Cizzle Brands Corporation Announces the Launch of CWENCH Hydration™ at Save-On-Foods Across Western Canada

TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 15, 2026--

Cizzle Brands Corporation (Cboe Canada: CZZL; OTCQB: CZZLF; Frankfurt: 8YF) (“ Cizzle Brands ” or the “ Company ”), the vertically integrated sports nutrition company that is elevating the game in health and wellness, today announced that CWENCH Hydration™ is now available at more than 170 Save-On-Foods locations across Western Canada.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260515803188/en/

At launch, Save-On-Foods will be carrying an assortment of three of CWENCH Hydration’s most popular ready-to-drink (“ RTD ”) flavours – Blue Raspberry, Rainbow Swirl and Tropical Flow – stocked in the beverage and isotonic set alongside the category’s leading sports drinks.

Save-On-Foods is one of Western Canada’s largest and most established grocery retailers, with a deeply loyal customer base across British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and the Yukon. The new placement adds significant scale to CWENCH Hydration’s Canadian grocery footprint, complementing existing distribution at Walmart Canada and other leading retailers, and bringing CWENCH Hydration into the routine grocery shop for millions of additional Canadian households.

“Save-On-Foods is a category-defining grocery retailer in Western Canada, and getting CWENCH Hydration onto their shelves at this scale is a significant milestone for the brand,” said John Celenza, Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Cizzle Brands. “Western Canada is a critical market for us, and Save-On-Foods customers know what they want from a better-for-you sports drink. Combined with our recent launches at Walmart Canada and Target in the United States, we are continuing to build out the kind of national and cross-border distribution platform that gives CWENCH Hydration genuine scale at retail.”

CWENCH Hydration™ is a better-for-you sports drink developed in collaboration with leading athletes and trainers, formulated to deliver functional hydration without the sugar, artificial colours and other additives that consumers are increasingly looking to avoid. Following the Save-On-Foods launch, CWENCH Hydration is now carried in over 6,500 locations in Canada, the United States and Europe.

Closing and Conversion of C$1 Million Unsecured Convertible Note

Further to the Company’s news release dated May 6, 2026, the Company has issued to a single accredited investor an unsecured convertible promissory note in the principal amount of C$1,000,000 (the “ Unsecured Note ”). The Unsecured Note was issued in consideration for, and replaced and cancelled, a previously issued C$1,000,000 promissory note held by the same investor.

The Unsecured Note had a maturity of 18 months from issuance and bore interest at 9.5% per annum, with accrued and unpaid interest payable monthly in arrears. The Unsecured Note was convertible, at the option of the holder, into common shares of the Company (“ Common Shares ”) at a conversion price of C$0.35 per Common Share, subject to customary adjustments. The Unsecured Note ranked pari passu with the Company’s other unsecured indebtedness and did not benefit from a security package or subsidiary guarantees that were granted to Ascent as part of the convertible note issuance announced on May 6, 2026.

As additional consideration for the holder’s agreement to roll the principal amount of the previously issued promissory note into the Unsecured Note, concurrently with the issuance of the Unsecured Note the Company issued to the holder (i) 476,190 Common Shares (the “ Closing Shares ”), and (ii) a common share purchase warrant entitling the holder to purchase up to 1,428,571 Common Shares at an exercise price of C$0.35 per Common Share (the “ Warrant ”).

Immediately upon issuance of the Unsecured Note, the holder elected to convert the entire C$1,000,000 principal amount of the Unsecured Note into 2,857,143 Common Shares at the C$0.35 conversion price, and the Unsecured Note has been cancelled. The Warrant remains outstanding in accordance with its terms. The Closing Shares, the Common Shares issued on conversion of the Unsecured Note, and any Common Shares issuable on exercise of the Warrant are subject to a statutory hold period of four months and one day from the date of issuance of the Unsecured Note, in accordance with applicable Canadian securities laws. The issuance of the Unsecured Note and the related securities has been accepted by Cboe Canada.

