PM - Kaival Brands Appoints Executive Chairman Barry Hopkins as Interim Chief Executive Officer and President | Benzinga
GRANT-VALKARIA, Fla., Dec. 28, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kaival Brands Innovations Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:KAVL) ("Kaival Brands," the "Company," or "we") today announced that it has expanded the role of Barry M. Hopkins, Executive Chairman, to include the positions of Interim Chief Executive Officer & President.
Former Chief Executive Officer & President, Eric Mosser, has been appointed Chief Executive Officer & President of Kaival Brands International, the Company's subsidiary which has an international licensing relationship with Philip Morris Products S.A., a wholly owned affiliate of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM).
Niraj Patel, Founder & Chief Science Officer of Kaival Brands, stated, "When I founded Kaival Brands, I envisioned a diverse platform that could capture the tailwinds generated by our core offering, the BIDI® Stick electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS). Barry understands this vision, the importance of regulatory compliance and youth access prevention, and has done an exceptional job since joining Kaival Brands. He has eagerly taken on increasing levels of responsibility, leveraging his decades of experience in management in our industry. His appointment as Interim CEO and President was a natural progression, and we look forward to potentially expanding our excellent management team further during 2024 with a permanent CEO and/or President as our needs dictate. Having Barry in this position now is particularly important since we are at a significant inflection point, as we remain hopeful that FDA will soon complete its review of the pending Premarket Tobacco Product Application (PMTA) for the tobacco-flavored BIDI® Stick Classic. If we receive a Marketing Granted Order for this product, we will have significant momentum in the new year with the ability to continue to transition adult cigarette smokers, drive revenue and grow our company."
According to a recent U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announcement, the agency's next status report regarding its review of the still-pending PMTAs for major brands and market share leading ENDS products is due to be filed by January 22, 2024 with the U.S. District Court in Maryland. Although FDA has not indicated publicly which PMTAs it is prioritizing for review, Kaival Brands is hopeful that the BIDI® Stick Classic will be included in the January 2024 status report. The Company also anticipates the PMTAs for the other 10 BIDI-branded SKUs will remain in scientific review.
Recently, the Company has been encouraged by the coordinated efforts of the FDA, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and other government agencies to increase their coordinated focus on enforcement. The Company believes it has been hurt by illicit vaping products flooding the market, and it is now preparing to scale along with other legal products assuming increased enforcement continues alongside the January announcement by the FDA.
Following his appointment as Chairman of the Board in March 2023, Mr. Hopkins has played an integral role in the re-development of Kaival's executive leadership team. He is a 40-year tobacco industry veteran with deep operational experience and a long track record of strategic planning and execution, organizational development, and regulatory compliance. He has overseen significant growth in each of his previous roles, including:
- Prior to retiring from Altria as Vice President of National Accounts in ...