until 2041. The Company no longer sells CaniSun products.

We filed Provisional Patent (Oroanasal CBD formulations and uses thereof (No.: 63/042,458) on June 22, 2020. This covers the use of CBD products for the treatment of respiratory viruses. We are not advancing these products as they contain CBD.

As of the date hereof, the Company owns five patents, including the patent (US 9,186,350 B2) and patent (US 10,028,991 B2) for the composition of the Safety Shot Beverage used for minimizing the harmful effects associated with alcohol consumption.

Government Regulation

The Safety Shot Beverage:

The production, distribution and sale in the United States of the Safety Shot Beverage is subject to various U.S. federal, state and local regulations, including but not limited to: the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (“FD&C Act”); the Occupational Safety and Health Act and various state laws and regulations governing workplace health and safety; various environmental statutes; the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 (“California Proposition 65”); data privacy and personal data protection laws and regulations, including the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (as modified by the California Privacy Rights Act) and a number of other federal, state and local statutes and regulations applicable to the production, transportation, sale, safety, advertising, marketing, labeling, packaging, and ingredients of the Safety Shot Beverage.

We also may in the future be affected by other existing, proposed and potential future regulations or regulatory actions, including those described below, any of which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Furthermore, legislation and regulation may be introduced in the United States at the federal, state, municipal and supranational level in respect of each of the subject areas discussed below. Public health officials and health advocates are increasingly focused on the public health consequences associated with obesity and alcohol consumption, especially as they may affect children, and are seeking legislative change to reduce the consumption of sweetened and alcohol beverages.

We are subject to a number of regulations applicable to the formulation, labeling, packaging, and advertising (including promotional campaigns) of our products. In California, we are subject to California Proposition 65, a law which requires that a specified warning be provided before exposing California consumers to any product that contains in excess of threshold amounts of a substance listed by California as having been found to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity. California Proposition 65 does not require a warning if the manufacturer of a product can demonstrate that the use of the product in question exposes consumers to an average daily quantity of a listed substance that is below that threshold amount, which is determined either by scientific criteria set forth in applicable regulations or via a “safe harbor” threshold that may be established by the state, or the substance is naturally occurring, or is subject to another applicable exception. As of the date of this registration statement, we are not required to put a warning label on our product and our products are perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (“PFAS”) free. We are unable to predict whether a component found in our product might be added to the California list in the future. Furthermore, we are also unable to predict when or whether the increasing sensitivity of detection methodology may become applicable under this law and related regulations as they currently exist, or as they may be amended. If we are required to add warning labels to any of our products or place warnings in certain locations where our products are sold, it will be difficult to predict whether, or to what extent, such a warning would have an adverse impact on sales of our products in those locations or elsewhere. In addition, there has been increasing regulatory activity globally regarding constituents in packaging materials, including PFAS. Regardless of whether perceived health consequences of these constituents are justified, such regulatory activity could result in additional government regulations that impact the packaging of our beverages.

In addition, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the “FDA”) has regulations with respect to serving size information and nutrition labeling on food and beverage products, including a requirement to disclose the amount of added sugars in such products. Further, the U.S. Department of Agriculture promulgated regulations requiring that, by January 1, 2022, the labels of certain bioengineered foods include a disclosure that the food is bioengineered. These regulations may impact, reduce and/or otherwise affect the purchase and consumption of our products by consumers.

All ingredients in the Safety Shot Beverage are deemed Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) and align with FDA standards, permitting their inclusion in supplements. In the event that the FDA or any governmental agency identifies an ingredient or aspect of our product as unsafe, we commit to promptly withdrawing that component in accordance with regulatory directives. From a product and sales perspective, there are no impediments or concerns raised by any governmental agency. It is essential to note that the Safety Shot Beverage is classified as a dietary supplement, exempt from the approval or filing requirements mandated for pharmaceutical drugs by the FDA or other regulatory authorities.

The development of SS-100 concentrate for the treatment of acute alcohol poisoning will require filing an IND with the FDA for a clinical program to demonstrate safety and efficacy, unlike Safety Shot Beverage which does not require FDA approval on grounds of being a dietary supplement product.

The process for obtaining Orphan Drug designation is to submit an application to the FDA that provides data (patient population; uniqueness of product) supporting the application. The FDA will make a determination based on the data and whether it is unique against other drugs in the same category already granted Orphan Drug status.

Other Products

The development and manufacturing of JW 500, JW 700, and Photocil are subject to various U.S. federal, state and local regulations, including but not limited to: the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (“FD&C Act”); the Occupational Safety and Health Act and various state laws and regulations governing workplace health and safety; various environmental statutes. JW 500, and JW700, are cosmetic products and do not require pre-marketing approval but must follow the FDA guidelines on manufacturing. We are fully compliant with these guidelines. Photocil is an OTC product and has received FDA approval for packaging and ingredients.

NoStingz follows the FDA requirements, i.e. manufacturing, labelling and components, for sunscreens.

The laws related to CBD have undergone significant change. From the passage of the Farm Bill to recent proclamations from the FDA the laws and rules related to CBD procucts have changed. As a result of the uncertainty regarding CBD rules, coupled with the reduced demand for CBD products, the Company recently made a decision not to market or sell any further CBD products. We had not generated any significant revenues from the sale of CBD products.

Overall, we believe that our sunscreen products comply with the FDA Final Rule for sunscreen products under 21 CFR 352 Sunscreen products for Over-the-Counter Human Use. Therefore, we believe that our sunscreen products fall within the FDA monograph and that FDA premarket approval and testing is not required. Our products have been tested for SPF Evaluation (SPF rating), Critical Wave Length (Broad Spectrum claim) and Water Resistance, each of which is defined within the monograph and labeled accordingly.

Our products are tested each time they are manufactured. NoStingz is manufactured by DCR Labs and is compliant with the FDA’s Current Good Manufacturing Practice (“CGMP”) regulations in accordance with 21 CFR 210/211 (required for Over-the-Counter drug products). DCR Labs has self-imposed health and safety standards to ensure compliance with the FDA’s CGMPs.

However, as a result of uncertainty regarding government regulation, and a declining market for CBD products, the Company is no longer marketing or selling any CBD related products, including our CaniSun sunscreen product.

Human Capital

We are committed to producing exceptional therapeutic products for our customers, and our employees play a crucial role in realizing this vision. To keep advancing innovative products and remain competitive in our fast-paced and fiercely competitive market, it is essential that we attract and retain talented and skilled employees. To achieve this goal, we endeavor to provide a compensation and benefits package that is competitive, cultivate a culture of inclusivity where everyone feels supported and empowered to excel, and create opportunities for our staff to contribute to their communities and make a positive social impact..

As of December 31, 2023, we had eight full-time employees. We believe our relations with our employees to be good.

Properties

Currently, we do not own any real property. We rent office space at 1061 E. Indiantown Rd., Ste. 110, Jupiter, FL 33477 for $15,038 per month. The Company entered into the office lease effective July 1, 2021, which has a primary term of the lease of five years with one renewal option for an additional three years.

Available Information

We aim to provide our stakeholders with transparent and timely information on our company’s performance. As such, we offer free access to our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, and any changes made to those reports filed or furnished under Sections 13(a) or Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”), as amended, through our website. We make these reports available as soon as reasonably feasible after submitting them electronically to the SEC.

The SEC maintains an internet site (www.sec.gov (http://www.sec.gov)) that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC.

Risk factors

As filed, 66,894 characters, with its headings, lists and tables. Extracted from the main document; charts and exhibits are in the original on sec.gov.

Risks Related to Our Business

If we are unable to keep up with rapid technological changes, our products may become obsolete.

The market for our products is characterized by significant and rapid change. Although we will continue to expand our product line capabilities to remain competitive, research and discoveries by others may make our processes, products, or brands less attractive or even obsolete.

Competition could adversely affect our business.

Our industry in general is competitive. It is possible that future competitors could enter our market, thereby causing us to lose market share and revenues. In addition, some of our current or future competitors may have significantly greater financial, technical, marketing, and other resources than we do or may have more experience or advantages in the markets in which we will compete that will allow them to offer lower prices or higher quality products. If we do not successfully compete with these competitors, we could fail to develop market share and our future business prospects could be adversely affected.

If we are unable to develop and maintain our brand and reputation for our product offerings, our business and prospects could be materially harmed.

Our business and prospects depend, in part, on developing and then maintaining and strengthening our brand and reputation in the markets we serve. If problems with our products cause our customers to have a negative experience or failure or delay in the delivery of our products to our customers, our brand and reputation could be diminished. If we fail to develop, promote and maintain our brand and reputation successfully, our business and prospects could be materially harmed.

We are subject to government regulation, and unfavorable changes could substantially harm our business and results of operations.

We are subject to general business regulations and laws as well as regulations and laws specifically governing our industries in the U.S. and other countries in which we operate. Uncertainty surrounding existing and future laws and regulations may impede our services and increase the cost of providing such services. These regulations and laws may cover taxation, tariffs, user pricing, distribution, consumer protection and the characteristics and quality of services.

Existing or probable governmental regulations relating to CBD products may harm or prevent our ability to sell our product offering.

A majority of state governments in the United States have legalized the growing, production, and use of CBD. However, cannabis remains illegal under federal law. In addition, in July 2017, the United States Drug Enforcement Agency issued a statement that certain CBD extractions fall within the definition of marijuana and are therefore a Schedule I controlled substance under the Controlled Substances Act of 1970, as amended. Thus, the cannabis industry, including companies which sell products containing CBD, faces very uncertain regulation by the federal government. While the federal government has for several years chosen to not intervene in the cannabis business conducted legally within the states that have legislated such activities, there is, nonetheless, potential that the federal government may at any time choose to begin enforcing its laws against the manufacture, possession, or use of cannabis-based products such as CBD. Similarly, there is the possibility that the federal government may enact legislation or rules that authorize the manufacturing, possession or use of those products under specific guidelines. Local, state and federal cannabis laws and regulations are broad in scope and subject to evolving interpretations. In the event the federal government was to tighten its regulation of the industry, we would likely suffer a material adverse effect on our business, including substantial losses. We have recently ceased the marketing and sale of CBD products. These regulations could negatively affect our ability to dispose of our CBD related assets.

We depend heavily on key personnel, and turnover of key senior management could harm our business.

Our future business and results of operations depend in significant part upon the continued contributions of our senior management personnel. If we lose their services or if they fail to perform in their current positions, or if we are not able to attract and retain skilled personnel as needed, our business could suffer. Significant turnover in our senior management could significantly deplete our institutional knowledge held by our existing senior management team. We depend on the skills and abilities of these key personnel in managing the product acquisition, marketing and sales aspects of our business, any part of which could be harmed by turnover in the future. We may not have written employment agreements with all of our senior management. We do not have any key person insurance.

Our products may not meet health and safety standards or could become contaminated.

