Victoria, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – March 26, 2025) – ALUULA Composites .Inc. (TSXV: AUUA) (“ALUULA” or the “Company“) today reported its financial results for the three-month period ended January 31, 2025 (“Q1 2025“). All currency amounts noted are in Canadian dollars.
Building on momentum gained in fiscal 2024, the Company announces progression against strategic initiatives in Q1 2025. These initiatives include: closing an oversubscribed rights offering for gross proceeds of $2,506,156, realizing continued customer diversification, reporting gross margins at the top end of expectation, progressing against the expansion of manufacturing capabilities at a wider width and continuing to professionalize and strengthen the team.
The first quarter of 2025 saw a decrease in sales for ALUULA driven by the challenges that remain for the windsport market, which the Company believes can be attributed to post-pandemic inventory overstocking. While the windsport vertical market, as the first market entered, has underpinned the Company’s historical growth, and remains an important area for ALUULA, the Company believes that future growth opportunities will be driven by markets that have both higher growth rates and larger total addressable markets.
“Our Q1 2025 results underpinned the necessity of commercial diversification for ALUULA. The Company has been focused on bringing our unique composite textiles into new markets and essential to this is that we have the team required to execute our go to market strategies. This requires both driving revenue and ensuring we can deliver the quality products to support that revenue,” said Sage Berryman, President & CEO.
Berryman added, “With this, we are pleased to announce that Sven Sandahl is joining ALUULA as Chief Commercial Officer to help drive commercial and brand value. We are also pleased to welcome Peter Reid who is joining as Director of Manufacturing and Materials Engineering to help the continual improvement in our manufacturing process and quality of products. 2025 is a key year for ALUULA as we move from our internally focused execution to being more active in driving the growth of the business.”
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As a seasoned entrepreneur and executive passionate about sustainability, Sven Sandahl has held many leadership roles in performance outdoor companies focused on circularity. Recently Sven helped launch ReJu, an international textile recycling company, as well as Cake, Karun World and Houdini Sportswear amongst others. He also has deep experience in building brand value and driving growth for ingredient brands including Cohesive, MIPS AB in their essential pre-IPO growth phase (where he advanced the uptake and understanding of this important helmet safety technology) and RECCO Systems Inc. Sven and his team will be responsible for leading the evolution of ALUULA’s brand and partner relations, helping to drive the growth for the business.
Peter Reid is a professional engineer who brings extensive experience in composites and materials engineering. Having worked in leadership roles at a number of companies including Mustang Survival and Arc’teryx, he and his team will work closely with the Company’s research and development team with a focus on the continuous improvement of ALUULA’s products and processes.
Key Q1 2025 Highlights
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Sales: the Company progressed against its customer diversification goals by:
Reducing sales concentration with the windsport vertical market from 89% in Q1 2024 to 80% in Q1 2025.
Increasing the number of customers ordering material in prototype size batches by 10% in Q1 2025 compared to Q1 2025 with 95% of these orders came from non-windsport customers in Q1 2025 vs. 61% in Q1 2024.
The importance of the Company’s initiative to diversify its customer base was highlighted in Q1 2025 as sales decreased by 37% to $1,261,529 from $1,997,279 in Q1 2024. This decrease was primarily due to the windsport vertical market which continues to recover from post pandemic overstocking issues that has altered customer ordering patterns.
Gross Margins: the Company reported gross margins of 45% in Q1 2025, which is at the top end of its expected range. Q1 2025 gross margins were consistent with Q1 2024.
Operating expenses were $819,530 in Q1 2025 compared to $683,032 in Q1 2024 representing a quarter over quarter increase of $136,498. The increase is primarily due to higher salaries and research & development costs as the Company invests in recruiting key hires and expanding manufacturing capabilities to a wider width, both of which are key to achieving its growth objectives.
Net and comprehensive loss from Ocean Rodeo’s discontinued operations was $5,395 in Q1 2025 compared to a net and comprehensive loss of $346,557 in Q1 2024 representing a quarter over quarter decrease of $341,162. This decrease is a direct result of cost cutting measures implemented in April 2024 after the decision was made to discontinue Ocean Rodeo’s operations.
Increase in cash and cash equivalents: the Company reported an increase in cash and cash equivalents of $2,061,967 in Q1 2025 compared to $412,459 in Q1 2024. The increase in cash and cash equivalents is due to the Company’s successful completion of an oversubscribed rights offering and sale of non-core assets which will provide sufficient working capital to execute on the fiscal 2025 plan.
