ProPhase Labs, Inc. (NASDAQ: PRPH) (“ProPhase” or the “Company”), a
next-generation biotech, genomics, and consumer products company,
today announced the appointment of Stu Hollenshead as Chief
Operating Officer, marking a pivotal step in the company’s
expansion into consumer-centered health and wellness products. As
COO, Hollenshead will focus on accelerating ProPhase Labs’
consumer-facing strategy, leveraging his deep expertise in
direct-to-consumer growth, subscription models, digital marketing,
and audience monetization to position the company as a leader in
science-backed health solutions.
The Company plans to provide additional updates
very shortly regarding progress in its accounts receivables that
the Company believes will be significant, the exploration of new
strategic alternatives for Nebula Genomics and DNA Complete, and
additional cost-cutting measures.
CEO Commentary
“Stu is a world-class operator who understands
how to build and scale consumer-first businesses,” said Ted Karkus,
CEO of ProPhase Labs. “The Company’s particular focus going forward
will be direct-to-consumer revenue streams. Furthermore, we are
optimistic about the potential for a significant inflow of capital
into the Company between Q2 and Q3 2025 related to our enhanced
accounts receivable collection initiatives and look forward to
updating shareholders further in the near future. These are just
some of the reasons that someone of Stu’s caliber was willing to
transition from being a consultant at ProPhase to its COO. Stu’s
relentless work ethic, competitive will to win as well as his
expertise in audience building & engagement, marketing,
e-commerce, and media-driven brand growth aligns perfectly with our
vision as we launch Legendz XL and Legendz Triple Edge online and
prepare for the introduction of Equivir in the near future. Stu
will also be able to leverage his role at 10PM Curfew to create
abundant win-win scenarios while scaling our new product
introductions to the marketplace.”
Mr. Karkus continued, "10PM Curfew represents a
true competitive advantage for ProPhase. It is a one-stop shop for
anyone that wants to build their brand with the support of a
highly-engaged audience of 70-million women. 10PM can guarantee
tens to hundreds of millions of impressions in the blink of an eye
at the most competitive CPMs in the market while bringing a
best-of-breed content shop & social platform, creator &
influencer management infrastructure and TikTok Shop services
division to the table for immediate use. ProPhase stood on the
sidelines for years watching brands use Barstool to scale their
growth. Now, ProPhase will be directly aligned with the Barstool
equivalent in the female space with 10PM. ProPhase is getting in on
the ground floor while Stu continues to scale the 10PM business
exactly like he did at Barstool.”
Following the successful sale of Pharmaloz
Manufacturing, COO Jed Latkin has resigned and transitioned to a
consulting role to focus on advancing ProPhase’s BE-Smart
esophageal cancer test. He will collaborate with Igor Ban, Director
of Research, for commercialization efforts. Several discussions
with potential partners are ongoing. In parallel, the next batch of
BE-Smart samples is being prepared in collaboration with The Mayo
Clinic to continue to further validate the statistical evidence of
the advantages and effectiveness of this breakthrough diagnostic
cancer test. The Company has determined that the target market for
this potential lifesaving cancer diagnostic test is $7 - $14
billion, in the U.S. alone, and has minimal competition at
present.
About Stu Hollenshead
Hollenshead has played a pivotal role in two of
the most high-profile media acquisitions in recent years. At
Business Insider, he helped lead audience and subscription growth,
contributing to its $442-million acquisition by Axel Springer in
2015. Later, at Barstool Sports, Hollenshead served as Chief
Operating Officer & Chief Business Officer, leading the company
through record-breaking expansion in revenue, audience, and product
monetization—culminating in its $551-million acquisition by Penn
Entertainment in 2023.
At Barstool Sports, Hollenshead played a
significant role in the company’s evolution from a disruptive
digital brand into a powerhouse in media, commerce, and sports
betting. He helped to oversee a multi-pronged business strategy,
spanning subscription models, e-commerce, direct-to-consumer
monetization, licensing and branded partnerships, all while
managing teams across engineering, product, marketing, and business
development. During his tenure the company experienced double-digit
audience and revenue growth year over year, significantly expanding
Barstool’s digital footprint, revenue, and brand equity—making it
one of the most sought-after acquisitions in digital media in the
past decade.
Prior to Barstool, Hollenshead built a
reputation as a growth architect, scaling TheStreet’s
direct-to-consumer subscription business to $30 million, pioneering
AI-driven content automation, and later helping Business Insider
surpass 100 million monthly users with a profitable mix of B2B and
direct-to-consumer subscription revenue streams. He also drove
product monetization and platform migrations at WWE, helping WWE
Network reach nearly 2 million paying subscribers.