We do not have control over all of the third parties involved in the manufacturing of our products and their compliance with government health and safety standards. Even if our products meet these standards, they could otherwise become contaminated. A failure to meet these standards or contamination could occur in our operations or those of our manufacturers, distributors or suppliers. This could result in expensive production interruptions, recalls and liability claims. Moreover, negative publicity could be generated from false, unfounded or nominal liability claims or limited recalls. Any of these failures or occurrences could negatively affect our business and financial performance.

The sale of our products involves product liability and related risks that could expose us to significant insurance and loss expenses.

We face an inherent risk of exposure to product liability claims if the use of our products results in, or is believed to have resulted in, illness or injury. Our products contain combinations of ingredients, and there is little long-term experience with the effect of these combinations. In addition, interactions of these products with other products, prescription medicines and over-the-counter treatments have not been fully explored or understood and may have unintended consequences.

Any product liability claim may increase our costs and adversely affect our revenue and operating income. Moreover, liability claims arising from a serious adverse event may increase our costs through higher insurance premiums and deductibles and may make it more difficult to secure adequate insurance coverage in the future. In addition, our product liability insurance may fail to cover future product liability claims, which, if adversely determined, could subject us to substantial monetary damages.

The success of our business will depend upon our ability to create and expand our brand awareness.

The markets we compete in, including the wellness drink market, sexual wellness and hair growth markets we intend to compete in, are highly competitive, with many well-known brands leading the industry. Our ability to compete effectively and generate revenue will be based upon our ability to create and expand awareness of our products distinct from those of our competitors. It is imperative that we are able to convey to consumers the benefits of our products. However, advertising and packaging and labeling of such products will be limited by various regulations. Our success will be dependent upon our ability to convey to consumers that our products are superior to those of our competitors.

We must develop and introduce new products to succeed.

Our industry is subject to rapid change. New products are constantly introduced to the market. Our ability to remain competitive depends in part on our ability to enhance existing products, to develop and manufacture new products in a timely and cost-effective manner, to accurately predict market transitions, and to effectively market our products. Our future financial results will depend to a great extent on the successful introduction of several new products. We cannot be certain that we will be successful in selecting, developing, manufacturing and marketing new products or in enhancing existing products.

The success of new product introductions depends on various factors, including, without limitation, the following:

  • Successful sales and marketing efforts;
  • Timely delivery of new products;
  • Availability of raw materials;
  • Pricing of raw materials;
  • Regulatory allowance of the products; and
  • Customer acceptance of new products

Adverse publicity associated with our products or ingredients, or those of similar companies, could adversely affect our sales and revenue.

Adverse publicity concerning any actual or purported failure by us to comply with applicable laws and regulations regarding any aspect of our business could have an adverse effect on the public perception of us. This, in turn, could negatively affect our ability to obtain financing, endorsers and attract distributors or retailers for our products, which would have a material adverse effect on our ability to generate sales and revenue.

Our distributors’ and customers’ perception of the safety and quality of our products or even similar products distributed by others can be significantly influenced by national media attention, publicized scientific research or findings, product liability claims and other publicity concerning our products or similar products distributed by others. Adverse publicity, whether or not accurate, that associates consumption of our products or any similar products with illness or other adverse effects, will likely diminish the public’s perception of our products. Claims that any products are ineffective, inappropriately labeled or have inaccurate instructions as to their use, could have a material adverse effect on the market demand for our products, including reducing our sales and revenue.

We do not have and may never have any products on the market that have been approved for the treatment of disease. Our business is highly dependent upon receiving approvals from various U.S. and international governmental agencies and will be severely harmed if we are not granted approval to manufacture and sell our product candidates.

In order for us to commercialize a product for the treatment of any disease, we must obtain regulatory approvals of such treatment for that indication. Satisfying regulatory requirements is an expensive process that typically takes many years and involves compliance with requirements covering research and development, testing, manufacturing, quality control, labeling, and promotion of drugs for human use. To obtain necessary regulatory approvals, we must, among other requirements, complete clinical trials demonstrating that our products are safe and effective for a particular indication. There can be no assurance that our products will prove to be safe and effective, that our clinical trials will demonstrate the necessary safety and effectiveness of our product candidates, or that we will succeed in obtaining regulatory approval for any treatment we develop even if such safety and effectiveness are demonstrated.

Any delays or difficulties we encounter in our clinical trials may delay or preclude regulatory approval from the FDA or from international regulatory organizations. Any delay or preclusion of regulatory approval would be expected to delay or preclude the commercialization of our products. Examples of delays or difficulties that we may encounter in our clinical trials include without limitation the following:

  • Clinical trials may not yield sufficiently conclusive results for regulatory agencies to approve the use of our products;
  • Our products may fail to be more effective than current therapies, or to be effective at all;
  • We may discover that our products have adverse side effects, which could cause our products to be delayed or precluded from receiving regulatory approval or otherwise expose us to significant commercial and legal risks;
  • It may take longer than expected to determine whether or not a treatment is effective;
  • Patients involved in our clinical trials may suffer severe adverse side effects even up to death, whether as a result of treatment with our products, the withholding of such treatment, or other reasons (whether within or outside of our control);
  • We may fail to be able to enroll a sufficient number of patients in our clinical trials;
  • Patients enrolled in our clinical trials may not have the characteristics necessary to obtain regulatory approval for a particular indication or patient population;

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  • We may be unable to produce sufficient quantities of product to complete the clinical trials;
  • Even if we are successful in our clinical trials, any required governmental approvals may still not be obtained or, if obtained, may not be maintained;
  • If approval for commercialization is granted, it is possible the authorized use will be more limited than is necessary for commercial success, or that approval may be conditioned on completion of further clinical trials or other activities, which will cause a substantial increase in costs and which we might not succeed in performing or completing; and
  • If granted, approval may be withdrawn or limited if problems with our products emerge or are suggested by the data arising from their use or if there is a change in law or regulation.

Any success we may achieve at a given stage of our clinical trials does not guarantee that we will achieve success at any subsequent stage, including without limitation final FDA approval.

We may encounter delays or rejections in the regulatory approval process because of additional government regulation resulting from future legislation or administrative action, or from changes in the policies of the FDA or other regulatory bodies during the period of product development, clinical trials, or regulatory review. Failure to comply with applicable regulatory requirements may result in criminal prosecution, civil penalties, recall or seizure of products, total or partial suspension of production, or an injunction preventing certain activity, as well as other regulatory action against our product candidates or us. We have no experience in successfully obtaining regulatory approval for a product and thus may be poorly equipped to gauge, and may prove unable to manage, risks relating to obtaining such approval.

Outside the U.S., our ability to market a product is contingent upon receiving clearances from appropriate non-U.S. regulatory authorities. Non-U.S. regulatory approval typically includes all of the risks associated with FDA clearance discussed above as well as geopolitical uncertainties and the additional uncertainties and potential prejudices faced by U.S. pharmaceutical companies conducting business abroad. In certain cases, pricing restrictions and practices can make achieving even limited profitability very difficult.

We have limited experience in completing regulatory filings and any delays in regulatory filings could materially affect our financial condition.

We are currently initiating clinical trials of our product candidates. We have not, however, demonstrated the ability to obtain marketing approvals, manufacture product candidates at a commercial scale, or conduct sales and marketing activities necessary for the successful commercialization of a product. Consequently, we have no historical basis as a company by which one can evaluate or predict reliably our future success or viability.

Additionally, while our team has experience at prior companies with regulatory filings, we have limited experience with regulatory filings with agencies such as the FDA or the European Medicines Agency, or EMA, and will rely on third-party expertise for this. Any delay in our regulatory filings for our product candidates, and any adverse development or perceived adverse development with respect to the applicable regulatory authority’s review of such filings, including, without limitation, the FDA’s issuance of a “refuse to file” letter or a request for additional information, could materially affect our financial condition.

If serious adverse or undesirable side effects are identified during the development of our product candidates, we may abandon or limit our development or commercialization of such product candidates.

If our product candidates are associated with undesirable side effects or have unexpected characteristics, we may need to abandon their development or limit development to certain uses or subpopulations in which the undesirable side effects or other characteristics are less prevalent, less severe or more acceptable from a risk-benefit perspective.

If we elect or are forced to suspend or terminate any clinical trial with one of our product candidates, the commercial prospects of such product candidate will be harmed, and our ability to generate revenue from such product candidate will be delayed or eliminated. Any of these occurrences may harm our business, financial condition and prospects significantly.

If we experience delays or difficulties in the enrollment of subjects to our clinical trials, our receipt of necessary regulatory approvals could be delayed or prevented, which could materially affect our financial condition.

Identifying, screening and enrolling patients to participate in clinical trials of our product candidates is critical to our success, and we may not be able to identify, recruit, enroll and dose a sufficient number of patients with the required or desired characteristics to complete our clinical trials in a timely manner. The timing of our clinical trials depends on our ability to recruit patients to participate as well as to subsequently dose these patients and complete required follow-up periods. In particular, because our planned clinical trials may be focused on indications with relatively small patient populations, our ability to enroll eligible patients may be limited or may result in slower enrollment than we anticipate.

In addition, we may experience enrollment delays related to increased or unforeseen regulatory, legal and logistical requirements at certain clinical trial sites. These delays could be caused by reviews by regulatory authorities and contractual discussions with individual clinical trial sites. Any delays in enrolling and/or dosing patients in our planned clinical trials could result in increased costs, delays in advancing our product candidates, delays in testing the effectiveness of our product candidates or in termination of the clinical trials altogether.

Patient enrollment may be affected if our competitors have ongoing clinical trials with products for the same indications as our product candidates, and patients who would otherwise be eligible for our clinical trials instead enroll in our competitors’ clinical trials. Patient enrollment may also be affected by other factors, including:

  • coordination with clinical research organizations to enroll and administer the clinical trials;
  • coordination and recruitment of collaborators and investigators at individual sites;
  • size of the patient population and process for identifying patients;
  • design of the clinical trial protocol;
  • eligibility and exclusion criteria;
  • perceived risks and benefits of the product candidates under study;
  • availability of competing commercially available therapies and other competing products’ clinical trials;
  • time of year in which the trials are initiated or conducted;
  • severity of the diseases under investigation;
  • ability to obtain and maintain subject consents;
  • ability to enroll and treat patients in a timely manner;
  • risk that enrolled subjects will drop out before completion of the trials;
  • proximity and availability of clinical trial sites for prospective patients;
  • ability to monitor subjects adequately during and after treatment; and
  • patient referral practices of physicians.

Our inability to enroll a sufficient number of patients for clinical trials would result in significant delays and could require us to abandon one or more clinical trials altogether. Enrollment delays in these clinical trials may result in increased development costs for our product candidates, which could materially affect our financial condition.

If we or our licensees, development collaborators, or suppliers are unable to manufacture our products in sufficient quantities or at defined quality specifications or are unable to obtain regulatory approvals for the manufacturing facility, we may be unable to develop or meet demand for our products and lose time to market and potential revenues.

Completion of our clinical trials and commercialization of our product candidates require access to, or development of, facilities to manufacture a sufficient supply of our product candidates. We intend to utilize third parties to manufacture our products.

