Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - April 4, 2025) - Happy Belly Food Group Inc. (CSE: HBFG) (OTCQB: HBFGF) ("Happy Belly" or the "Company"), a leading consolidator of emerging food brands is pleased to announce that it has signed a multi-year agreement with TOAST Inc., ("TOAST") (NYSE: TOST), the digital technology platform built for hospitality offering a comprehensive platform of software as a service (SaaS) products and financial technology solutions that give restaurants everything they need to run their business across point of sale, payments, operations, digital ordering and delivery, marketing and loyalty, and team management.
"To help support the Company's expansion plans, Happy Belly sought a modern cloud-based technology partner that could be easily implanted across our multi brand portfolio," said Sean Black, Chief Executive Officer of Happy Belly. "To ensure we are well-positioned to grow for years to come, we need to increase operational efficiency. From the start, the TOAST team showed their excitement for our vision and demonstrated they could help us achieve it. The conversion of our brands over to TOAST has already started and we look to complete the transition in Q2, 2025."
"We began our platform strategy with a real estate partnership with Cadillac Fairview on November 26, 2024—one of North America's leading mixed-use property owners, operators, and developers in Canada. This was followed by a supply-chain agreement with Sysco on January 17, 2025, the global leader in food distribution for restaurants. Today, we are further enhancing our technology platform with a multi-year agreement with TOAST, which will provide Happy Belly with best-in-class Point-of-Sale and analytical solutions across our portfolio of nine quick-serve restaurant (QSR) brands."
"Converting ability and opportunity to tangible results will continue to be a key driver of sustained growth for Happy Belly. Having master service agreements in key operational areas will allow us to realize synergies between our brands and drive standardization in back-office efficiencies across our platforms. This will drive incremental value for our franchisees while delivering bottom line results for our shareholders."
"Our asset-light franchise model enables Happy Belly to continue accelerating growth across all our brands. With a strong foundation, strategic leadership, and a dedicated franchise support system, we are well-positioned to drive sustained success in the Canadian QSR market. This is another step forward in our mission to become a predictable and disciplined growth company, Canada's leading restaurant consolidator."
"We are experiencing significant interest from both franchisees and landlords nationwide across our brand portfolio. We look forward to continuing to execute on our franchising model as we accelerate our growth organically and inorganically through accretive M&A. Happy Belly now has hundreds of contractually committed retail franchise locations across our emerging brands—whether in development, under construction, or already operating. We are working to expand this pipeline throughout 2025 and 2026, continually selecting the right franchise partners and securing optimal real estate to achieve our brands' development goals."
"At TOAST, we're thrilled to support Happy Belly's rapid expansion," said Ana Munoz, GM of International at TOAST. "As they scale their portfolio of quick-serve restaurant brands, having a unified technology platform will be critical in driving operational efficiency, enhancing guest experiences, and empowering franchisees with real-time insights. We look forward to being a key technology partner in their continued success."
About Happy Belly Food Group Happy Belly Food Group Inc. (CSE: HBFG) (OTCQB: HBFGF) ("Happy Belly" or the "Company") is a leading consolidator of emerging food brands.
Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release, which has been prepared by management.
All statements in this press release, other than statements of historical fact, are "forward-looking information" with respect to the Company within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-Looking information is frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur and include the future performance of Happy Belly and her subsidiaries. Forward-Looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates at the date the statements are made and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements. There are uncertainties inherent in forward-looking information, including factors beyond the Company's control. There are no assurances that the business plans for Happy Belly described in this news release will come into effect on the terms or time frame described herein. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking information if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change except as required by law. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. For a description of the risks and uncertainties facing the Company and its business and affairs, readers should refer to the Company's Management's Discussion and Analysis and other disclosure filings with Canadian securities regulators, which are posted on www.sedarplus.ca.
