JustKitchen Appoints Strategic Advisors and Key Management to Build on its International Expansion
- Three advisory appointments are expected to bolster the Company's entrance into the Japanese market, add more global food brands to its portfolio and establish a strong presence in the Philippines
- Additions to JustKitchen's executive team include a new Chief Technology Officer and Head of Supply Chain
- A new Business Intelligence department has been formalized to leverage the Company's multijurisdictional JKOS enterprise solution and will be led by Mark Lin, Chief Information Officer, and Ken Chang, Chief Technology Officer
TSXV: JK OTCQB: JKHCF FRA: 68Z
VANCOUVER, BC, Dec. 6, 2021 /CNW/ - Just Kitchen Holdings Corp. ("JustKitchen" or the "Company") (TSXV: JK) (OTCQB: JKHCF) (FRA: 68Z), an operator of ghost kitchens specializing in the development of delivery-only food brands, is pleased to announce that it has recently appointed Ernest Higa, John Hardyment and Zaki Delgado (the "New Advisors") to its strategic advisory board. Management expects that Mr. Higa will be instrumental in advising the Company on its entry into the Japanese market, Mr. Hardyment will advise on the onboarding of international food brands and Mr. Delgado will advise on business development opportunities in the Philippines and across southeast Asia. The New Advisors join the two previously announced founding members of the advisory board – Warren Tseng as APAC Expansion Advisor and Gene Chuang as Technology Advisor.
"The JustKitchen team is excited to welcome Mr. Higa, Mr. Hardyment and Mr. Delgado to the Company's strategic advisory board and leverage their expertise as we continue our international expansion through southeast Asia. Entering the Japanese market, adding more global food brands to our portfolio and establishing a strong presence in the Philippines are high priorities for us and we are grateful to Ernest, John and Zaki, respectively, for accepting their appointments," said Jason Chen, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of JustKitchen. "I would also like to extend a warm welcome to Ken and Wayne as the newest additions to our management team. We look forward to benefitting from their respective areas of expertise in software and supply chain leveraging our JKOS enterprise solution, as those aspects of the Company are critical to our success as we continue to grow beyond Taiwan and execute on our international expansion plan," added Mr. Chen.
Ernest Higa is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Higa Industries Co., Ltd. and the Chief Executive Officer of Wendy's Japan. He is also a Director of Del Sole Corporation and Shinsei Bank, and a Chairman of Board of Councilors of USJC, a member of Keizai Doyukai and Board of Overseers of the Columbia Business School. In 1990, he was named "Entrepreneur of the Year" by the New Business Conference. In 1998, he received an award from the Ministry of Agriculture for "innovation in the food industry" and was recognized by Toyo Keizai as one of the top 50 entrepreneurs in Japan.
John Hardyment has a diverse background that includes managing, owning and operating a number of businesses in Asia, with over 43 years of experience in Greater China. He is currently the Founder and Chairman of the Bayshore Pacific Group (the "Group"), which currently comprises Bayshore Pacific Hospitality Ltd., Bayshore Pacific Restaurants Ltd. and Bayshore Pacific International Ltd. ("BPI"). The Group focuses on leisure, entertainment and hospitality business opportunities in Greater China. Brands in the Group's portfolio included TGI Fridays, Texas Roadhouse, Smith & Wollensky, Dan Ryan's Chicago Grill and Amaroni's.
Zaki Delgado is the Co-CEO of Transnational Diversified Group ("TDG"), a Philippine-based group of companies that are leading players in logistics, ship management, travel and tourism, as well as information and communications technology services. Since its founding in 1976, TDG has grown from a single shipping agency to a group of over 30 operating companies, which include partnerships with international industry leaders and brands. Mr. Delgado also concurrently holds the position of President of TDG Ventures, which is the technology, travel and lifestyle, investment and operating holding company of TDG.
JustKitchen is also pleased to announce that Ken Chang will become its Chief Technology Officer effective December 15, 2021. Mr. Chang was previously the Senior R&D Director for WeMo Scooter where he developed technological solutions in a multifunctional capacity for the company's software-as-a-service platform. The Company's current Chief Technology Officer, Mark Lin, will become Chief Information Officer to accommodate Mr. Chang's appointment. Ken is a highly skilled and experienced full-stack engineer and software architect who, together with Mark, will form the cornerstone of the Company's new Business Intelligence department.
Mr. Chang is expected to complete current projects and lead the construction of new software products, while Mr. Lin will lead the analysis of the data processed by the Company's proprietary tech stack. Specifically, the completion of the previously announced JKOS platform will be a top priority in order to make it a robust solution that is deployable in any country, is fully integrated from back-end systems to the front-end user interface, and is also able to be integrated with any third-party delivery service providers and their mobile applications.
Additionally, Wayne Liu has recently been hired and onboarded as JustKitchen's Head of Supply Chain. Mr. Liu's comes to JustKitchen from Wellcome, where he was the head of supply chain until it was acquired by Carrefour, the French multinational corporation that operates a global chain of groceries stores, convenience stores and hypermarkets. Wayne is expected by management to lead the Company's supply chain, which continues to grow and expand into new countries. He has also been tasked with taking control of JustKitchen's enterprise resource planning system in and outside of Taiwan.
ABOUT JUSTKITCHEN
JustKitchen is primarily an operator of ghost kitchens specializing in the development and marketing of proprietary and franchised delivery-only food brands for customers. The Company currently operates in Taiwan and Hong Kong with plans to expand operations to other Asian countries. JustKitchen uniquely utilizes a hub-and-spoke operating model, which features advanced food preparation taking place at larger hub kitchens and final meal preparation taking place at smaller spoke kitchens located in areas with higher population densities. The Company combines this operating model with online and mobile application-based food ordering fulfilled by third-party delivery companies, to minimize capital investments and operating expenses and reach more customers in underserved markets. The Company's other business, JustMarket, is an e-commerce grocery delivery platform that allows customers to purchase groceries for delivery or add select grocery items to meals ordered through JustKitchen.
For more information about the Company, please visit investors.justkitchen.com. JustKitchen's final prospectus, financial statements and management's discussion and analysis, among other documents, are all available on the Company's profile page on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.
Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This news release contains certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of such statements under applicable securities law. Forward-looking statements are frequently characterized by words such as "anticipates", "plan", "continue", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "may", "will", "potential", "proposed", "positioned" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur including but not limited to the Company's comments regarding the appointments bolstering the Company's entrance into the Japanese market, adding more global food brands to its portfolio and establishing a strong presence in the Philippines; its multijurisdictional JKOS enterprise solution; and the growth and expansion of the Company's supply chain into new countries. These statements are only predictions. Various assumptions were used in drawing the conclusions or making the projections contained in the forward-looking statements throughout this news release. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are made and are subject to a variety of risks, including those risk factors identified in the Company's prospectus dated March 26, 2021, and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. The Company is under no obligation, and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation, to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable law.
SOURCE Just Kitchen Holdings Corp.
Just Kitchen Holdings Corp., Suite 1430, 800 West Pender Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6C 2V6, Nick Kuzyk, Investor Relations, Toll-Free: 1-855-JST-KCHN (1-855-578-5246), Email: [email protected]
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