In the future we may become unable, for various reasons, to rely on our sources for the manufacture of our product candidates, either for clinical trials or, at some future date, for commercial distribution. We may not be successful in identifying additional or replacement third-party manufacturers, or in negotiating acceptable terms with any we do identify. We may face competition for access to these manufacturers’ facilities and may be subject to manufacturing delays if the manufacturers give other clients higher priority than they give to us. Even if we are able to identify an additional or replacement third-party manufacturer, the delays and costs associated with establishing and maintaining a relationship with such manufacturer may have a material adverse effect on us.

Before we can begin to commercially manufacture any product candidate, we must obtain regulatory approval of the manufacturing facility and process. Manufacturing of drugs for clinical and commercial purposes must comply with current Good Manufacturing Practices requirements, commonly known as “cGMP.” The cGMP requirements govern quality control and documentation policies and procedures. Complying with cGMP and non-U.S. regulatory requirements will require that we expend time, money, and effort in production, recordkeeping, and quality control to ensure that the product meets applicable specifications and other requirements. We, or our contracted manufacturing facility, must also pass a pre-approval inspection prior to FDA approval. Failure to pass a pre-approval inspection may significantly delay or prevent FDA approval of our products. If we fail to comply with these requirements, we would be subject to possible regulatory action and may be limited in the jurisdictions in which we are permitted to sell our products and will lose time to market and potential revenues.

It is uncertain whether product liability insurance will be adequate to address product liability claims, or that insurance against such claims will be affordable or available on acceptable terms in the future.

Clinical research involves the testing of new drugs on human volunteers pursuant to a clinical trial protocol. Such testing involves a risk of liability for personal injury to or death of patients due to, among other causes, adverse side effects, improper administration of the new drug, or improper volunteer behavior. Claims may arise from patients, clinical trial volunteers, consumers, physicians, hospitals, companies, institutions, researchers, or others using, selling, or buying our products, as well as from governmental bodies. In addition, product liability and related risks are likely to increase over time, in particular upon the commercialization or marketing of any products by us or parties with which we enter into development, marketing, or distribution collaborations. Although we are contracting for general liability insurance in connection with our ongoing business, there can be no assurance that the amount and scope of such insurance coverage will be appropriate and sufficient in the event any claims arise, that we will be able to secure additional coverage should we attempt to do so, or that our insurers would not contest or refuse any attempt by us to collect on such insurance policies. Furthermore, there can be no assurance that suitable product liability insurance (at the clinical stage and/or commercial stage) will continue to be available on terms acceptable to us or at all, or that, if obtained, the insurance coverage will be appropriate and sufficient to cover any potential claims or liabilities.

If we are unable to establish relationships with licensees or collaborators to carry out sales, marketing, and distribution functions or to create effective marketing, sales, and distribution capabilities, we will be unable to market our products successfully.

Our business strategy may include out-licensing product candidates to or collaborating with larger firms with experience in marketing and selling pharmaceutical products. There can be no assurance that we will successfully be able to establish marketing, sales, or distribution relationships with any third-party, that such relationships, if established, will be successful, or that we will be successful in gaining market acceptance for any products we might develop. To the extent that we enter into any marketing, sales, or distribution arrangements with third parties, our product revenues per unit sold are expected to be lower than if we marketed, sold, and distributed our products directly, and any revenues we receive will depend upon the efforts of such third parties.

If we are unable to establish such third-party marketing and sales relationships, or choose not to do so, we would have to establish in-house marketing and sales capabilities. To market any products directly, we would have to establish a marketing, sales, and distribution force that has technical expertise and could support a distribution capability. Competition in the biopharmaceutical industry for technically proficient marketing, sales, and distribution personnel is intense and attracting and retaining such personnel may significantly increase our costs. There can be no assurance that we will be able to establish internal marketing, sales, or distribution capabilities or that these capabilities will be sufficient to meet our needs.

The commercial success of our non-OTC product candidates will depend on the acceptance of these products by physicians, payers, and patients.

Any non-OTC product candidate that we may develop may not gain market acceptance among physicians and patients. Market acceptance of and demand for any non-OTC product that we may develop will depend on many factors, including without limitation:

  • Comparative superiority of the effectiveness and safety in the treatment of the disease indication compared to alternative treatments;
  • Less prevalence and severity of adverse side effects;
  • Potential advantages over alternative treatments;
  • Cost effectiveness;
  • Convenience and ease of administration;
  • Sufficient third-party coverage and/or reimbursement;
  • Strength of sales, marketing and distribution support; and
  • Our ability to provide acceptable evidence of safety and efficacy.

If any non-OTC product candidate developed by us receives regulatory approval but does not achieve an adequate level of market acceptance by physicians, payers, and patients, we may generate insufficient, little, or no product revenue and may not become profitable.

In addition, pandemics, including the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, could decrease consumer spending and adversely affect demand for our products.

Our non-OTC products may not be accepted for reimbursement or properly reimbursed by third-party payers.

The successful commercialization of any non-OTC products we might develop will depend substantially on whether the costs of our non-OTC products and related treatments are reimbursed at acceptable levels by government authorities, private healthcare insurers, and other third-party payers, such as health maintenance organizations. Reimbursement rates may vary, depending upon the third-party payer, the type of insurance plan, and other similar or dissimilar factors. If our non-OTC products do not achieve adequate reimbursement, then the number of physician prescriptions of our products may not be sufficient to make our non-OTC products profitable.

Comparative effectiveness research demonstrating benefits of a competitor’s non-OTC product could adversely affect the sales of our non-OTC product candidates. If third-party payers do not consider our products to be cost-effective compared to other available therapies, they may not cover our products as a benefit under their plans or, if they do, the level of payment may not be sufficient to allow us to sell our non-OTC products on a profitable basis.

Adequate third-party reimbursement may not be available to enable us to maintain price levels sufficient to realize an appropriate return on our investment in the product development of that non-OTC product. In addition, in the U.S. there is a growing emphasis on comparative effectiveness research, both by private payers and by government agencies. To the extent other drugs or therapies are found to be more effective than our non-OTC products, payers may elect to cover such therapies in lieu of our products or reimburse our non-OTC products at a lower rate.

The effects of economic and political pressure to lower pharmaceutical prices are a major threat to the economic viability of new research-based pharmaceutical products, and any development along these lines could materially and adversely affect our prospects.

Emphasis on managed care in the U.S. has increased and we expect this will continue to increase the pressure on pharmaceutical pricing. Coverage policies and third-party reimbursement rates may change at any time. Even if favorable coverage and reimbursement status is attained for one or more products for which we receive regulatory approval, less favorable coverage policies and reimbursement rates may be implemented in the future.

Any development along these lines could materially and adversely affect our prospects. We are unable to predict what legislative or regulatory changes relating to the healthcare industry, including without limitation any changes affecting governmental and/or private or third-party coverage and reimbursement, may be enacted in the future, or what effect such legislative or regulatory changes would have on our business.

If we obtain FDA approval for any of our product candidates, we will be subject to various federal and state fraud and abuse laws; these laws may impact, among other things, our proposed sales, marketing and education programs. Fraud and abuse laws are expected to increase in breadth and in detail, which will likely increase our operating costs and the complexity of our programs to insure compliance with such enhanced laws.

If we obtain FDA approval for any of our product candidates and begin commercializing those products in the U.S., our operations may be directly, or indirectly through our customers, distributors, or other business partners, subject to various federal and state fraud and abuse laws, including, without limitation, anti-kickback statutes and false claims statutes which may increase our operating costs. These laws may impact, among other things, our proposed sales, marketing and education programs.

If our operations are found to be in violation of any of the federal and state fraud and abuse laws or any other governmental regulations that apply to us, we may be subject to criminal actions and significant civil monetary penalties, which would adversely affect our ability to operate our business and our results of operations.

If our operations are found to be in violation of any of the federal and state fraud and abuse laws, including, without limitation, anti-kickback statutes and false claims statutes or any other governmental regulations that apply to us, we may be subject to penalties, including criminal and significant civil monetary penalties, damages, fines, imprisonment, exclusion from participation in government healthcare programs, and the curtailment or restructuring of our operations, any of which could adversely affect our ability to operate our business and our results of operations. To the extent that any of our product candidates are ultimately sold in a foreign country, we may be subject to similar foreign laws and regulations, which may include, for instance, applicable post-marketing requirements, including safety surveillance, anti-fraud and abuse laws, and implementation of corporate compliance programs and reporting of payments or transfers of value to healthcare professionals.

We face business disruption and related risks resulting from the recent pandemic of COVID-19, which could have, and has had, a material adverse effect on our business plan.

Our supply chain and the development of our product candidates, including that of our subsidiaries, could be, and have been, disrupted and materially adversely affected by the recent outbreak of COVID-19. As a result of measures imposed by the governments in affected regions, businesses and schools have been suspended due to quarantines intended to contain this outbreak. We are still assessing our business plans and the impact COVID-19 may have on our supply chain and ability to conduct our clinical trials, but there can be no assurance that this analysis will enable us to avoid part or all of any impact from the spread of COVID-19 or its consequences, including downturns in business sentiment generally. The extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic and global efforts to contain its spread will impact our operations will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted at this time, and include the duration, severity and scope of the pandemic and the actions taken to contain or treat the COVID-19 pandemic.

Natural disasters and other events beyond our control could materially adversely affect us.

Natural disasters or other catastrophic events may cause damage or disruption to our operations, international commerce and the global economy, and thus could have a strong negative effect on us. Our business operations are subject to interruption by natural disasters, fire, power shortages, pandemics and other events beyond our control. Such events could make it difficult or impossible for us to deliver our services to our customers and could decrease demand for our services. The World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic. The extent of the impact of COVID-19 on our operational and financial performance will depend on certain developments, including the duration and spread of the outbreak, the impact on our customers and employees, all of which are uncertain and cannot be predicted. At this point, the overall extent to which COVID-19 may impact our financial condition or results of operations is uncertain.

We have a limited operating history upon which investors can evaluate our future prospects.

We have a limited operating history upon which an evaluation of its business plan or performance and prospects can be made. The business and prospects of the Company must be considered in the light of the potential problems, delays, uncertainties and complications encountered in connection with a newly established business and new industry. The risks include, but are not limited to, the possibility that we will not be able to develop functional and scalable products and services, or that although functional and scalable, our products and services will not be economical to market; that our competitors hold proprietary rights that preclude us from marketing such products; that our competitors market a superior or equivalent product; that we are not able to upgrade and enhance our technologies and products to accommodate new features and expanded service offerings; or the failure to receive necessary regulatory clearances for our products. To successfully introduce and market our products at a profit, we must establish brand name recognition and competitive advantages for our products. There are no assurances that we can successfully address these challenges. If it is unsuccessful, we and our business, financial condition and operating results could be materially and adversely affected.

