New Experienced Management Will Aggressively Pursue Expansion and Innovation While Streamlining Operations
Recent $40 Million Capital Transaction to Drive Future Growth and Position Company to Take Advantage of Significant Opportunities
AMITYVILLE, NY, Sept. 13, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — via NewMediaWire — Iconic Brands, Inc. (OTCQB: ICNB) (“Iconic” or the “Company”), a lifestyle branding company and developer of premium alcoholic beverages, today announced the recent appointment of a new, highly experienced C-Suite, including Larry Romer, most recently Senior VP and GM at Southern Glazer Wine & Spirits in New York, as Chief Executive Officer; John A. Cosenza, most recently the North East Category Leader at Anheuser-Busch (AB), as Chief Operating Officer; and David Allen as Chief Financial Officer and Secretary. In addition, with its recent acquisition of TopPop, Tom Martin will remain that subsidiary’s President and COO, and Tom Belton will remain its CFO.
Chairman’s Comments
“I am proud to report we have assembled a stellar, highly-accomplished executive team who will guide Iconic into the next phase of its growth trajectory,” said Richard DeCicco, Iconic President and Chairman of the Board of Directors. “The fact is, our Board determined that it was time to bring in new blood, new ideas and leadership at the top to fully capitalize on the tremendous opportunities available to our company, help us to capture market share and unlock Iconic’s full value with the expansion into various new verticals. We believe strengthening the C-Suite is a great step in pursuit of our proposed uplisting of our common stock to a national stock exchange.
“With an experienced, aggressive new leadership team, and our solid financial position, we will be able to better support our brands and also to create and pursue new opportunities within the alcohol beverage industry,” Mr. DeCicco added.
Executive Bios and Comments
CEO Larry Romer brings over 40 years of beverage industry experience to Iconic, including senior management positions with Coca Cola, The Paddington Corporation, Jim Beam and most recently as Senior VP and GM at Southern Glazer Wine & Spirits in New York. He has an extensive and successful track record of brand building, supply chain management, and driving revenue growth and has significant experience working in every market in the U.S. and Canada, where he has developed strong relationships with partners across all tiers of the business. Mr. Romer holds a bachelor’s degree from Manhattan College and a master’s degree in health and physical education from Adelphi University.
Commenting on his appointment to Iconic, CEO Larry Romer said, “Iconic has a solid portfolio of highly-competitive brands and I look forward to using its expertise and valuable industry relationships to aggressively grow the current brands while pursuing new opportunities in Wine, Spirits and additional channels. Iconic’s new alcohol manufacturing and packing business is a significant tool that already generates solid revenue. I was highly attracted to Iconic’s understated potential, and we are aggressively pursuing new and different avenues for growth as we grow more vertically integrated. I’m really looking forward to working closely with Tom Martin to take advantage of the synergies now available to grow our revenue and value.”
COO John A. Cosenza served in management at Anheuser-Busch (AB) for 30 years, most recently as the Northeast Category leader. There, he began his AB career as a sales representative for Lower Manhattan and, as Chain Store Manager, was responsible for all NYC chain store sales and innovations. Later, Mr. Cosenza served as Sr. Manager for AB’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) division, where he promoted responsible drinking, the designated driver program, and the prevention of underage drinking. He has executed strategies in retail, college and major sports venues. As Commercial Director for Brooklyn and Staten Island, he was responsible for sales, marketing, pricing, and innovation. Mr. Cosenza earned an MBA in finance from Long Island University and a bachelor’s degree in Sports Management from St. John’s University.
CFO and Secretary, David Allen, brings to Iconic 22 years of experience as a public company CFO, and over 40 years as a Certified Public Accountant, having started his career with Arthur Andersen & Co. Currently, he sits on the board of directors of two public companies and serves as audit committee chairman for one. Mr. Allen has worked as an Advisor to Iconic since 2018. He is a licensed CPA and holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting and a master’s degree in taxation from Bentley College.
