The Alkaline Water Company and Shaquille O’Neal Enter a New Partnership

O’Neal to Join the Company’s Board of Advisors and Serve as a Brand Ambassador for Alkaline88®

SCOTTSDALE, Arizona — May 13, 2021 — The Alkaline Water Company Inc. (NASDAQ and CSE: WTER) (the “Company”), the country’s largest independent alkaline water company, is pleased to announce that basketball Hall of Famer and entertainment icon Shaquille O’Neal will be joining The Alkaline Water Company as an equity partner and member of the Company’s Board of Advisors. He will also serve as a marquee brand ambassador for Alkaline88®.

“Shaquille O’Neal’s track record as a basketball champion and Hall of Famer has translated into similar successes in business and corporate partnerships. His reputation as an astute investor, larger-than-life brand partner, and phenomenal ambassador makes this partnership extremely exciting,” said Aaron Keay, Chairman of The Alkaline Water Company. “We want to welcome Shaquille to the Company’s advisory board and believe his positive presence and global outreach will enable Alkaline88® to aggressively push our growth trajectory even faster.”

“Alkaline88 is an innovative product in the water category and I am so excited to partner with The Alkaline Water Company to help raise their game to new heights,” said O’Neal. “I am humbled by the opportunity to join the Advisory Board while also being a brand ambassador.”

Authentic Brands Group (ABG), a brand development, marketing, and entertainment company is a strategic partner of the Shaquille O’Neal brand. Complete details of this Partnership can be found in the Company’s filings with the SEC at www.sec.gov.

Superior hydration with perfectly balanced 8.8pH water.

Alkaline88 is known for its superior hydration with perfectly balanced 8.8pH water. The brand was developed to deliver a smooth taste that encourages consumers to drink more and fully hydrate, and the company is dedicated to purity, quality, and value. The water’s ingredient deck is simple, easy to understand, and free of buffers. Dubbed “the clean beverage,” Alkaline88 ionized water contains just two pure ingredients that customers trust — water and Pink Himalayan Rock Salt.

About The Alkaline Water Company

Founded in 2012, The Alkaline Water Company (NASDAQ and CSE: WTER) is headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona. Its flagship product, Alkaline88®, is a leading premier alkaline water brand available in bulk and single-serve sizes along with eco-friendly aluminum packaging options. With its innovative, state-of-the-art proprietary electrolysis process, Alkaline88® delivers perfect 8.8 pH balanced alkaline drinking water with trace minerals and electrolytes and boasts our trademarked label ‘Clean Beverage.’ Quickly being recognized as a growing lifestyle brand, Alkaline88® launched A88 Infused™ in 2019 to meet consumer demand for flavor-infused products. A88 Infused™ flavored water is available in six unique all-natural flavors, with new flavors coming soon.

Additionally, in 2020, the Company launched A88 Infused Beverage Division Inc., which includes the Company’s CBD water and flavor-infused water. For the Company’s topical and ingestible offerings, A88 Infused Products Inc. includes both the Company’s lab-tested full-spectrum hemp salves, balms, lotions, essential oils, and bath salts, along with broad-spectrum hemp, powder packs, oil tinctures, capsules, and gummies.

To purchase Alkaline88 products online, shop here. To learn more about The Alkaline Water Company, please visit Our Story page. or connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or LinkedIn.

About Shaquille O’Neal

Shaquille O’Neal is one of the world’s most successful athlete-turned-businessman, whose accomplishments both on and off the court have translated into a highly sought-after consumer brand. As an entrepreneur, sports analyst, DJ, restaurateur, and brand ambassador, Shaquille O’Neal’s signature “Business of Fun” mantra resonates throughout each of his countless endeavors.

The 15-time NBA All-Star’s unprecedented athletic career spanned nearly two decades and earned him countless awards and honors, including NBA Most Valuable Player, NBA Rookie of the Year, four NBA Championships and a First Ballot NBA Hall of Famer. Currently, O’Neal is an analyst on TNT’s Emmy Award-winning “Inside the NBA.”

O'Neal, who has a PhD in Leadership and Education, established The Shaquille O’Neal Foundation which provides resources for underserved youth. He also gives back through a number of annual philanthropic programs including Shaq to School, Shaqsgiving, and Shaq a Claus. 

The launch of his Las Vegas eatery Big Chicken has further elevated Shaquille’s status as he has positioned himself as a successful restaurateur. A second Big Chicken location is open in Glendale, CA and additional locations will debut at sea on Carnival Cruise Lines Radiance and Mardi Gras.

