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Aja Cannafacturing Appoints New President and CEO; Proceeds With Charge! Energy Divestiture Plan(Marketwire Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) LAKE ELSINORE, CA -- (Marketwired) -- 10/21/14 -- Aja Cannafacturing Inc. (OTCQB: AJAC) announced today that has appointed Kendall A. Smith as its President and CEO and has entered into a definitive contractual agreement with Mr. Smith. Mr. Smith was recently appointed as a new member of the Company's Board of Directors and provides many years of experience in the cannabis sector in providing health care advocacy and consulting services. Concurrently, Mr. Scott Plantinga remains as the Company's Chairman of the Board of Directors, stepping down from his role of daily activities at AJAC. Mr. Plantinga will remain on the Board with the goal of transitioning all of the Company's current affairs to its new leadership team while addressing legacy issues of the Company. Mr. Plantinga will also focus his endeavors on AJAC's wholly owned subsidiary, Charge! Energy Storage Inc. (Charge!). On September 15, 2014 the Board of Directors of AJAC had authorized divestiture of Charge! pending regulatory approval. The Company stated it is moving forward to finalize its reorganization and strategic plans for the future including determining the "X-date" for the shareholders to receive shares in both companies. Kendall A. Smith, 33, is a business entrepreneur with over 13 years' experience in consulting providing services in multiple sectors ranging from the cultivation and harvesting of cannabis and hemp to being a patient advocate and caregiver, Mr. Smith also brings an extensive knowledge of organic chemistry and botanical based remedies. Mr. Smith started his post academic career in 2001 operating a graphic design company and learning first-hand the challenges of growing a business in a competitive marketplace. Selling his interest to his partner in 2003 Mr. Smith attended College of Southern Nevada focusing on multiple degrees in the culinary arts and in food and beverage management. In 2005 Mr. Smith started Impressive Printing, a custom apparel and merchandise printing company that achieved success with its focus on institutional markets emphasizing innovation and design. In January 2010 Smith and McLaurine, LLC was founded with two businesses, Juicy Freeze, a health juice bar that was located internally to athletic gyms and Presidential Catering specializing in meal planning and preparation and catering special events. Four years later Mr. Smith founded Smith & Ramsay, LLC, a Nevada-based company that specializes in flavoring and aroma extraction servicing the food, beverage and tobacco industries capitalizing on his existing business and past relationships to provide differentiation in consumable products. Mr. Smith has been an active volunteer in Nevada statewide with his drive for community activism and wellness education the impetus for prompted his research in cannabinoids and the industrial hemp industry where he continues to make strides in breeding and cultivation. "I am very excited about the divestiture so I may focus my energies on building a strong infrastructure and leadership team that will drive Aja's success in the industrial hemp space," said Mr. Smith. He elaborated, "We have a strategic plan with milestones so the Company can achieve its long range goals and have a business that will provide real value to our shareholders and for our employees." Mr. Plantinga said, "Having Mr. Smith at our helm is critical important so he can drive our growth in the industrial hemp market. His experience and knowledge of various product categories and the development requirements that AJAC must meet for the construction and OEM markets are key to our success." Upon conclusion of his trip last week to the annual Energy Storage North America (ESNA) Expo held in San Jose, CA, Mr. Plantinga provided an update for Charge! Energy Storage. Mr. Plantinga stated, "At Charge! Energy Storage, we are excited to announce progress in our strategic partnership with FGY Energy Storage Research Institute Co., Ltd. a Jiang Su, China (FGY). We have begun a journey to bring their entire suite of battery and energy storage products to the North and South American markets. Our focus will be in defining product segmentation, and on ascertaining domestic design requirements for each market in the residential and commercial behind-the-meter Energy Storage applications. Charge! Energy Storage will offer value in final assembly opportunities along with their leadership in Sales, Warehousing & Distribution." George Rodriguez, VP of Operations for Charge! Stated, "This is a superb union of two companies bringing their capabilities together. The Charge! market presence and name recognition aligned with FGY, a recognized powerhouse in design and in research and development should provide synergies not previously achievable as individual companies. FGY has nearly 50 patents of which 25 of them are for inventions, and has earned three technology awards. FGY is a very cost effective, world class, component manufacturer, evidenced by their existing relationships with Samsung SDI and numerous other leaders in their respective industries." About Aja Cannafacturing Aja Cannafacturing Inc., (OTCQB: AJAC), operations are focused on being the pioneering force in the cannabis and Industrial Hemp industry by the select breeding and cultivation of application-specific, proprietary cannabis seed. Through these methods, Aja Cannafacturing seeks to maximize the potential of every harvest becoming a leading supplier of raw cannabis material for industry specific applications such as building materials (Hempcrete), automotive (biofuels), plastics (healthcare) and textiles (fabrics). This positions Aja Cannafacturing at the forefront of a new domestic industrial revolution. Charge! Energy Storage Inc., is a wholly owned subsidiary of AJAC. Charge! Energy Storage is a designer and developer of GIIRS-rated energy storage devices for residential, commercial, and light industrial markets and products that deliver clean stationary and portable electrical energy. Charge! has made a broad reaching commitment to create reliable and affordable hi-tech energy storage systems for all commercial and residential applications. Propel Management Group Inc., (PMG) provides a full range of program management, acquisition, and lifecycle support services to its customers. PMG is at the forefront of integrating acquisition, logistics, engineering, and technology disciplines into a comprehensive lifecycle management approach. PMG continually strives to improve the process of developing, procuring, and sustaining its customers' systems to achieve their overarching goals of transformation, consolidation, and efficiency. Its Direct-to-Consumer business delivers comprehensive call center and online marketing solutions to brands seeking maximum reach and return on investment (ROI). Forward-looking & Safe Harbor StatementCertain statements in this news release may contain forward-looking information within the meaning of Rule 175 under the Securities Act of 1933 and Rule 3b-6 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and those statements are subject to the safe harbor created by those rules. All statements, other than statements of fact, included in this release, including, without limitation, statements regarding potential future plans and objectives of the Company, are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. The Company cautions that these forward-looking statements are further qualified by other factors. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any statements in this release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Investor Inquiries: Aja Cannafacturing, Inc. [email protected] (714) 733-1412 (Investor Relations) Source: Aja Cannafacturing, Inc. |