President & COO of TopPop, Tom Martin, has been in the primary and secondary packaging industry for over 40 years with privately held companies. He has managed, co-founded and run printing operations, equipment divisions, cosmetic contract manufacturing and food contract manufacturing companies. Mr. Martin’s expertise is in sales, engineering and company building. He is a co-founder of TopPop Packaging. TopPop was built from the ground up by capitalizing on the innovative idea of alcohol-infused adult ice pops and single-use food & beverage products. This then led to the building of its state-of-the-art, FDA approved production facility, which tripled the company’s production capacity. The facility was designed and built to produce single-serve Boozy Ice Pops for some of the nation’s largest beer, wine and spirits companies.
CFO of TopPop, Tom Belton, has been instrumental in assisting businesses to create and drive innovation and growth strategies for over 35 years. He is the founder and CEO of InnoAccel Solutions, where he partners with growing businesses as an investor, Board member and C-Suite officer to energize business and brands through innovation strategies, “skin in the game” equity partnerships, and marketing and supply chain joint ventures.
Tracy Memoli will remain as TopPop’s Chief Communications Officer and Laurance Rassin will remain its Chief Marketing Officer.
Chief Communications Officer of TopPop, Tracy Memoli brings nearly 20 years of experience as a publicist in the hospitality and leisure industry. She works with some of the world’s largest beverage brands, startup companies, corporations, restaurants and top chefs to create alcohol-infused ice pop flavors. In 2016, Tracy Memoli co-founded FrutaPOP, the makers of alcohol-infused ice pops that has helped to reinvent the ice pop, a product that hasn’t seen an innovation in the last 70 years.
Tracy has appeared on Dr. Oz and has been featured in USA Today, Travel, U.S. News & World Report, TheStreet.com, The Daily Meal and Destination Weddings & Events. Tracy holds a bachelor’s degree in Communications from the University of North Florida and is a member of the New York Women’s Culinary Alliance, United Women in Business and the Entreprenista League.
Chief Marketing Officer of TopPop, Laurance Rassin, brings more than 35 years of experience in marketing, brand activations, experiential events and brand strategy, with a focus on start-up brand strategy and positioning. He is a co-founder of TopPop. Mr. Rassin holds a bachelor’s degree from American University.
About TopPop
TopPop, a product development and contract manufacturing company in the U.S., specializes in manufacturing products containing alcohol. TopPop has received federal and state licensing to manufacture malt, spirit and wine-based products in its facility. TopPop’s team of seasoned professionals manufactures its products with the highest quality controls under FDA guidelines, SQF certification and Organic certification. For more information, visit its website at https://toppoppkg.com/.
About Iconic
Iconic is a lifestyle branding company with expertise in developing, from inception to completion, alcoholic beverages for itself and third parties. Iconic markets and places products into national distribution through long-standing industry relationships. Iconic is a leader in “celebrity branding” of beverages, procuring superior and unique products from around the world, and branding its products with internationally recognized celebrities. It currently offers Bellissima Prosecco and Sparkling Wines, by Christie Brinkley, certified Made with Organic Grapes and Vegan, as well as a Zero Sugar variety. On the spirits side, Iconic offers BiVi Sicilian Vodka by Chazz Palminteri, which is handcrafted in Sicily.
Please visit the Iconic’s websites and follow us on social media.
Websites: Iconicbrandsusa.com; bivivodka.com; bellissimaprosecco.com
Twitter: @BiviVodka
Instagram: @IconicBrandsUSA; @BellissimaProsecco; @Bivivodka
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. These forward-looking statements are made on the basis of the current beliefs, expectations and assumptions of management, are not guarantees of performance, and are subject to significant risks and uncertainty. These forward-looking statements should, therefore, be considered in light of various risks, including those set forth in Iconic’s reports that it files from time to time with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and which you should review, including those statements under “Item 1A – Risk Factors” in Iconic’s Annual Report on Form 10-K.
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