In addition to his new role at ProPhase Labs,
Hollenshead will continue serving as CEO of 10PM Curfew, one of the
largest and fastest-growing female-centric digital platforms,
reaching over 70 million women. Under his leadership, 10PM Curfew
has built a one-of-a-kind innovative audience and content strategy,
successfully partnering with brands to drive highly engaged,
scalable digital communities that create significant brand
awareness, consideration and conversion.
Stu Hollenshead Commentary
“I couldn’t be more excited to join ProPhase
Labs at this stage of its evolution,” said Hollenshead. “Ted Karkus
built up and sold the Cold-EEZE consumer brand for $50 million, and
Jason Karkus built a multi-hundred-million-dollar Covid testing
business from scratch. With significant cash flow anticipated into
ProPhase later this year, this is the perfect time and perfect fit
for me to join them in building a world-class consumer products
company. The Company is currently selling its Legendz testosterone
and energy boosting products in stores, but the larger opportunity
will be to sell online. I am also looking forward to leveraging our
marketing platform with the launch of Equivir, a product with
enormous potential, in stores and online in the near future.
In parallel, I am looking forward to numerous
potential joint venture opportunities, now and in the future, to
develop other company’s brands that have significant potential but
need our marketing platform and expertise, network of influencers,
etc. The opportunity is enormous. I am excited to leverage my
experience in scaling high-growth businesses to accelerate the
success of Legendz, Equivir, and leveraging my network to expand
the portfolio of innovative health solutions over time.”
With Hollenshead’s leadership, ProPhase Labs is
poised for rapid growth, developing innovative consumer-first
health solutions and establishing itself as a dominant player in
the evolving wellness landscape.
The Company plans to provide additional updates
very shortly regarding the exploration of new strategic
alternatives for Nebula, progress in its accounts receivables that
should be significant, and additional cost cutting measures.
Inducement Award
Mr. Hollenshead was awarded a stock option
to purchase up to 500,000 shares of ProPhase common stock as an
inducement to his employment as Chief Operating Officer
of ProPhase Labs. This award was made in accordance with the
employment inducement award exemption provided by Nasdaq Rule
5635(c)(4) and was therefore not awarded under the Company’s
stockholder approved equity plan. The option award will vest as
follows, contingent upon continued service: 25% will vest on the
date of grant and 25% will vest on each of the next three
anniversaries of the grant date. The options will have a strike
price of $0.60 per share and will be exercisable for a period of
seven years.
About ProPhase Labs
ProPhase Labs Inc. (Nasdaq: PRPH) (“ProPhase”)
is a next-generation biotech, genomics and consumer products
company. Our goal is to create a healthier world with bold action
and the power of insight. We’re revolutionizing healthcare with
industry-leading Whole Genome Sequencing solutions, while
developing potential game changer diagnostics and therapeutics in
the fight against cancer. This includes a potentially life-saving
cancer test focused on early detection of esophageal cancer and
potential breakthrough cancer therapeutics with novel mechanisms of
action. We develop, manufacture, and commercialize health and
wellness solutions to enable people to live their best lives. We
are committed to executional excellence, smart diversification, and
a synergistic, omni-channel approach. ProPhase Labs’ valuable
subsidiaries, their synergies, and significant growth underscore
our potential for long-term value.
Forward Looking Statements
Except for the historical information contained
herein, this document contains forward looking statements within
the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995, including statements regarding our strategy, plans,
objectives and initiatives, including our expectations regarding
the future revenue growth potential of each of our subsidiaries,
our expectations regarding future liquidity events, the success of
our efforts to collect accounts receivables and anticipated
timeline for any payments relating thereto, and our ability to
successfully transition into a consumer products company.
Management believes that these forward-looking statements are
reasonable as and when made. However, such forward-looking
statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and
other factors that may cause actual results to differ materially
from those projected in the forward-looking statements. These risks
and uncertainties include but are not limited to our ability to
obtain and maintain necessary regulatory approvals, general
economic conditions, consumer demand for our products and services,
challenges relating to entering into and growing new business
lines, the competitive environment, and the risk factors listed
from time to time in our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly
Reports on Form 10-Q and any other SEC filings. The Company
undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements
except as required by applicable securities laws. Readers are
cautioned that forward-looking statements are not guarantees of
future performance and are cautioned not to place undue reliance on
any forward-looking statements.
Media Relations and Institutional Investor
Contact:ProPhase Labs,
Inc.267-880-1111investorrelations@prophaselabs.com
Retail Investor Relations Contact:Renmark
Financial CommunicationsJohn
Boidman212-812-7680Jboidman@renmarkfinancial.com
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