"The fact that our investor in this Note immediately converted is a powerful endorsement of where this Company is headed," added Mr. Celenza. "He could have held a paying piece of debt with downside protection — instead he chose to take Common Shares and own the upside alongside our other shareholders. That kind of conviction from a sophisticated investor who knows our business well says more than any financing announcement could, and it reinforces the confidence we have in the operating plan we are executing against."

Shares-for-Debt Settlement

The Company has also issued an aggregate of 1,552,595 Common Shares at a deemed price of C$0.32 per Common Share to settle approximately C$497,000 of outstanding indebtedness (the “ Debt Settlement ”). None of the creditors participating in the Debt Settlement are related parties of the Company within the meaning of Multilateral Instrument 61-101 – Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions, and accordingly the Debt Settlement is not a “related party transaction” for the purposes of MI 61-101. The Common Shares issued in respect of the Debt Settlement are subject to a statutory hold period of four months and one day from the date of issuance, in accordance with applicable Canadian securities laws. The Debt Settlement has been accepted by Cboe Canada.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, nor shall there be any sale of any securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. The securities issued in connection with the Unsecured Note (including upon conversion thereof), the Warrant, the Closing Shares and the Debt Settlement have not been registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “U.S. Securities Act”), or any state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws.

About Cizzle Brands Corporation

Cizzle Brands Corporation is a vertically integrated sports nutrition company that is elevating the game in health and wellness. Through extensive collaboration and testing with leading athletes and trainers across several sports, Cizzle Brands has launched three game-changing brands: (i) CWENCH Hydration™, abetter-for-you sports drink that is now carried in over 6,500 locations in Canada, the United States, and Europe; (ii) Spoken™ Nutrition, a premium brand of athlete-grade nutraceuticals that carry the prestigious NSF Certified for Sport® qualification; and (iii) HappiEats™, upgrading everyday eats with high-performance foods such as Sport Pasta™ and SnakStars™ Sport Bites. It also owns and operates The CWENCH Hydration Factory, a manufacturing facility that produces CWENCH Hydration and other leading beverage brands in Tetra Pak packaging. All Cizzle Brands products are designed to help people of all ages achieve their best in competitive sports and in living a healthy, vibrant, active lifestyle.

For more information about Cizzle Brands, please visit: https://www.cizzlebrands.com/

For more information about CWENCH Hydration™, please visit: https://www.cwenchhydration.com

For more information about Spoken™ Nutrition, please visit: https://www.spokennutrition.com

For more information about HappiEats™, please visit https://www.myhappieats.com

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This press release contains “forward-looking information” within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, statements regarding the anticipated use of proceeds of the Financings, the expected payment of interest and amortization payments in cash or common shares, the anticipated benefits of the Financings to the Company and its shareholders, the Company’s growth strategy, retail expansion and product launches, and the timing and form of registration or qualification of the underlying common shares for resale. Forward looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other risk factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information, included increased competition and current global financial conditions, access and supply risks, reliance on key personnel, operational risks, regulatory risks, financing, capitalization and liquidity risks. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Forward-looking information is based on a number of assumptions and is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company’s control, that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those that are disclosed in or implied by such forward-looking information. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those described in the Company’s public disclosure documents available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.com. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.

CWENCH Hydration is now available at 170 Save-On-Foods locations across Western Canada.

NEW DELHI (AP) — Iran ’s foreign minister said a lack of trust is the biggest obstacle in negotiations to end the war with the U.S., saying Friday that Tehran would be open to diplomatic help, particularly from China, to help ease tensions.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said contradictory messages have “made us reluctant about the real intentions of Americans.”

“We are in doubt about their seriousness,” he told reporters in New Delhi, adding that negotiations would move forward if Washington was ready for a “fair and balanced deal.”