Follow Shaquille O’Neal on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

About Authentic Brands Group

Authentic Brands Group (ABG) is a brand development, marketing and entertainment company, which owns a portfolio of global media, entertainment and lifestyle brands. Headquartered in New York City, ABG elevates and builds the long-term value of more than 30 consumer brands and properties by partnering with best-in-class manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers. Its brands have a global retail footprint across the luxury, specialty, department store, mid-tier, mass, and e-commerce channels, and in more than 5,950 freestanding stores and shop-in-shops around the world.

ABG is committed to transforming brands by delivering compelling product, content, business and immersive experiences. It creates and activates original marketing strategies to drive the success of its brands across all consumer touchpoints, platforms and emerging media. ABG’s portfolio of iconic and world-renowned brands generates more than $10 billion in annual retail sales and includes Marilyn Monroe®, Elvis Presley®, Muhammad Ali®, Shaquille O'Neal®, Dr. J®, Greg Norman®, Neil Lane®, Thalia®, Sports Illustrated®, Eddie Bauer®*, Spyder®, Volcom®, Airwalk®, Nautica®, Forever 21®, Aéropostale®, Juicy Couture®, Vince Camuto®, Lucky Brand®, Nine West®, Jones New York®, Frederick's of Hollywood®, Adrienne Vittadini®, Tretorn®, Tapout®, Prince®, Vision Street Wear®, Brooks Brothers®, Barneys New York®, Judith Leiber®, Herve Leger®, Frye®, Hickey Freeman®, Hart Schaffner Marx®, Thomasville®, Drexel® and Henredon®. Pending acquisition in June 2021*.

For more information, visit authenticbrandsgroup.com.

Follow ABG on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains “forward-looking statements.” Statements in this news release that are not purely historical are forward-looking statements and include any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future. Such forward-looking statements include, among other things, the following: the Company’s belief that Shaquille’s positive presence and global outreach will enable Alkaline88® to aggressively push the Company’s growth trajectory even faster; Shaq’s statement that he looks forward to helping raise the Company’s game to new heights; and that the partnership is expected to provide significant branding, creative, and business benefits to drive both sales and shareholder value creation.

The material assumptions supporting these forward-looking statements include, among others, that the demand for the Company’s products will continue to significantly grow; that the past production capacity of the Company’s co-packing facilities can be maintained or increased; that there will be increased production capacity through implementation of new production facilities, new co-packers and new technology; that there will be an increase in number of products available for sale to retailers and consumers; that there will be an expansion in geographical areas by national retailers carrying the Company’s products; that there will be an expansion into new national and regional grocery retailers; that there will be an expansion into new e-commerce, home delivery, convenience, and healthy food channels; that there will not be interruptions on production of the Company’s products; that there will not be a recall of products due to unintended contamination or other adverse events relating to the Company’s products; and that the Company will be able to obtain additional capital to meet the Company’s growing demand and satisfy the capital expenditure requirements needed to increase production and support sales activity. Actual results could differ from those projected in any forward-looking statements due to numerous factors. Such factors include, among others, governmental regulations being implemented regarding the production and sale of alkaline water or any other products; additional competitors selling alkaline water and enhanced water products in bulk containers reducing the Company’s sales; the fact that the Company does not own or operate any of its production facilities and that co-packers may not renew current agreements and/or not satisfy increased production quotas; the fact that the Company has a limited number of suppliers of its unique bulk bottles; the potential for supply-chain interruption due to factors beyond the Company’s control; the fact that there may be a recall of products due to unintended contamination; the inherent uncertainties associated with operating as an early stage company; changes in customer demand and the fact that consumers may not embrace enhanced water products as expected or at all; the extent to which the Company is successful in gaining new long-term relationships with new retailers and retaining existing relationships with retailers; the Company’s ability to raise the additional funding that it will need to continue to pursue its business, planned capital expansion and sales activity; competition in the industry in which the Company operates and market conditions and the unexpected illness or other incapacity or inability of any of the Company’s high profile endorsers to perform their obligations under the endorsement agreements with the Company. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those projected in the forward-looking statements, except as required by applicable law, including the securities laws of the United States and Canada. Although the Company believes that any beliefs, plans, expectations and intentions contained in this news release are reasonable, there can be no assurance that any such beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions will prove to be accurate. Readers should consult all of the information set forth herein and should also refer to the risk factors disclosure outlined in the reports and other documents the Company files with the SEC, available at www.sec.gov, and on the SEDAR, available at www.sedar.com.

View full press release here.