RCI Hospitality Engages Merriman Capital

San Francisco, CA & Houston, TX - January 25, 2016 - Merriman Capital, Inc. ("Merriman"), a wholly owned subsidiary of Merriman Holdings, Inc. MERR, and RCI Hospitality Holdings, Inc. RICK are pleased to announce that Merriman has been engaged to act as capital market advisor for RCI Hospitality.
 
Merriman's team will be working closely with RCI Hospitality's executive management to develop and implement strategies to expand visibility and ownership of RICK common stock. Merriman will also advise RCI Hospitality with regard to capital market interactions, including its share buyback and other strategic initiatives.
 
RCI Hospitality is an established leader in gentlemen's clubs and sports bars/restaurants. The Company has an experienced management with a proven track record. It is a world-renowned business that has been widely recognized in the media, including being named one of "America's 200 Best Small Companies" by Forbes Magazine.
 
Jon Merriman, CEO of Merriman Capital, commented, "We were advisors and bankers to RCI in the early days and we are pleased to once again be working with Eric Langan and his team. They are superb operators, having grown the company to well over $100 million in revenues along with significant profitability. RCI Hospitality is the dominant company in this space, with an extraordinary opportunity to grow what is already a very successful operation. We look forward to advising them on their capital market needs."
 
Eric Langan, President and CEO of RCI Hospitality, added, "We look forward to Merriman working with us to expand our awareness among institutional investors. It is an exciting time for RCI with our plans to grow margins, generate strong cash flow, buy back shares, continue to increase our presence in gentlemen's clubs, and roll out our Bombshells sports bar/restaurant franchise. Merriman's expertise will be of great value as we move forward."
 
About RCI Hospitality Holdings, Inc.
With 43 units, RCI Hospitality Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, is the country's leading company in gentlemen's clubs and sports bars/restaurants. Adult clubs in New York City, Miami, Philadelphia, Charlotte, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Houston, Minneapolis, Indianapolis and other cities operate under brand names, such as "Rick's Cabaret," "XTC," "Club Onyx," "Vivid Cabaret," "Jaguars" and "Tootsie's Cabaret." Sports bars/restaurants operate under the brand name "Bombshells." Please visit http://www.rcihospitality.com
 
RCI Hospitality Holdings, Inc.'s Forward-Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause the company's actual results to differ materially from those indicated in this press release, including the risks and uncertainties associated with operating and managing an adult business, the business climates in cities where it operates, the success or lack thereof in launching and building the company's businesses, risks and uncertainties related to the operational and financial results of its Web sites, conditions relevant to real estate transactions, and numerous other factors such as laws governing the operation of adult entertainment businesses, competition and dependence on key personnel. The company has no obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements to reflect the occurrence of future events or circumstances.
 
About Merriman Capital, Inc.
Merriman Capital, Inc. ("MC") is a full service investment bank and broker-dealer providing comprehensive advisory, fund raising and M&A services for fast growing public and private companies, and equity and options executions services to sophisticated investors. The firm is also a leader in providing entrepreneurial, independent investment banking teams with a compliant, flexible and highly collegial platform. Merriman Capital facilitates capital formation through its proprietary digital network (http://www.digitalcapitalnetwork.com - the "DCN"), a private placement marketplace that enables highly targeted, diligent and compliant execution of transactions primarily targeted toward Family Offices.
 
Merriman Capital, Inc. is the wholly owned brokerage subsidiary of Merriman Holdings, Inc. MERR.The Digital Capital Network, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Merriman Holdings, Inc.  All securities are offered through Merriman Capital, Inc., a registered broker-dealer and member of The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) http://www.finra.org/ and the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) http://www.sipc.org/
 
Merriman Capital, Inc. Note to Investors
This press release contains certain forward-looking statements based on our current expectations, forecasts and assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties. This release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of offers to buy any securities of any entity. Forward-looking statements in this release are based on information available to us as of the date hereof. Our actual results may differ materially from those stated or implied in such forward-looking statements, due to risks and uncertainties associated with our business, which include the risk factors disclosed in our Form 10-K filed on March 31, 2015. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding our expectations, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future and can be identified by forward-looking words such as "anticipate," "believe," "could," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "should," and "would" or similar words. We assume no obligation to update the information included in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The Form 10-K filed on March 31, 2015, together with this press release and the financial information contained herein, are available on our website, www.merrimanco.com.  Please click on "Investor Relations."
 

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At Merriman:
Gary Abbott
(415) 248-5639
gabbott@merrimanco.com
 
At RCI Hospitality:
Gary Fishman and Steven Anreder
(212) 532-3232
gary.fishman@anreder.com and steven.anreder@anreder.com