Outlook
The Company continues to work with its growing list of brand partners, developing products that are lighter, stronger, and recycle-ready. These partnerships are built on the mutual understanding that performance and circularity can be synonymous in the outdoor industry and beyond. The products that are born from these partnerships work to change the industry for the better.
The windsports and performance outdoor categories are still the core drivers of ALUULA’s growth as more new companies move from concept into commercialization launching new ALUULA enabled products in these areas. Collaborative research and development programs with other industrial partners, such as Michelin Inflatable Solutions and AirSeas, continue to advance the materials’ development as these opportunities move closer to commercial viability.
Product innovation, strength, weight, and circularity are key areas of focus for ALUULA and its brand partners. Focusing on these areas, as well as continued improvements to the patented manufacturing process, will continue to improve efficiencies and profitability. The Company continues to focus on stabilizing the corporate foundation to enable a strong base for future sales pipeline, revenue and gross margin growth.
Financial Statements and Management’s Discussion and Analysis
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This earnings press release should be read in conjunction with ALUULA’s unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements for the three months ended January 31, 2025 and the related management discussion and analysis, which can be found on ALUULA’s website and its issuer profile on the System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval Plus at www.sedarplus.ca.
About ALUULA Composites
ALUULA is an ultra-light, high performance and recycle-ready composite materials brand that enhances the performance of outdoor gear. Proudly owned and manufactured on the Canadian west coast, ALUULA’s innovation is driven by a deep understanding that equipment does not need to sacrifice performance for sustainability. ALUULA’s materials are known for their unique construction capabilities and their ability to make products lighter, stronger, and more sustainable.
aluula.com | (TSXV: AUUA)
On behalf of the Board of Directors, Sage Berryman Chief Executive Officer 1-888-724-2470
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For ALUULA investor inquiries, please contact:
1-888-724-2470, ext. 4 IR@aluula.com
For ALUULA media relations, please contact:
media@aluula.com
ALUULA’s Brand Partners
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The term “brand partners” does not refer to formal partnerships with our customers. The term refers to marketing relationships with our customers who use ALUULA’s technology as a brand ingredient in their products.
TSX Venture Exchange
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-Looking Statements
The information in this news release includes certain information and statements about management’s view of future events, expectations, plans, and prospects that constitute forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to: use of proceeds from the rights offering; the Company’s list of brand partners growing; the Company’s advancement of its materials development; and improved efficiencies and profitability. These statements are based on assumptions subject to significant risks and uncertainties as described in the Company’s management discussion and analysis. Because of these risks and uncertainties and as a result of a variety of factors, including the timing and receipt of all applicable regulatory, corporate third-party approvals, the actual results, expectations, achievements, or performance may differ materially from those anticipated and indicated by these forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurances that the expectations of any forward-looking statement will prove to be correct. Except as required by law, the Company disclaims any intention and assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions, changes in factors affecting such forward-looking statements or otherwise.
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To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/246224
SixCap Healthcare Finance added Dan Carroll as senior relationship manager, reporting to the company’s co-founder and chief investment officer, Dan Whitwer.
Carroll brings more than 20 years of commercial finance, portfolio management and healthcare asset-based lending experience to SixCap. Throughout his career, he has managed complex healthcare lending relationships, led portfolio management teams, overseen loan closings and partnered closely with borrowers to support growth while maintaining disciplined credit management.
Most recently, Carroll held leadership positions at Siena, CNH Finance and Triumph Healthcare Finance, building extensive expertise in healthcare lending, credit analysis, loan structuring, risk management and client relationship management.
In his new role, Carroll will oversee borrower relationships across SixCap’s growing healthcare portfolio, working closely with clients to provide proactive portfolio management, responsive service and financing solutions that evolve alongside their businesses.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Dan to the SixCap team,” Whitwer said. “I’ve had the privilege of working alongside Dan and have seen firsthand the integrity, experience and thoughtful approach he brings to every client relationship. He understands healthcare, he understands asset-based lending and, most importantly, he understands the value of building lasting partnerships. As our portfolio continues to grow, Dan’s leadership and commitment to exceptional client service make him a tremendous addition to our team.”