The current and future expense levels are based largely on estimates of planned operations and future revenues rather than experience. It is difficult to accurately forecast future revenues because our business is new and our market has not been developed. If our forecasts prove incorrect, the business, operating results and financial condition of the Company may be materially and adversely affected. Moreover, we may be unable to adjust our spending in a timely manner to compensate for any unanticipated reduction in revenues. As a result, any significant reduction in revenues may immediately and adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results.

We may not meet our product development and commercialization milestones.

We have established milestones, based upon our expectations regarding our technologies at that time, which we use to assess our progress toward developing our products. These milestones relate to technology and design improvements as well as dates for achieving development goals. If our products exhibit technical defects or are unable to meet cost or performance goals, our commercialization schedule could be delayed and potential purchasers of our initial commercial products may decline to purchase such products or may opt to pursue alternative products.

We may also experience shortages equipment due to manufacturing difficulties. Multiple suppliers provide the components used in manufacturing our products. Our manufacturing operations could be disrupted by fire, earthquake or other natural disaster, a labor-related disruption, failure in supply or other logistical channels, electrical outages or other reasons. If there were a disruption to manufacturing facilities, we would be unable to manufacture until we have restored and re-qualified our manufacturing capability or developed alternative manufacturing facilities.

Our operations in international markets involve inherent risks that we may not be able to control.

Our business plan includes the marketing and sale of our proposed products in international markets. Accordingly, our results could be materially and adversely affected by a variety of uncontrollable and changing factors relating to international business operations, including:

  • Macroeconomic conditions adversely affecting geographies where we intend to do business;
  • Foreign currency exchange rates;
  • Political or social unrest or economic instability in a specific country or region;
  • Higher costs of doing business in foreign countries;
  • Infringement claims on foreign patents, copyrights or trademark rights;

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  • Difficulties in staffing and managing operations across disparate geographic areas;
  • Difficulties associated with enforcing agreements and intellectual property rights through foreign legal systems;
  • Trade protection measures and other regulatory requirements, which affect our ability to import or export our products from or to various countries;
  • Adverse tax consequences;
  • Unexpected changes in legal and regulatory requirements;
  • Military conflict, terrorist activities, natural disasters and medical epidemics; and
  • Our ability to recruit and retain channel partners in foreign jurisdictions.

Risk Related to SRM Spin-Off

We may be unable to achieve some or all of the expected benefits of the Spin-Off, and the Spin-Off may adversely affect our business.

Although we believe that separating SRM into a stand-alone, publicly traded company (the “Spin-off”) provided financial, operational and other benefits to us and our stockholders, we cannot provide assurance that we will achieve the full strategic and financial benefits expected from the Spin-Off. The Spin-off resulted in us being a smaller, less diversified company, making us more vulnerable to changing market and economic conditions. Our business is now more concentrated in health and wellness products, and we have greater exposure to legal, regulatory, political and other risks relating to the health and wellness industry. In addition, as a smaller company, our ability to absorb costs may be negatively impacted, and we may be unable to obtain financing, insurance, goods or services at prices or on terms that are as favorable as those obtained by us prior to the Spin-off. Any of these factors could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows, business prospects and the trading price of our common stock.

Our ability to meet our capital needs may be harmed by the loss of revenue from SRM.

The Spin-off resulted in the Company’s equity interest in SRM being reduced to approximately 45% and the Company is no longer able to consolidate the operations of SRM and the Company in its financial statements. This will result in a significant reduction of the Company’s revenues as approximately 98% of the Company’s revenues in the year ended December 31, 2022 were derived from the SRM business. The loss of revenue from SRM could harm our ability to meet our capital needs. After the spin-off, we expect to obtain any additional funds needed in excess of the amounts generated by our operating activities through the capital markets or bank financing, and not from revenue derived by SRM. Further, we cannot guarantee you that we will be able to obtain capital market financing or credit on favorable terms, or at all, in the future. We cannot assure you that our ability to meet our capital needs will not be harmed by the loss of revenue from SRM.

Risks Related to our Financial Position and Capital Needs

Our accountant has indicated doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.

As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company had $3,833,349 and $1,931,068 in cash, accumulated deficit of $65,480,715 and $50,597,674 and cash flow used in operations of $10,515,314 and $6,395,942, respectively. The Company has incurred and expects to continue to incur significant costs in pursuit of its expansion and development plans. These conditions raise doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern and accordingly our auditors have included a going concern opinion in our annual report.

In connection with certain public and private offerings (the “Financing”), the Company offered warrants as part of the Financing packages. During the year ended December 31, 2023, the Warrant Holders exercised a total of 10,266,845 warrants for shares of common stock for a total exercise price of $8,887,837. At December 12, 2023, the Company has 15,758,126 warrants outstanding at an average exercise price of $1.45. The Company expects, although there can be no assurance, that a majority of the outstanding warrants will be exercised in the near future.

In addition to the unexercised warrants, the Company also holds 1,200,821 shares of Chijet Motor Company, Inc. (Nasdaq: CJET) valued at $0.45 per share (as of March 27, 2024). These shares are considered trading shares and are held as marketable securities on the balance sheet. The Company also holds 3,650,048 shares of SRM Entertainment, Inc. (Nasdaq: SRM) valued at $1.41 per share (as of March 27, 2024) and are held as investment in affiliate and are accounted for using the Equity Method. These shares are not covered by an effective registration statement but may be sold subject to Rule 144.

At December 31, 2023, the Company had $3,833,349 in cash and the Company recognizes that it may need to raise additional capital in order to continue to execute its business plan in the future. There is no assurance that the Warrant Holders will exercise their warrants or additional financing will be available if needed or that the Company will be able to obtain financing on terms acceptable to it or whether the Company will become profitable and generate positive operating cash flow. If the Company is unable to obtain revenue producing contracts or financing or if the revenue or financing it does obtain is insufficient to cover any operating losses it may incur, it may be forced to substantially curtail its operations or seek other business opportunities through strategic alliances, acquisitions or other arrangements that may dilute the interests of existing stockholders.

Raising additional capital may cause dilution to our existing stockholders, restrict our operations or require us to relinquish rights to our technologies or other assets.

We may seek additional capital through a combination of private and public equity offerings, debt financings, strategic partnerships and alliances and licensing arrangements. To the extent that we raise additional capital through the sale of equity or convertible debt securities, existing ownership interests will be diluted and the terms of such financings may include liquidation or other preferences that adversely affect the rights of existing stockholders. Debt financings may be coupled with an equity component, such as warrants to purchase shares, which could also result in dilution of our existing stockholders’ ownership. The incurrence of indebtedness would result in increased fixed payment obligations and could also result in certain restrictive covenants, such as limitations on our ability to incur additional debt, limitations on our ability to acquire or license intellectual property rights and other operating restrictions that could adversely impact our ability to conduct our business and may result in liens being placed on our assets and intellectual property. If we were to default on such indebtedness, we could lose such assets and intellectual property.

Our potential for rapid growth and our entry into new markets make it difficult for us to evaluate our current and future business prospects, and we may be unable to effectively manage any growth associated with these new markets, which may increase the risk of your investment and could harm our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flow.

Our proliferation into new markets may place a significant strain on our resources and increase demands on our executive management, personnel and systems, and our operational, administrative and financial resources may be inadequate. We may also not be able to effectively manage any expanded operations, or achieve planned growth on a timely or profitable basis, particularly if the number of customers using our technology significantly increases or their demands and needs change as our business expands. If we are unable to manage expanded operations effectively, we may experience operating inefficiencies, the quality of our products and services could deteriorate, and our business and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

Changes in tax laws and unanticipated tax liabilities could adversely affect our effective income tax rate and ability to achieve profitability.

Our effective income tax rate in the future could be adversely affected by a number of factors including changes in the mix of earnings in countries with differing statutory tax rates, changes in the valuation of deferred tax assets and liabilities and changes in tax laws. We regularly assess all of these matters to determine the adequacy of our tax provision which is subject to discretion. If our assessments are incorrect, it could have an adverse effect on our business and financial condition. There can be no assurance that income tax laws and administrative policies with respect to the income tax consequences generally applicable to us or to our subsidiaries will not be changed in a manner which adversely affects our shareholders.

Risks Related to our Intellectual Property

We may incur substantial costs as a result of litigation or other proceedings relating to patent and other intellectual property rights.

A third party may sue us or one of our strategic collaborators for infringing its intellectual property rights. Likewise, we may need to resort to litigation to enforce licensed rights or to determine the scope and validity of third-party intellectual property rights.

The cost to us of any litigation or other proceeding relating to intellectual property rights, even if resolved in our favor, could be substantial, and the litigation would divert our efforts. Some of our competitors may be able to sustain the costs of complex patent litigation more effectively than we can because they have substantially greater resources. If we do not prevail in this type of litigation, we or our strategic collaborators may be required to pay monetary damages; stop commercial activities relating to the affected products or services; obtain a license in order to continue manufacturing or marketing the affected products or services; or attempt to compete in the market with a substantially similar product.

Uncertainties resulting from the initiation and continuation of any litigation could limit our ability to continue some of our operations. In addition, a court may require that we pay expenses or damages, and litigation could disrupt our commercial activities.

Any inability to protect our intellectual property rights could reduce the value of our products and brands, which could adversely affect our financial condition, results of operations and business.

Our business is partly dependent upon our trademarks, trade secrets, copyrights and other intellectual property rights. Effective intellectual property rights protection, however, may not be available under the laws of every country in which we and our sub-licensees may operate. There is a risk of certain valuable trade secrets, beyond what is described publicly in patents, being exposed to potential infringers. Regardless of our technology being protected by patents or otherwise, there is a risk that other companies may employ the technology without authorization and without recompensing us.

The efforts we have taken to protect our proprietary rights may not be sufficient or effective. Any significant impairment of our intellectual property rights could harm our business or our ability to compete. In addition, protecting our intellectual property rights is costly and time consuming. There is a risk that we may have insufficient resources to counter adequately such infringements through negotiation or the use of legal remedies. It may not be practicable or cost effective for us to fully protect our intellectual property rights in some countries or jurisdictions. If we are unable to successfully identify and stop unauthorized use of our intellectual property, we could lose potential revenue and experience increased operational and enforcement costs, which could adversely affect our financial condition, results of operations and business.

The intellectual property behind our products may include unpublished know-how as well as existing and pending intellectual property protection. All intellectual property protection eventually expires, and unpublished know-how is dependent on key individuals.

The commercialization of our licensed products is partially dependent upon know-how and trade secrets held by certain individuals working with and for us. Because the expertise runs deep in these few individuals, if something were to happen to any or all of them, the ability to properly manufacture our products without compromising quality and performance could be diminished greatly.

Knowledge published in the form of any future intellectual property has finite protection, as all patents and trademarks have a limited life and an expiration date. While continuous efforts will be made to apply for patents and trademarks if appropriate, there is no guarantee that additional patents or trademarks will be granted. The expiration of patents and trademarks relating to our products may hinder our ability to sub-license or sell our products for a long period of time without the development of a more complex licensing strategy.