U.S. President Donald Trump earlier this week dismissed Iran's latest formal proposal as “garbage.” While Iran was said to include some nuclear concessions, Trump has said he wants to remove highly enriched uranium from the country and prevent it from developing nuclear weapons. Iran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.

With talks between Iran and the U.S. at a standstill during the shaky ceasefire, tensions remain high and threaten to tip the Middle East back into open warfare and prolong the worldwide energy crisis sparked by the conflict.

Iran still has a chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway where a fifth of the world’s oil passed through before the war, and America is blockading Iranian ports.

Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, who finished talks on Friday, agreed the strait needs to be reopened.

Araghchi said Friday that Iran would welcome diplomatic support from other countries, particularly from China, citing Beijing’s previous role in facilitating the restoration of ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia.

“Chinese have a good intention. So anything that can be done by them to help diplomacy would be welcomed by the Islamic Republic of Iran,” he said.

Beijing has shown little public interest in U.S. requests to get more involved, even though Trump told Fox News’ Sean Hannity that Xi had in their conversations offered to help.

Pakistan said Thursday it was continuing diplomatic efforts to help ease regional tensions amid ongoing contacts over Iran-related ceasefire proposals. But it declined to disclose details of the discussions or say whether the United States had formally responded.

“The clock on diplomacy has not stopped. The peace process is working,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi told reporters in Islamabad.

Trump has demanded a major rollback of Iran’s nuclear activities while Iran has said that it has a right to enrich uranium.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who launched the war with Trump on Feb. 28, has also demanded that all of Iran’s highly enriched uranium be removed from the country.

Iran’s foreign minister said Friday that the issue of its enriched uranium stockpile is one of the most difficult subjects in negotiations with the U.S.

Russia has previously offered to take the stockpile if Iran is willing to give it up. Araghchi said Russia’s proposal was not currently under active discussion, but could be revisited if negotiations progress.

“When we come to that stage, obviously we will have more consultations with Russia and see if the Russian offer can help or not. This is not something for the time being,” he said.

A Chinese private security company said it lost communication Thursday with a ship it was operating as an offshore work platform — the same day the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center reported that a ship anchored off the United Arab Emirates coast had been seized.

Sinoguards said it had “been informed through relevant channels" that the vessel Hui Chuan was taken into Iranian waters for documentation and compliance inspection by the authorities.

The company's emailed statement said there was no indication of any injuries on the ship and that it was cooperating with the request for vessel and crew documentation.

The security company and the U.K. maritime center did not say who was behind the seizure. It happened as a senior Iranian official reiterated his country’s claim of control over the Strait of Hormuz and another said it had a right to seize oil tankers connected to the U.S.

The U.S. seized vessels in the Gulf of Oman last month and on Friday the foreign minister of Pakistan said it had secured the return of 11 Pakistani nationals and 20 Iranian citizens who were aboard those vessels. “All individuals are in good health and high spirits,” said the foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, said.

The United Arab Emirates is speeding up the completion of a new pipeline that will allow the Gulf federation to export more oil without routing it through the Strait of Hormuz.

Sheikh Khaled bin Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the crown prince of Abu Dhabi, directed state oil company ADNOC to accelerate work on the pipeline during a meeting of the Emirati capital’s executive council, the Abu Dhabi Media Office said Friday.

The state oil company already runs a pipeline designed to carry 1.5 million barrels a day from its oil fields in the west of the country to the port of Fujairah on the Gulf of Oman.

The new pipeline is expected to double the company’s export capacity through that port. It will become operational next year, the media office said.

Schreck reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Associated Press reporters Munir Ahmed in Islamabad and Mae Anderson in New York contributed.

President Donald Trump walks to board Air Force One, Friday, May 15, 2026, at Beijing Capital International Airport in Beijing. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

President Donald Trump interacts with China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi before boarding Air Force One, Friday, May 15, 2026, at Beijing Capital International Airport in Beijing. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrives for a meeting during the two-day BRICS summit in New Delhi, India, Thursday, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)