HOUSTON, Dec. 4, 2014 /PRNewswire-iReach/ — Funktional Beverages, Inc. (The manufacturer of Purple Stuff Sodas and Purple Stuff Clothing Lines) announced today that CEO Darrell Duchesneau will excercise his option to buy back all shares held by Natural Brands, Inc at 7.5 X EBITDA in a deal worth 3.4 million dollars. CEO Darrell Duchesneau stated “I believe that Funktional Beverage shares are undervalued in today’s market for a young consumer goods company. This move will allow a more aggressive roll out in key markets such as Texas and states in Tornado Alley where consumer awareness and product demand have a strong growth curve. I also intend to use some of my purchased shares to create a company ESOP program modeled after Private Grocery Chain Publix Supermarkets, Inc. where I worked in my teenage years and early 20’s in store management. I still own all that stock and it has been a low risk and high reward investment. As a graduate from the University of Miami Jenkin’s School of Business in 1983; Publix is the company that I use as our model of the best employee owned private company culture I have experienced first hand. This move will give my family over 90% of the common stock as well as the preferred voting stock. This power and great responsibility will allow me to well compensate those employees that help build this brand and its corporation. This is an exciting, yet humbling position to be in. I will be taking total financial responsibility for all employees who are an integral part of my extended family.” All current shareholders that invested in the company will retain their shares as requested. The only shares that are being purchased are the shares that are held by Natural Brands, Inc. Funktional Beverages was formed in 2007 and sold the majority of shares to Natural Brands, Inc. in 2009 in return for growth capital. The primary driver of the stock buy back is for the content control needed to grow the brand and the company in accordance with its initial mission; without dissolution of the founder’s vision. The company will be rolling out its new employee stock program and dividend plans in the latter half of 2015. Funktional Beverages’ main soda brand PURPLE STUFF will be in more grocery store schematics in 2015 and the company also has new regional and national brokers that will help execute these accounts. One driver for the urgency to close this deal was that Funktional Beverages, Inc. agreed to buy back shares at a 14 times EBITDA valuation when sales get to a determined level; and we expect that target will be achieved in 2016. If The CEO waited for this event, the cash position would make it more difficult to get control for a second bite at the Apple in regards to both the company vision, as well as the ability to share the profits with employees. If the CEO did not have enough votes in 2016; the employee based equity program may have become a conflict with investors that had a passive role in the management of said company.

The stock deal closes December 31, 2015.

Funktional Beverages will not be a subsidiary of Natural Brands, Inc. as of January 01, 2016.

In order for a seamless transition; Funktional Beverages, Inc. hired Natural Brands, Inc. Logistics manager Heather Duchesneau and made her Chief Financial Officer as well as an Officer of Funktional Beverages, Inc. Heather Duchesneau is a Top Graduate of Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. She is also the daughter of CEO Darrell Duchesneau.

The CEO will be reporting to his daughter in her company role as CFO.

“GIG ‘EM AGGIES”

To learn more about Funktional Beverages and its Purple Stuff Soda and clothing lines; visit us at Mypurplestuff.com.

Media Contact: Darrell Duchesneau, Funktional Beverages, Inc., 1-877-324-7657, Darrell@mypurplestuff.com

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SOURCE Funktional Beverages, Inc.