If we are not able to adequately protect our intellectual property, then we may not be able to compete effectively, and we may not be profitable.

Our existing proprietary rights may not afford remedies and protections necessary to prevent infringement, reformulation, theft, misappropriation and other improper use of our products by competitors. We own the formulations contained in our products and we consider these product formulations to be our critical proprietary property, which must be protected from competitors. Although trade secret, trademark, copyright and patent laws generally provide a certain level of protection, and we attempt to protect ourselves through contracts with manufacturers of our products, we may not be successful in enforcing our rights. In addition, enforcement of our proprietary rights may require lengthy and expensive litigation. We have attempted to protect some of the trade names and trademarks used for our products by registering them with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, but we must rely on common law trademark rights to protect our unregistered trademarks. Common law trademark rights do not provide the same remedies as are granted to federally registered trademarks, and the rights of a common law trademark are limited to the geographic area in which the trademark is actually used. Our inability to protect our intellectual property could have a material adverse impact on our ability to compete and could make it difficult for us to achieve a profit.

Risks Related to Our Securities and Other Risks

We are an “emerging growth company” and we cannot be certain if the reduced disclosure requirements applicable to emerging growth companies will make our common stock less attractive to investors.

We are an “emerging growth company” as defined in the JOBS Act, and we intend to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not “emerging growth companies” including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements. We cannot predict whether investors will find our common stock less attractive if we rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our common stock less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our common stock and our stock price may be more volatile.

The requirements of being a public company may strain our resources and distract our management, which could make it difficult to manage our business, particularly after we are no longer an “emerging growth company.”

We are required to comply with various regulatory and reporting requirements, including those required by the SEC. Complying with these reporting and other regulatory requirements is time-consuming and results in increased costs to us and could have a negative effect on our results of operations, financial condition or business.

As a public company, we are subject to the reporting requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (as amended, the “Exchange Act”) and the requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. These requirements may place a strain on our systems and resources. The Exchange Act requires that we file annual, quarterly and current reports with respect to our business and financial condition. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires that we maintain effective disclosure controls and procedures and internal controls over financial reporting. To maintain and improve the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures, we will need to commit significant resources, hire additional staff and provide additional management oversight. We will be implementing additional procedures and processes for the purpose of addressing the standards and requirements applicable to public companies. Sustaining our growth also will require us to commit additional management, operational and financial resources to identify new professionals to join our firm and to maintain appropriate operational and financial systems to adequately support expansion. These activities may divert management’s attention from other business concerns, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition or business.

As an “emerging growth company” as defined in the JOBS Act, we intend to take advantage of certain temporary exemptions from various reporting requirements including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements. We may also delay adoption of new or revised accounting pronouncements applicable to public companies until such pronouncements are made applicable to private companies, as permitted by the JOBS Act.

We have broad discretion in the use of the net proceeds from any offerings and may not use them effectively.

Our management will have broad discretion in the application of the net proceeds from any offerings and may spend or invest these proceeds in a way with which our stockholders disagree. The failure by our management to apply these funds effectively could harm our business and financial condition. Pending their use, we may invest the net proceeds from any offering in a manner that does not produce income or that loses value.

Our management has limited experience in managing the day-to-day operations of a public company and, as a result, we may incur additional expenses associated with the management of our Company.

We only became a public company in October 2020. The management team is responsible for the operations and reporting of the Company. The requirements of operating as a public company are many and sometimes difficult to navigate. This may require us to obtain outside assistance from legal, accounting, investor relations, or other professionals that could be more costly than planned. If we lack cash resources to cover these costs of being a public company in the future, our failure to comply with reporting requirements and other provisions of securities laws could negatively affect our stock price and adversely affect our potential results of operations, cash flow and financial condition after we commence operations.

Compliance with changing corporate governance regulations and public disclosures may result in additional risks and exposures.

Changing laws, regulations and standards relating to corporate governance and public disclosure, including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and new regulations from the SEC, have created uncertainty for public companies such as ours. These laws, regulations, and standards are subject to varying interpretations in many cases, and as a result, their application in practice may evolve over time as new guidance is provided by regulatory and governing bodies. This could result in continuing uncertainty regarding compliance matters and higher costs necessitated by ongoing revisions to disclosure and governance practices. As a result, our efforts to comply with evolving laws, regulations, and standards have resulted in, and are likely to continue to result in, increased expense and significant management time and attention.

Certain of our stockholders hold a significant percentage of our outstanding voting securities, which could reduce the ability of minority stockholders to effect certain corporate actions.

At December 31, 2023, our officers and directors are the beneficial owners of approximately 20% our issued and outstanding voting securities. As a result, they possess significant influence over our elections and votes. As a result, their ownership and control may have the effect of facilitating and expediting a future change in control, merger, consolidation, takeover or other business combination, or encouraging a potential acquirer to make a tender offer. Their ownership and control may also have the effect of delaying, impeding, or preventing a future change in control, merger, consolidation, takeover or other business combination, or discouraging a potential acquirer from making a tender offer.

If securities or industry analysts publish inaccurate or unfavorable research about our business, our stock price could decline.

The trading market for our common stock will depend in part on the research and reports that securities or industry analysts publish about us or our business. Once our common stock is quoted, if one or more of the analysts who cover us downgrade our common stock or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research about our business, our common stock price would likely decline.

We do not intend to pay dividends for the foreseeable future.

We currently intend to retain any future earnings to finance the operation and expansion of our business, and we do not expect to declare or pay any dividends on our common stock in the foreseeable future.

Our Second Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation contains an exclusive forum provision for certain claims, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers or employees.

Our Second Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation provides that, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, New York shall be the sole and exclusive forum for (a) any derivative action or proceeding brought on behalf of the Company, (b) any action asserting a claim for breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any director, officer, employee, or agent of the Company to the Company or the Company’s shareholders or (c) any action asserting a claim governed by the internal affairs doctrine, in each case subject to said court having personal jurisdiction over the indispensable parties named as defendants therein. This provision may limit a shareholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with the company and its directors, officers, or other employees and may discourage lawsuits with respect to such claims. This provision does not apply to actions arising under the Exchange Act or Securities Act.

Our issuance of additional common stock or preferred stock may cause our common stock price to decline, which may negatively impact your investment.

Issuances of a substantial number of additional shares of our common or preferred stock, or the perception that such issuances could occur, may cause prevailing market prices for our common stock to decline. In addition, our board of directors is authorized to issue additional series of shares of preferred stock without any action on the part of our stockholders. Our board of directors also has the power, without stockholder approval, to set the terms of any such series of shares of preferred stock that may be issued, including voting rights, conversion rights, dividend rights, preferences over our common stock with respect to dividends or if we liquidate, dissolve or wind up our business and other terms. If we issue cumulative preferred stock in the future that has preference over our common stock with respect to the payment of dividends or upon our liquidation, dissolution or winding up, or if we issue preferred stock with voting rights that dilute the voting power of our common stock, the market price of our common stock could decrease.

Anti-takeover provisions in the Company’s charter and bylaws may prevent or frustrate attempts by stockholders to change the board of directors or current management and could make a third-party acquisition of the Company difficult.

The Company’s certificate of incorporation and bylaws contain provisions that may discourage, delay or prevent a merger, acquisition or other change in control that stockholders may consider favorable, including transactions in which stockholders might otherwise receive a premium for their shares. Furthermore, the Board of Directors has the ability to increase the size of the Board and fill newly created vacancies without stockholder approval. These provisions could limit the price that investors might be willing to pay in the future for shares of the Company’s common stock.

Our common stock may become subject to the SEC’s penny stock rules and accordingly, broker-dealers may experience difficulty in completing customer transactions and trading activity in our securities may be adversely affected.

The SEC has adopted regulations, which generally define “penny stock” to be an equity security that has a market price of less than $5.00 per share, subject to specific exemptions. The market price of our common stock is less than $5.00 per share and therefore would be a “penny stock” according to SEC rules, unless we are listed on a national securities exchange. Under these rules, broker-dealers who recommend such securities to persons other than institutional accredited investors must:

  • Make a special written suitability determination for the purchaser;
  • Receive the purchaser’s prior written agreement to the transaction;
  • Provide the purchaser with risk disclosure documents which identify certain risks associated with investing in “penny stocks” and which describe the market for these “penny stocks” as well as a purchaser’s legal remedies; and
  • Obtain a signed and dated acknowledgment from the purchaser demonstrating that the purchaser has actually received the required risk disclosure document before a transaction in a “penny stock” can be completed.

Although our common stock is not currently subject to these rules, it were to become subject to such rules, broker-dealers may find it difficult to effectuate customer transactions and trading activity in our securities may be adversely affected. As a result, the market price of our securities may be depressed, and you may find it more difficult to sell your securities.

Cybersecurity

As filed, 4,148 characters, with its headings, lists and tables. Extracted from the main document; charts and exhibits are in the original on sec.gov.

We have established policies and processes for assessing, identifying, and managing material risk from cybersecurity threats, and have integrated these processes into our overall risk management systems and processes. We routinely assess material risks from cybersecurity threats, including any potential unauthorized occurrence on or conducted through our information systems that may result in adverse effects on the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of our information systems or any information residing therein.

We conduct periodic risk assessments to identify cybersecurity threats, as well as assessments in the event of a material change in our business practices that may affect information systems that are vulnerable to such cybersecurity threats. These risk assessments include identification of reasonably foreseeable internal and external risks, the likelihood and potential damage that could result from such risks, and the sufficiency of existing policies, procedures, systems, and safeguards in place to manage such risks.

Following these risk assessments, we re-design, implement, and maintain reasonable safeguards to minimize identified risks; reasonably address any identified gaps in existing safeguards; and regularly monitor the effectiveness of our safeguards. Primary responsibility for assessing, monitoring and managing our cybersecurity risks rests with NeTTronix Technology Solutions who reports to our CFO, to manage the risk assessment and mitigation process.

We engage consultants, or other third parties in connection with our risk assessment processes. These service providers assist us to design and implement our cybersecurity policies and procedures, as well as to monitor and test our safeguards. We require each third-party service provider to certify that it has the ability to implement and maintain appropriate security measures, consistent with all applicable laws, to implement and maintain reasonable security measures in connection with their work with us, and to promptly report any suspected breach of its security measures that may affect our company.

We have not encountered cybersecurity challenges that have materially impaired our operations or financial standing.

Governance

Our board of directors addresses the Company’s cybersecurity risk management as part of its general oversight function. The board of directors’ audit committee is responsible for overseeing Company’s cybersecurity risk management processes, including oversight and mitigation of risks from cybersecurity threats.

Our cybersecurity risk assessment and management processes are implemented and maintained by certain Company management, including the information technology team at the direction of NeTTronix Technology Solutions. Our executive team including our Chief Executive Officer, and Chief Financial Officer are responsible for hiring appropriate personnel, helping to integrate cybersecurity risk considerations into the Company’s overall risk management strategy, and communicating key priorities to relevant personnel. This executive team is responsible for approving budgets, helping prepare for cybersecurity incidents, approving cybersecurity processes, and reviewing security assessments and other security-related reports.

