Iconic Brands Announces Operational and Financial Results for Full Year 2019

·       Total revenue for FY 2019 increased 114% year-over-year, driven by sales of BiVi Sicilian Vodka, Bellissima Prosecco and Sparkling Wines, and Hooters Spirits

·       Q4 2019 revenue increased 370% compared to Q4 2018

Amityville, NY, April 15, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NEWMEDIAWIRE -- Iconic Brands, Inc. (OTCQB: ICNB) (“Iconic” or the “Company”), a lifestyle branding company with the highest expertise of developing, from inception to completion, alcohol beverage products for itself and third parties, today reported its operational and financial results for the year ended December 31, 2019.

Full Year 2019 Financial Highlights

·       Total revenue for the FY 2019 ending December 31, 2019, was $1,210,242, an increase of $644,106, or 114%, year-over-year compared to FY 2018, driven by sales of BiVi Sicilian Vodka, Bellissima Prosecco and Sparkling Wines, and Hooters Spirits.

·       Revenue for Q4 2019 increased 370% compared to the same period previous year, with fourth quarter revenue growth greater than the previous three quarters combined.

·       Gross profit was $475,814, an increase of 97% year-over-year.  

·       Cash at December 31, 2019 was $263,638 vs. $191,463 at December 31, 2018.

Recent Developments

·       Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Company announced that Hooters Spirits will be available to-go by the bottle from select restaurants in several states.

·       Iconic partnered with Christie Brinkley to donate a portion of the proceeds made from online orders of Bellissima products through Splash Wines, an online wine retailer, to Direct Relief to aid in relief efforts for COVID-19.

·       The Company began offering free shipping for online orders of its Bellissima Prosecco and Sparkling Wines through Splash Wines.

·       NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver Chase Elliott was signed on as brand ambassador for Hooters Spirits, inking a multiyear deal that includes personal appearances at select Hooters Spirits events.

·       Hooters Spirits premium line of alcohol beverages expanded its footprint to additional Hooters corporate restaurants in 22 states with plans for placement of Hooters Spirits into franchised restaurants and off-premise retail distribution.

·       Iconic sold an estimated 40,000 bottles of Bellissima Prosecco and Sparkling Wines by Christie Brinkley on QVC during December 2019 and January 2020 featured TV appearances.

·       The Company continued to hold tastings and sponsored giveaways, contests, and other promotional activities, including Christie Brinkley’s Valentine’s Day Bellissima event at the Snow Lodge in Aspen, Colorado, to boost brand visibility.

·       Iconic closed on a $1.5 million above-market private placement of preferred equity, with proceeds from the transaction being used to increase social media and digital marketing, hire brand ambassadors and product influencers, and increase inventory for accelerating demand and for new product innovations.

·       The Company sold its complete majority interest in Green Grow Farms, Inc. at the end of 2019 to monetize this non-core asset, allowing the Company to focus on growing its alcohol brands.

Management Commentary

“We capped off a strong 2019 with a robust fourth quarter which saw a 370% increase in revenue compared to the same period last year,” stated Richard DeCicco, Chief Executive Officer of Iconic. “We continued to establish broad new markets for our products and grow our existing portfolio, capitalized on opportunities for private-label branding, and became an early-mover in the high-growth organic and vegan niches. Our Bellissima Prosecco and Sparkling Wines have been a major success, with an estimated total of 40,000 bottles sold during featured QVC segments in December 2019 and January 2020.

“We launched Hooters Spirits in August 2019, and the results thus far have been tremendous. We recently signed NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver Chase Elliott as brand ambassador for Hooters Spirits and are excited about the awareness he will bring to the brand. We continue to strengthen our relationship with Hooters and will continue to support them with co-sponsored events, giveaways, and more. Operationally, on a year-over-year basis, we increased our revenue and gross profit in the fourth quarter and for the full year 2019 and anticipate continuing to build on this momentum in the thriving alcohol beverage market. In 2019, we restructured our balance sheet by eliminating over $1 million in debt, which allows for significantly greater financial flexibility to focus on future growth opportunities. The progress we made in the latter half of 2019 and Q1 2020 has us excited for the future, and we intend to reward shareholders with our future financial performance.”

Full Year 2019 Financial Results

Iconic reported revenue of $1,210,242 and $566,136 for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively, an increase of $644,106, or 114%, driven by sales of BiVi Sicilian Vodka and Bellissima Prosecco and Sparkling Wines and its newly introduced line of Hooters Spirits.

Cost of sales were $734,428 and $324,989 for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively. The increase in cost of sales is due to the mix of product sold and the channels of distribution. The cost of sales as a percentage of sales for the year ended December 31, 2019, was 60.7% as compared to 57.4% for the year ended December 31, 2018.

Total operating expenses were $3,807,114 and $2,500,217 for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively. The increased operating expenses in 2019 were the result of higher professional fees (mainly legal and accounting related), marketing and advertising expenses, travel and entertainment expenses, compensation, and other operating expenses offset by a special promotion program expense of $597,138 in 2018. 

Net operating loss for the year ended December 31, 2019, was $3,331,297, compared to net operating loss of $2,259,070 for the year ended December 31, 2018, an increase of $1,072,227. Net operating loss increased due to a rise in total operating expenses of approximately $1.3 million, offsetting the $234,667 increase in gross profit.

Net loss attributable to the Company for the year ended December 31, 2019, was $3,953,911, or $(0.37) per share, compared to a net loss of $4,157,254, or $(0.62) per share, for the year ended December 31, 2018, a decrease in the loss of $203,343. The higher net operating loss in 2019 and the $1,047,213 loss recognized in 2019 from discontinued net operations (from the sale of Green Grow Farms, Inc.) was more than offset primarily by $2,591,548 in other expenses in 2018 arising from changes in derivative liabilities and GAAP losses on convertible debt, which largely accounted for the improved net loss in 2019 vs. 2018.

About Iconic Brands, Inc.

Iconic Brands, Inc. is a lifestyle branding company with the highest expertise of developing, from inception to completion, alcohol beverages for itself and third parties. Iconic markets and places products into national distribution through long-standing industry relationships. Iconic is a leader in “celebrity branding” of beverages, procuring superior and unique products from around the world and branding its products with internationally recognized celebrities. It currently offers Bellissima Prosecco and BiVi Vodka. In addition, Iconic developed the Hooters Spirits line of premium spirits in partnership with United Spirits, Inc., a leading private-label beverage company and affiliate of Iconic, for Hooters restaurants and off-premise retail locations both domestically and internationally.

Please visit the Company’s websites and follow it on social media.

Websites: ; ; 

Twitter: @IconicBrandsUS; @HootersSpirits; @BellissimaByCB; @BiviVodka

Instagram: @IconicBrandsUSA; @HootersSpirits; @BellissimaProsecco; @Bivivodka

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. These forward-looking statements are made on the basis of the current beliefs, expectations, and assumptions of management, are not guarantees of performance, and are subject to significant risks and uncertainty. These forward-looking statements should, therefore, be considered in light of various important factors, including those set forth in Iconic’s reports that it files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission and which you should review, including those statements under “Item 1A – Risk Factors” in Iconic’s Annual Report on Form 10-K.

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