High Tide Inc. (OTCQB: HITIF) has completed the acquisition of Smoke Cartel Inc.  (OTCQB: SMKC) in a deal valued at $8 million. The company said it now operates both the largest and second-largest e-commerce platforms for consumption accessories in the world with a combined total of 33 million site visits in 2020. As a result of the acquisition, High Tide said it has considerably expanded its footprint in the United States market and is very enthusiastic about its position to begin online cannabis sales should the United States move forward with federal legalization.

“The acquisition of Smoke Cartel is part of our strategy to aggressively pursue M&A targets that can be immediately accretive to shareholders. Now that the transaction has closed, High Tide will move quickly to take advantage of Smoke Cartel’s proprietary and licensable drop-shipping technology to enhance all our e-commerce businesses and further drive vertical integration across all accessory business lines, while continuing to make progress on our application to list on the Nasdaq,” said Raj Grover, President and Chief Executive Officer of High Tide. “This deal immediately gives High Tide access to Smoke Cartel’s 550,000 customers, driving more sales opportunities and increased profit margin,” added Mr. Grover.

Sean Geng, Founder, and CTO of Smoke Cartel, has joined the High Tide team as Chief Technology Officer to oversee all IT and e-commerce initiatives for High Tide globally. The company also recently promoted Aman Sood to the position of Chief Operating Officer of the Company, effective March 15^th, 2021. Mr. Sood has been serving as Senior Director, IT & Retail Operations since transitioning to High Tide after the Company’s acquisition of META Growth.

A few days ago, High Tide announced that the Canna Cabana retail store located at 1702 Bow Valley Trail, in Canmore, Alberta, would begin selling recreational cannabis products for adult use today. This opening represents High Tide’s 77^th branded retail location across Canada selling recreational cannabis products and consumption accessories. Located one hour west of Calgary and only 5 minutes from the Banff National Park, the new Canmore store is strategically located within walking distance of several ski resorts and other tourist attractions.