Our cybersecurity incident response and vulnerability management policies are designed to escalate certain cybersecurity incidents to members of management depending on the circumstances, including our Chief Executive Officer, and Chief Financial Officer. In addition, the Company’s incident response and vulnerability management policies include reporting to the audit committee of the board of directors for certain cybersecurity incidents including significant breaches to the Company’s networks or systems. The audit committee receives regular reports from the information technology team concerning the Company’s significant cybersecurity threats and risk and the processes the Company has implemented to address them. The audit committee also has access to various reports, summaries or presentations related to cybersecurity threats, risk and mitigation.

Properties

As filed, 365 characters, with its headings, lists and tables. Extracted from the main document; charts and exhibits are in the original on sec.gov.

Our principal executive office is located in leased premises of approximately 6,908 square feet at 1061 E. Indiantown Rd., Ste. 110, Jupiter, FL 33477. We believe that these facilities are adequate for our needs, including providing the space and infrastructure to accommodate our development work based on our current operating plan. We do not own any real estate.

As filed, 9,087 characters, with its headings, lists and tables. Extracted from the main document; charts and exhibits are in the original on sec.gov.

On November 30, 2023, Intracoastal Capital, LLC (“Intracoastal”) filed a lawsuit against the Company in the New York County Supreme Court, alleging that (i) the Company is in breach of a common stock warrant issued to Intracoastal on or about July 26, 2021, and (ii) that the Company should be ordered by the court to deliver to Intracoastal 330,619 free trading shares of Company common stock (the “Litigation”). The Litigation seeks compensatory damages in an amount no less than $2 million, in addition to liquidated damages and attorney’s fees.

The Company answered Intracoastal’s complaint on or about January 26, 2024. The Company intends to vigorously defend itself against Intracoastal’s claims and does not believe that the Litigation’s ultimate disposition or resolution will have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or liquidity.

On December 8, 2023, the Company filed a lawsuit against Capybara Research (“Capybara”), Igor Appelboom (“Appelboom,” and together with Capybara Research, the “Capybara Parties”) and Accretive Capital LLC d/b/a Benzinga (“Capybara Parties and Accretive, together, the “Capybara Defendants”) in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. The Company’s complaint alleges that (i) the Capybara Parties are liable for securities fraud to the Company for making false representations that were made to manipulate the price of the Company’s common stock to the benefit of the Capybara Parties, and (ii) the Capybara Defendants are liable for tortious interference with prospective business relations to the Company by misleading the investing public to—absent a legitimate basis and, instead, for the benefit of the Capybara Defendants—take short positions against Company common stock to wrongfully depress the price of the same.

On March 18, 2024, the United District Court for the Southern District of New York, awarded the Company a Default Judgment in its lawsuit against Capybara Research and Igor Appelboom for Securities Fraud and Tortious Interference for the defendants’ defamatory, unfounded and malicious article titled, Safety Shot Exposed $SHOT, Boca Raton Snake Oil: Unraveling the Fraud behind the Drink and Its Dubious Origins. In a separate settlement agreement, Defendant Accreative Capital LLC d/b/a Benzinga, agreed to retract and remove the defamatory story from its website and cease from any future publication.

On September 5, 2023, “Sabby” Volatility Warrant Master Fund Ltd. filed a lawsuit against the Company in the federal district court for the Southern District of New York case captioned Sabby Volatility Warrant Master Fund Ltd. v. Jupiter Wellness, Inc., No.1:23-cv-07874-KPF (the “Litigation”). Sabby’s initial complaint in the Litigation alleges that the Company’s delayed spin-off and distribution of the common stock of “SRM” Entertainment. Inc. give rise to claims of breach-of-contact, promissory estoppel, and negligent misrepresentation. On November 10, 2023, Jupiter sought judicial permission to move to dismiss Sabby’s complaint, arguing that Sabby had no legal right to the delayed distribution occurring on the original record date, and that regardless, no law requires the Company to compensate Sabby for the costs of covering its short position against the Company. In response, the Court allowed the parties to bypass that dismissal motion briefing so long as Sabby filed an amended complaint by December 15, 2023.

Sabby seeks compensatory damages estimated to exceed $500,000 the Company has filed a motion to dismiss Sabby’s amended complaint and is awaiting the Court’s ruling. The Company intends to vigorously defend itself against Sabby’s claims and does not believe that the Litigation’s ultimate disposition or resolution will have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or liquidity.

On February 9, 2024, “Sabby” Volatility Warrant Master Find Ltd. sued the Company in the federal district court for the Southern District of New York, case captioned, Sabby Volatility Warrant Master Fund Ltd. v. Safety Shot, Inc., No. 1:24-cv-920-NRB (the “Litigation”). Sabby’s initial complaint alleges that the Company has improperly refused to honor Sabby’s exercise of a Warrant to acquire 2,105,263 shares of common stock. On March 8, 2024, Sabby filed an amended complaint. The Company’s answer to the amended complaint is due on March 29, 2024. Sabby seeks “liquidated and compensatory damages in an amount to be proven at trial,” including compensatory damages “estimated to be at least $750,000,” liquidated damages “estimated to be at least $600,000,” specific performance, attorneys’ fees, expenses and costs. The Company intends to vigorously defend itself against Sabby’s claims and does not believe that the Litigation’s ultimate disposition or resolution will have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or liquidity.

On January 16, 2024, 3i LP (“3i”), filed a lawsuit against the Company in the Supreme Court of the State of New York in the County of New York, case captioned, 3i LP v. Safety Shot, Inc. No. 650196/24 (the “Litigation”). The case stems from the Company’s alleged denial of 3i’s attempt to exercise certain warrants and states causes of action for actual damages and liquidated damages in an amount of approximately $380,000. The Company filed its answer to the complaint on or about March 7, 2024. The Company intends to defend itself vigorously against Sabby’s claims and does not believe that the Litigation’s ultimate disposition will have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or liquidity.

On January 19, 2024, Coachella Music Festival, LLC filed a lawsuit against the Company in the federal district court for the Central District of California, Case No. 2:24-cv-537 (the “Litigation”). The Litigation asserts causes of action for Trademark Infringement under 15 U.S.C. Section 1114; False Designation of Origin under 15 U.S.C. Section 1125; False Advertising under 15 U.S.C. Section 1125; violations of Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code Sections 17200 & 17500; Inducement of Trespass; Conversion; and Trespass to Chattels. The Litigation seeks injunctive relief, profits resulting from the Company’s alleged infringement, the value of a Coachella beverage sponsorship, costs of corrective advertising, attorney’s fees and punitive damages. On or about February 26, 2024, the parties reached a settlement in this matter. As part of the settlement, the Company agreed to terminate all activities in connection with the Festival, and stipulated to the entry of a permanent injunction and final judgment and a monetary payment that does not have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or liquidity.

On January 10, 2024, Bigger Capital fund, L.P. (“Bigger”), filed a lawsuit against the Company in the Supreme Court for the State of New York, Case No. 650148/2024 (the “Litigation”). The Litigation stems from the Company’s warrant to purchase 1,656,050 shares of Company common stock issued to Bigger Capital on July 20, 2021, and asserts causes of action for Breach of Contract, Specific Performance and Declaratory Relief. The Litigation seeks compensatory damages of $3 million, liquidated damages in an estimated amount of $4 million, specific performance, attorney’s fees and declaratory relief. On or about March 4, 2024, the Company filed its answer to Bigger’s complaint. The Company intends to defend itself vigorously against Bigger’s claims and does not believe that the Litigation’s ultimate disposition or resolution will have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or liquidity.

On or about January 18, 2024, Alta Partners, LLC, (“Alta”) filed a lawsuit against the Company in the federal district court for the Southern District of New York, case captioned, Alta Partners, LLC v. Safety Shot, Inc. No. 24-cv-373 (S.D.N.Y.) (the “Litigation”). The Litigation stems from the Company’s warrant to purchase shares of Company common stock and asserts causes of action for Breach of Contract Breach of the Implied Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing (in the alternative) and violation of Section 11 of the Securities Act of 1933. The Litigation seeks compensatory general and liquidated damages in an amount to be proven at trial. The Company intends to defend itself vigorously against Alta’s claims and does not believe that the Litigation’s ultimate disposition or resolution will have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or liquidity.

The Company may be subject to legal proceedings and claims arising from contracts or other matters from time to time in the ordinary course of business. Management is not aware of any pending or threatened litigation where the ultimate disposition or resolution could have a material adverse effect on its financial position, results of operations or liquidity.

Management's discussion and analysis

As filed, 28,434 characters, with its headings, lists and tables. Extracted from the main document; charts and exhibits are in the original on sec.gov.

This annually report contains forward-looking statements. These statements relate to future events or our future financial performance. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may”, “should”, “expects”, “plans”, “anticipates”, “believes”, “estimates”, “predicts”, “potential” or “continue” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. These statements are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our or our industry’s actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements. Except as required by applicable law, including the securities laws of the United States, we do not intend to update any of the forward-looking statements to conform these statements to actual results.

Our unaudited financial statements are stated in United States Dollars (US$) and are prepared in accordance with United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. The following discussion should be read in conjunction with our financial statements and the related notes that appear elsewhere in this annually report. The following discussion contains forward-looking statements that reflect our plans, estimates and beliefs. Our actual results could differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, those discussed below and elsewhere in this annually report.

In this annually report, unless otherwise specified, all dollar amounts are expressed in United States dollars and all references to “common shares” refer to the common shares in our capital stock.

As used in this annually report and unless otherwise indicated, the terms “we”, “us”, “our”, “SHOT” and the “Company” mean Safety Shot, Inc.

Company Overview

Safety Shot Inc. (NASDAQ: SHOT) was formerly known as Jupiter Wellness Inc. In August 2023, the Company successfully completed the asset purchase of the functional beverage Safety Shot from GBB Drink Lab, Inc. (“GBB”), thereby gaining ownership of various assets, including the intellectual property, trade secrets, and trademarks associated with its dietary supplement Safety Shot Beverage (the “Safety Shot Beverage”). Concurrently with the asset purchase, the Company changed its name to Safety Shot, Inc. and changed its NASDAQ trading symbol to SHOT. The Company launched its e-commerce sale of the Safety Shot Beverage in December 2023.

The Safety Shot Beverage has been formulated to reduce the accumulation of blood alcohol. Noteworthy is the fact that the Safety Shot Beverage comprises 28 active ingredients, all falling under the Generally Regarded As Safe (GRAS) category. Under sections 201(s) and 409 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (the Act), any substance that is intentionally added to food is a dietary supplement, that is subject to premarket review and approval by FDA, unless the substance is generally recognized, among qualified experts, as having been adequately shown to be safe under the conditions of its intended use, or unless the use of the substance is otherwise excepted from the definition of a dietary supplement.