Two of Chicago’s most pivotal but challenging undeveloped sites — Foundry Park on the North Side and the vacant South Loop parcel known as The 78 — moved forward in a big way Wednesday before the City Council adjourned for a summer recess.
Mayor Brandon Johnson introduced a $201.6 million tax increment financing subsidy for JDL Development’s scaled back vision for North Side industrial land along the Chicago River that once was supposed to be home to the Lincoln Yards megaproject.
And despite a slew of concerns from Council members, the full Council approved a $425 million TIF for The 78, a reference to Chicago’s unofficial 78th community area. The subsidy will bankroll public improvements needed for the South Loop development, anchored by a $750 million soccer stadium privately financed by Chicago Fire billionaire owner Joe Mansueto.
Downtown Ald. Bill Conway (34th), whose adjacent TIF is being raided to help The 78, again refused to go along with the $250.1 million piece of the infrastructure package that will primarily be used to build a 1,200-space parking garage. The $216 million garage will serve as the “podium” for an open-air plaza and future high-rise development on the air rights above the garage.
Referring to the Bears’ long-running stadium saga, Conway said Wednesday he appreciates the Fire “not trying to move to Hammond, Indiana, and become the Hammond Sparks.” But he said he “cannot look the taxpayers in the eye and tell them” he supported spending “$250 million to build a stadium parking garage and plaza.”
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Finance Chair Pat Dowell, whose 3rd Ward includes The 78, has argued that the podium “brings the site to grade at Roosevelt Road” and is the key to “unlocking the site from the isolation that has stalled every previous development proposal.”
Deputy Planning Commissioner Jeff Cohen made that same point Wednesday, with a new wrinkle.
“The idea here is to incorporate that garage into the podium,” Cohen said. “It’s addressing a design and development plan that allows for all of the land within The 78 to be open for investment, rather than having to have either temporary or permanent surface parking lots to accommodate the car traffic.”
An artist’s rendering of the planned Chicago Fire soccer stadium at The 78 in the South Loop.
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The $201.6 million subsidy proposed for Foundry Park pales by comparison to the $1.3 billion that former Mayor Rahm Emanuel once proposed for Lincoln Yards. That massive subsidy became a political lightning rod, with the avalanche of criticism led by the Chicago Teachers Union and then-union organizer Brandon Johnson.
The $201.6 million subsidy that Johnson introduced at Wednesday’s Council meeting is more likely to be criticized for being too little.
It will support just over 25% of the $800 million worth of roads, bridges, utilities and mass transit improvements that 2nd Ward Ald. Brian Hopkins has said were mandated as part of the Lincoln Yards plan.
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Foundry Park developer Jim Letchinger acknowledged that there is “other infrastructure that the neighborhood would like to see done that is not possible right now.”
But Letchinger added it’s a start that includes the long-promised extension of the popular 606 Trail. “If you don’t start with something that’s achievable, you can’t achieve anything.”
“We have a plan to actually start building and creating revenue right away in conjunction with building our infrastructure … A lot of parks. Massive riverwalk. Ten acres of public open space. Very usable, very engaging,” Letchinger said Wednesday.
“As we continue to build, since we’re not using anywhere near all the increment that we’re creating, the other increment can go toward other projects that the neighborhood would like to see — whether it’s to build a bridge or fixing Elston Avenue, or anything else that they’re anxious about,” he said.
Public improvements promised to residents, but not covered by the $201.6 million subsidy, include another bridge crossing the Chicago River and a realignment of Elston Avenue, which Letchinger called a positive move in the long run, but a “massive undertaking” complicated by cost and property control.
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“No private developer can realign Elston. It’s impossible. The city is the only one that can do that, and they’re working on it. There’s plans for it. But it will take a very long time,” Lechtinger said.
Ald. Scott Waguespack (32nd) said there is “one bridge that a lot of people still want,” but it goes through private properties owned by Ozinga Ready Mix Concrete and several other owners.
“The city would have to do it as a taking [of property], and that would be in the hundreds of millions of dollars. So they took that off the table because … that bridge wasn’t necessary at this time,” Waguespack told the Chicago Sun-Times.
Letchinger’s plan for roughly 34 vacant acres of the site calls for up to 3,737 residences, 20% of them designated as affordable to comply with the city’s set-aside rules. The new design includes low- to mid-rise buildings, some for offices, grouped near open space and riverfront access. Buildings would get ground-floor retail, and one is slated as a boutique hotel.
