AWH Expands In New Jersey, Agrees To Buy Greenleaf Compassion Center

Ascend Wellness Holdings said Wednesday it had inked the acquisition of Greenleaf Compassion Center, a medical cannabis company based in New Jersey.

Boston-based AWH will rebrand the Greenleaf's dispensary in Montclair, and expand the cultivation space located in Franklin to roughly 55,000 square feet. The vertically integrated cannabis operator also received a letter of support for setting up a retail location in Rochelle Park in the vicinity of one of the state's biggest malls, Garden State Plaza.

New Jersey is the fifth state in which Ascend Wellness Holdings decided to expand its footprint, following Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, and Massachusetts.

Earlier this year, the company's subsidiary oriented toward Massachusetts' cannabis market had& received the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission's license for one of the biggest dispensaries on the East Cost.

The New Jersey's medical cannabis market serves more than 51,000, whose number tripled under Governor Phil Murphy's administration. In addition, the number of physicians willing to participate in New Jersey's medical program doubled.

In mid-December, the state's lawmakers passed a bill to legalize recreational marijuana use, putting it on this year's ballot.

"We believe New Jersey to be one of the most attractive markets in the U.S. with over nine-million people who are underserved, in what will likely become an adult-use market in 2021," said AWH Founder and CEO Abner Kurtin.

The partnership allows AWH to offer its Ozone products and Cookies strains to the Garden States' patients, added Kurtin.

In February, AWH closed a $55-million funding round, consisting of a $37-million bridge round of preferred equity and $18 million in a senior secured note.