It’s crucial to note that the Safety Shot Beverage is currently manufactured in a facility adhering to Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), ensuring the highest standards of quality and safety throughout its production process. The Company currently maintains a workforce comprising eight full-time employees of its own.

Specializing in Consumer Packaged Goods, our focus centers on the commercialization of a 12-ounce beverage positioned as a dietary supplement. Beyond our existing product, we are actively pursuing a future product line, including a convenient powdered stick pack version. This strategic expansion aligns with our corporate vision to address evolving consumer demands, positioning the Company in the market for dietary supplements. We believe that this initiative not only enriches our product portfolio but also emphasizes our dedication to innovation and adaptability, catering to the discerning preferences of health-conscious consumers. The Company intends to continue its current product lines, except for its products which contain CBD, which the Company no longer sells. Our product pipeline also includes a diverse range of products, such as hair loss treatments, vitiligo solutions, and sexual wellness products, that cater to different health and wellness needs and our commitment to supporting health and wellness by developing innovative solutions to a range of conditions but will focus our efforts on the commercialization of the Safety Shot Beverage.

The Safety Shot Beverage has established a development infrastructure that the Company believes fits with its existing over-the-counter and prescription-grade health and wellness products.

To achieve our mission, we rely on our team of highly skilled and experienced professionals who are committed to advancing our vision of health and wellness. Our team includes individuals with scientific backgrounds, an experienced researcher, product developers, and business experts who collaborate to create new products and enhance existing ones. We also seek to partner with industry leaders and organizations to gain access to the latest technologies and expand our reach.

We generate revenue through various channels, our primary sales include our “nostingz” suncare products which are sold through e-commerce platforms, licensing revenues from Photocil and sales of the Safety Shot Beverage. Photocil is currently sold in India through a licensing agreement. We received FDA approval of our labelling and composition to sell Photocil as an OTC product in the US and plan to relaunch the product in the US in the fourth quarter of 2024 through e-commerce channels. Safety Shot Beverage is currently sold through e-commerce and social media platforms. Additionally, we are collaborating with other companies to license our intellectual property, to create additional revenue streams and expand our global presence. At present, we do not experience concentration risk or dependence on major customers.

We maintain a diverse network of raw material suppliers integral to our production processes. Acquisition strategies encompass both direct procurement and collaborative efforts with our co-packers. The selection of suppliers is contingent upon various factors, including ingredient specificity, availability, and other essential considerations. Notably, these suppliers coincide with those currently providing materials to other facilities engaged in the manufacturing of drinks, powders, tablets, and capsules. Our roster of suppliers comprises reputable entities such as Jiaherb, Compound Solutions, Kyowa-Hakko, Mitsubishi Ingredients, Nura, Sensapure Flavors, Brenntag, E3 Ingredients, Ingredients Online, among others. This strategic alliance with established industry players underscores our commitment to sourcing high-quality raw materials essential for the production of our innovative product line. Furthermore, our approach to supplier relationships reflects a dedication to maintaining a seamless and reliable supply chain. We believe that this not only ensures the consistency of our current offerings but also positions us favorably for future developments. The Management believes that as we continue to expand our product portfolio, we believe that these partnerships with trusted suppliers play a pivotal role in upholding the standards that we expect of our brand.

As a result of recent changes to the laws governing CBD products, as well as the declining popularity of CBD products, the Company no longer markets or sells any CBD products. The Company hopes to find a suitor or partner to dispose of its CBD related assets but has not entered into any agreements to do so.

Critical Accounting Policies

Our management’s discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations is based on our audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, which have been prepared in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles, or U.S. GAAP, and the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission. The preparation of the financial statements requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements as well as the reported revenue generated, and expenses incurred during the reporting periods. Our estimates are based on our historical experience and on various other factors that we believe are reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying value of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions and any such differences may be material. We believe that the accounting policies discussed below are critical to understanding our historical and future performance, as these policies relate to the more significant areas involving management’s judgments and estimates.

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“US GAAP”) and are expressed in United States Dollars. Significant accounting policies are summarized below:

Revenue Recognition

The Company generates its revenue from the sale of its products directly to the end user or distributor (collectively the “customer”).

The Company recognizes revenues by applying the following steps in accordance with FASB Accounting Standards Codification 606 “Revenue from Contracts with Customers” (“ASC 606”). Under ASC 606, revenues are recognized when control of the promised goods or services are transferred to a customer, in an amount that reflects the consideration that the Company expects to receive in exchange for those goods or services. The Company applies the following five steps in order to determine the appropriate amount of revenue to be recognized as it fulfills its obligations under each of its agreements:

  • identify the contract with a customer;
  • identify the performance obligations in the contract;
  • determine the transaction price;
  • allocate the transaction price to performance obligations in the contract; and
  • recognize revenue as the performance obligation is satisfied.

The Company’s performance obligations are satisfied when goods or products are shipped on an FOB shipping point basis as title passes when shipped. Our product is generally paid in advance of shipment or standard net 30 days and we offer no specific right of return, refund or warranty related to our products except for cases of defective products of which there have been none to date.

Inventory

Inventories are stated at the lower of cost or market. The Company periodically reviews the value of items in inventory and provides write-downs or write-offs of inventory based on its assessment of market conditions. Write-downs and write-offs are charged to cost of goods sold. Inventory is based upon the average cost method of accounting.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with US GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets

We evaluate long-lived assets (including intangible assets) for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of a long-lived asset may not be recoverable. An asset is considered impaired if its carrying amount exceeds the undiscounted future net cash flow the asset is expected to generate.

Goodwill and Intangible Assets

Goodwill is tested for impairment at a minimum on an annual basis. Goodwill is tested for impairment at the reporting unit level by first performing a qualitative assessment to determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of the reporting unit is less than its carrying value. If the reporting unit does not pass the qualitative assessment, then the reporting unit’s carrying value is compared to its fair value. The fair values of the reporting units are estimated using market and discounted cash flow approaches. Goodwill is considered impaired if the carrying value of the reporting unit exceeds its fair value. The discounted cash flow approach uses expected future operating results. Failure to achieve these expected results may cause a future impairment of goodwill at the reporting unit.

Intangible assets consist of patents and trademarks, purchased customer contracts, purchased customer and merchant relationships, purchased trade names, purchased technology, and non-compete agreements. Intangible assets are amortized over the period of estimated benefit using the straight-line method and estimated useful lives ranging from one to twenty years. No significant residual value is estimated for intangible assets. We evaluate long-lived assets (including intangible assets) for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of a long-lived asset may not be recoverable. An asset is considered impaired if its carrying amount exceeds the undiscounted future net cash flow the asset is expected to generate.

Investments Held-to-Maturity

Investments that the Company’s management has the “positive intent and ability” to hold through maturity are classified and accounted for as hold-to-maturity investments (“HTM”). HTM investments are carried at amortized cost in the financial statements. For investments classified as HTM, no unrealized gains and losses will be recognized in financial statements.

Earnings (Loss) Per Share

Net income (loss) per common share is computed pursuant to section 260-10-45 of the FASB Accounting Standards Codification. Basic net income (loss) per share is computed by dividing net income (loss) by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period. If applicable, diluted earnings per share assume the conversion, exercise or issuance of all common stock instruments such as options, warrants, convertible securities and preferred stock, unless the effect is to reduce a loss or increase earnings per share. Warrants are not considered in the calculations for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, as the impact of the potential common shares would be to decrease the loss per share.

For the Years Ended December 31, 2023 2022
Numerator: $(15,083,041) $(15,223,028)
Net (loss)
Denominator:
Denominator for basic earnings per share - Weighted-average common shares issued and outstanding during the period 30,877,804 22,106,703
Denominator for diluted earnings per share 30,877,804 22,106,703
Basic (loss) per share $(0.49) $(0.69)
Diluted (loss) per share $(0.49) $(0.69)

Cash

We consider all short-term investments with a maturity of three months or less when purchased to be cash and equivalents for purposes of the statement of cash flows. There were no cash equivalents as December 31, 2023 and 2022.

Foreign Currency Translation

Assets and liabilities in foreign currencies are translated using the exchange rate at the balance sheet date, while revenue and expense accounts are translated at the average exchange rates prevailing during the period. Equity accounts are translated at historical exchange rates. Gains and losses from foreign currency transactions and translation for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 and the cumulative translation gains and losses as of December 31, 2023 and 2022 were not material.

Accounts Receivable

Accounts receivable are generated from sales of the Company’s products. The Company provides an allowance for doubtful collections, which is based upon a review of outstanding receivables, historical collection information, and existing economic conditions. During the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company recognized no allowance for doubtful collections.

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

The fair value of our assets and liabilities, which qualify as financial instruments under ASC Topic 820, “Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures,” approximates the carrying amounts represented in the accompanying balance sheet, primarily due to their short-term nature.

Income Taxes

We account for income taxes under ASC 740 Income Taxes (“ASC 740”). ASC 740 requires the recognition of deferred tax assets and liabilities for both the expected impact of differences between the financial statement and tax basis of assets and liabilities and for the expected future tax benefit to be derived from tax loss and tax credit carry forwards. ASC 740 additionally requires a valuation allowance to be established when it is more likely than not that all or a portion of deferred tax assets will not be realized.

ASC 740 also clarifies the accounting for uncertainty in income taxes recognized in an enterprise’s financial statements and prescribes a recognition threshold and measurement process for financial statement recognition and measurement of a tax position taken or expected to be taken in a tax return. For those benefits to be recognized, a tax position must be more-likely-than-not to be sustained upon examination by taxing authorities. ASC 740 also provides guidance on derecognition, classification, interest and penalties, accounting in interim period, disclosure and transition. Based on our evaluation, it has been concluded that there are no significant uncertain tax positions requiring recognition in our financial statements. Since we were incorporated on October 24, 2018, the evaluation was performed for 2018 tax year, which would be the only period subject to examination. We believe that our income tax positions and deductions would be sustained on audit and does not anticipate any adjustments that would result in a material changes to our financial position. Our policy for recording interest and penalties associated with audits is to record such items as a component of income tax expense.

The Company’s deferred tax asset at December 31, 2023 and 2022 consists of net operating loss carry forwards calculated using federal and state effective tax rates equating to approximately $8,658,484 and $6,674,042, respectively. Due to the Company’s lack of earnings history, the deferred tax asset has been fully offset by a valuation allowance of $8,658,484 and $6,674,042 for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022.

Research and Development

The Company accounts for research and development costs in accordance with the Accounting Standards Codification subtopic 730-10, Research and Development (“ASC 730-10”). Under ASC 730-10, all research and development costs must be charged to expense as incurred. Accordingly, internal research and development costs are expensed as incurred. Third-party research and developments costs are expensed when the contracted work has been performed or as milestone results have been achieved. Company-sponsored research and development costs related to both present and future products are expensed in the period incurred. The Company incurred research and development expenses of $100,591 and $1,637,117 for the year ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Stock Based Compensation

We recognize compensation costs to employees under FASB Accounting Standards Codification 718 “Compensation - Stock Compensation” (“ASC 718”). Under ASC 718, companies are required to measure the compensation costs of share-based compensation arrangements based on the grant-date fair value and recognize the costs in the financial statements over the period during which employees are required to provide services. Share-based compensation arrangements include stock options and warrants. As such, compensation cost is measured on the date of grant at their fair value. Such compensation amounts, if any, are amortized over the respective vesting periods of the option grant.