The project’s reduced density has drawn praise from residents. And Waguespack said he’s satisfied with the reduced public subsidy.
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“In the future if there’s more needed, we could go back and do it. But this is much more grounded in a realistic infrastructure project that will still satisfy all the needs of connecting the neighborhoods,” Waguespack said.
Hopkins said he views the scaled-down subsidy and the infrastructure projects as “wholly inadequate” and a broken promise to Lincoln Park and Bucktown residents.
“Lincoln Yards provided for two bridges with the possibility of a third. Foundry Park has zero,” Hopkins said. “I don’t want to move on a vague verbal promise that we might consider adding a bridge later. The time to add it is now while the redevelopment agreement is still pending. And the fact that it was omitted is tragic. Also, the [Elston-Armitage] intersection redesign and the new Metra station seems to have fallen by the wayside.”
Also at Wednesday’s meeting, Johnson proposed a tax break for Chicago’s booming film and television industries — by reducing the 15% personal property lease transaction tax to 11%.
The tax has been raised twice in recent years and was the biggest piece of the revenue package that helped balance the $16.7 billion budget for 2026. It has exceeded revenue projections by $40.3 million through June 30, allowing Johnson to offer the break in hopes of attracting more film and TV productions to Chicago.
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The City Council also followed a trail blazed by Gov. JB Pritzker and his counterparts in six other states by prohibiting present and former city employees — and elected officials — from using insider information to bet on prediction markets. Apps including Kalshi and Polymarket are used to place bets on everything from election winners and the number of candidates entering a specific race for office, to budgetary and foreign policy decisions by elected officials.
Championed by Ald. Timmy Knudsen (43rd), the ordinance prohibits current or former city officials, appointees and employees from using “confidential information or any non-public information, including the identity of the subject of an investigation” to either participate in prediction markets or “assist any other person” placing those bets.
The Council also confirmed Johnson’s appointment of Dr. Garth Walker as the city’s public health commissioner.
Covering the cost of fertility treatment can feel like yet another hurdle in a process that is already physically and emotionally draining. Not only do you have to go through the testing and medical procedures involved, you can also end up paying tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars.
For families who want to have kids or women who want to afford themselves a little more time, though, this can feel like a price well worth paying. But the process may necessitate some financial planning. Research can also go a long way, as insurance companies increasingly offer coverage.
How much can fertility treatments cost?
The cost of fertility treatments can vary widely depending on the specific treatment that is necessary. A “typical egg preservation cycle is about $10,000,” while a frozen embryo transfer “could total about $2,500,” said The Bump. Meanwhile, a procedure like in vitro fertilization (IVF) “could add up to a total of $13,000 to $14,000.” Opting for a surrogate, meanwhile, can run anywhere from $80,000 to $100,000.
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There is also the reality that a fertility treatment is not always a one-time thing. In fact, “most people will need more than one cycle to achieve pregnancy,” said The Wall Street Journal.
Can insurance help cover fertility treatments?
Over the past decade, “more companies have already stepped up to help employees,” said Jaime Knopman, a reproductive endocrinologist for CCRM Fertility of New York, to the Journal. Now, said the outlet, “more than 40% of companies offer overall fertility benefits, according to a 2024 survey of employee benefits plans from the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans.”
Still, this does not mean you will get full coverage, and certain parts of the treatment process may not be covered. For example, “your plan may cover fertility medications, but only those of a specific brand. Or it may cover routine lab work, but only at designated labs,” said Discover. This makes it absolutely vital to do in-depth research and ask questions.
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If your company does not offer coverage, it could be worth asking HR. “Some patients even successfully lobbied their human-resources departments to change a company’s policies and benefits plans,” said the Journal.
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What are other options for covering the cost of treatments?
There are options besides your own bank account or insurance for helping to cover the cost of fertility treatments. Some alternatives include:
FSA or HSA funds: Flexible spending accounts, or FSAs, and health savings accounts, or HSAs, “may be used to help pay for IVF and other fertility treatments,” said First Citizens Bank.
Provider payment plans or financial assistance: Your doctor “may offer a payment plan, discounts for uninsured patients or even a shared-risk program,” said Discover.
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Nonprofits and charities: There are many “national and local nonprofit organizations that support fertility treatments and related costs,” said Discover. They may have eligibility requirements, however, as some are “established to assist with specific types of patients, while many include income thresholds.”