On October 24, 2018, the inception date (“Inception”), we adopted ASU No. 2018-07 “Compensation - Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Improvements to Nonemployee Share-Based Payment Accounting.” These amendments expand the scope of Topic 718, Compensation - Stock Compensation (which currently only includes share-based payments to employees) to include share-based payments issued to non-employees for goods or services. Consequently, the accounting for share-based payments to nonemployees and employees will be substantially aligned.

Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements

In June 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-07, which simplifies the accounting for non-employee share-based payment transactions. The amendments specify that Topic 718 applies to all share-based payment transactions in which a grantor acquires goods or services to be used or consumed in a grantor’s own operations by issuing share-based payment awards. The standard will be effective for us in the first quarter of our fiscal year 2020, although early adoption is permitted (but no sooner than the adoption of Topic 606). The Company has adopted this standard beginning January 1, 2019. The adoption of this standard has not had a significant impact on the Company’s results of operations, financial condition, cash flows, and financial statement disclosures.

In February 2016, Topic 842, “Leases” was issued to replace the leases requirements in Topic 840, “Leases”. The main difference between previous GAAP and Topic 842 is the recognition of lease assets and lease liabilities by lessees for those leases classified as operating leases under previous GAAP. A lessee should recognize in the balance sheet a liability to make lease payments (the lease liability) and a right-of-use asset representing its right to use the underlying asset for the lease term. For leases with a term of 12 months or less, a lessee is permitted to make an accounting policy election by class of underlying asset not to recognize lease assets and lease liabilities. If a lessee makes this election, it should recognize lease expense for such leases generally on a straight-line basis over the lease term. The accounting applied by a lessor is largely unchanged from that applied under previous GAAP. Topic 842 will be effective for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2018, including interim periods within those annual periods and is to be retrospectively applied. The Company has adopted this standard beginning January 1, 2019. The adoption of this standard has not had a significant impact on the Company’s results of operations, financial condition, cash flows, and financial statement disclosures.

Results of Operations

For the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022

The following table provides selected financial data about us for the year ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively.

December 31, 2023 December 31, 2022
Sales $202,670 $120,727
Cost of Sales 277,127 325,169
Gross Profit (Loss) (74,457) (204,542)
Total operating expenses 12,524,869 14,078,784
Other (income) expenses 2,222,187 1,283,874
Net Loss from continuing operations $(14,821,513) $(15,567,200)
Income (loss) from discontinued operations (261,528) 344,172
Net Loss $(15,083,041) $(15,223,028

Revenues

We generated $202,670 in revenues for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to $120,727 revenues for the year ended December 31, 2022. The increase is due to the Company the commencement of marketing and selling its Safety Shot beverage in December 2023.

Operating Expenses

We had total operating expenses of $12,524,869 for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to $14,078,784 for the year ended December 31, 2022.

Operating expenses for the year ended December 31, 2023 totaled $12,524,869 and were in connection with our daily operations as follows: (i) marketing expenses of $566,666; (ii) research and development of $100,591 which included clinical trials; (iii) legal and professional expenses of $4,856,586 primarily for due diligence and legal work on two proposed mergers and litigation along with corporate advisory services, registration statement preparation fees, general corporate governance fees; (iv) rent and utilities of $206,871; (v) depreciation and amortization of $215,175; (vi) general and administrative expenses of $4,296,899, consisting of payroll and related taxes, travel, meals and entertainment, office supplies and expense and other normal office and administration expenses; (vii) stock based compensation of $2,082,081 consisting of the fair value of stock issued in lieu of cash and (viii) impairment of a $200,000 advance to an affiliate.

Operating expenses for the year ended December 31, 2022 totaled $14,078,784 were in connection with our daily operations as follows: (i) marketing expenses of $84,689; (ii) research and development of $1,637,148 which included clinical trials; (iii) legal and professional expenses of $3,579,148 primarily for due diligence and legal work on two proposed mergers and litigation along with corporate advisory services, registration statement preparation fees, general corporate governance fees; (iv) rent and utilities of $170,973; (v) depreciation and amortization of $93,472; (vi) general and administrative expenses of $1,438,464, consisting of payroll and related taxes, travel, meals and entertainment, office supplies and expense and other normal office and administration expenses; (vii) stock based compensation of $4,581,921 consisting primarily of the fair value of options and warrants; (viii) an impairment to a promissory note of $1,000,000; and (ix) an impairment to Intellectual Property of $1,475,000.

Other income and expense

Other income and expense for the year ended December 31, 2023, included realized gains of $244,504 on the sale of marketable securities and $1,511,488 of unrealized losses on unsold marketable securities, unrealized loss of $864,418 on equity investment, net interest expense of $114,093 and other income of $23,308, compared to net interest expense of $1,284,664, which includes $1,104,477 fair value of warrants and net other income of $790 for the year ended December 31, 2022.

Income and loss from discontinued operations

For the year ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, The Company had losses from discontinued operations of $261,528 and income of $344,172, respectively.

Income/Losses

Net losses were $15,083,041 and $15,223,028 for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Impact of Inflation

We believe that inflation has had a negligible effect on operations since inception. We believe that we can offset inflationary increases in the cost of operations by increasing sales and improving operating efficiencies.

Off Balance Sheet Arrangements

We do not have off-balance sheet arrangements, financings, or other relationships with unconsolidated entities or other persons, also known as “variable interest entities.”

Liquidity and Capital Resources

The Company is in commercialization mode, while continuing to pursue the development of its next generation products as well as new products that are being developed.

We generally require cash to:

  • launch sales initiatives,
  • fund our operations and working capital requirements,

30

  • develop and execute our product development and market introduction plans,
  • fund research and development efforts, and
  • pay any expense obligations as they come due.

Controls and procedures

As filed, 6,396 characters, with its headings, lists and tables. Extracted from the main document; charts and exhibits are in the original on sec.gov.

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

The Company maintains disclosure controls and procedures that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in the Company’s Exchange Act reports is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time communicated to the Company’s management, including its Chief Executive Officer and principal financial officer, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure based closely on the definition of “disclosure controls and procedures” in Rule 13a-15(e). The Company’s disclosure controls and procedures are designed to provide a reasonable level of assurance of reaching the Company’s desired disclosure control objectives. In designing periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms, and that such information is accumulated and evaluating the disclosure controls and procedures, management recognized that any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable assurance of achieving the desired control objectives, and management necessarily was required to apply its judgment in evaluating the cost-benefit relationship of possible controls and procedures. The Company’s certifying officers have concluded that the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures are effective in reaching that level of assurance.

At the end of the period being reported upon, the Company carried out an evaluation, under the supervision and with the participation of the Company’s management, including the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and principal financial officer, of the effectiveness of the design and operation of the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures. Based on the foregoing, our Chief Executive Officer and principal financial officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were ineffective to ensure that the material information required to be included in our Securities and Exchange Commission reports is accumulated and communicated to our management, including our principal executive and financial officer, recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in Securities and Exchange Commission rules and forms relating to the Company, based on the assessment and control of disclosure decisions currently performed by a small team. The Company plans to expand its management team and build a fulsome internal control framework required by a more complex entity.

Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting

Management of the Company is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Section 13a-15(f) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended). Internal control over financial reporting is a process designed by, or under the supervision of, the Company’s principal financial officer to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of the Company’s financial statements for external reporting purposes in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles and include those policies and procedures that (i) pertain to the maintenance of records that in reasonable detail accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and disposition of the assets of the company; (ii) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the Company are being made only in accordance with authorization of management and directors of the Company; and (iii) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use or disposition of the Company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.

As of December 31, 2023, management conducted an assessment of the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting based on the framework established in Internal Control-Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations (COSO) of the Treadway Commission. Based on the criteria established by COSO management concluded that the Company’s internal control over financial reporting was ineffective as of December 31, 2023.

This Report does not include an attestation report of the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm regarding internal control over financial reporting as smaller reporting companies are not required to include such report and EGC’s are exempt from this requirement entirely until they are no longer an EGC. Management’s report is not subject to attestation by the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm.

Limitations on the Effectiveness of Controls

Management has confidence in its internal controls and procedures. The Company’s management believes that a control system, no matter how well designed and operated can provide only reasonable assurance and cannot provide absolute assurance that the objectives of the internal control system are met, and no evaluation of internal controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if any, within a company have been detected. Further, the design of an internal control system must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints, and the benefits of controls must be considered relative to their costs. Because of the inherent limitation in all internal control systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issuers and instances of fraud, if any, within the Company have been detected.

Changes in Internal Controls

There were no changes in the Company’s internal controls over financial reporting that occurred during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal controls over financial reporting.

Internal control systems, no matter how well designed and operated, have inherent limitations. Therefore, even a system which is determined to be effective cannot provide absolute assurance that all control issues have been detected or prevented. Our systems of internal controls are designed to provide reasonable assurance with respect to financial statement preparation and presentation.

Figures reported in this filing

Standardized line items from the XBRL in this filing, for the period ended 2023-12-31. Comparative periods it repeats are left out.

Figures reported in this filing
Line itemPeriodValueXBRL concept
Revenue12 months2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31$202.7kus-gaap:Revenues
Cost of revenue12 months2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31$277.1kus-gaap:CostOfRevenue
Gross profit12 months2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31−$74.5kus-gaap:GrossProfit
Research and development12 months2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31$100.6kus-gaap:ResearchAndDevelopmentExpense
Net income12 months2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31−$15.1mus-gaap:NetIncomeLoss
Diluted EPS12 months2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31−$0.49us-gaap:EarningsPerShareDiluted
Basic EPS12 months2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31−$0.49us-gaap:EarningsPerShareBasic
Diluted shares (weighted)12 months2023-01-01 to 2023-12-3130,877,804 sharesus-gaap:WeightedAverageNumberOfDilutedSharesOutstanding
Cash and equivalentsAt period end2023-12-31$3.8mus-gaap:Cash
Current assetsAt period end2023-12-31$7.7mus-gaap:AssetsCurrent
Total assetsAt period end2023-12-31$12.7mus-gaap:Assets
Current liabilitiesAt period end2023-12-31$3.6mus-gaap:LiabilitiesCurrent
Total liabilitiesAt period end2023-12-31$3.9mus-gaap:Liabilities
Shareholders' equityAt period end2023-12-31$8.8mus-gaap:StockholdersEquity

Source: SEC EDGAR, the filing index for accession 0001493152-24-012476. Last ingested by Listed: Oct 29, 2026, 15:31 ET. Listed shows no prices and gives no investment advice.