Cannabis Movers & Shakers: CanTrust, Delic, Mind Cure, Schwazze, Curaleaf, Trulieve, Fyllo, Connected Cannabis

CannTrust Appoints New Secretary, Board Member Resigns

Mark Litwin opted to step down from CannTrust Holdings Inc.'s CNTTQ board of directors.

Simultaneously, the Vaughan, Ontario-based company confirmed that secretary Stan Abramowitz will no longer serve as an officer of CannTrust and as a director or officer of all subsidiaries.

The board named current Interim CFO David Blair its new secretary.

CannTrust was earlier delisted from the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSE) and The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

Delic Hires Former Bulletproof CMO To Head Up Marketing

Psychedelics media and events company Delic Holdings DELC DELCF has tapped former Bulletproof Inc. CMO Zak Garcia to oversee its marketing department on the heels of appointing Kyle Snook to its board of advisors.

Garcia is a former U.S. Army member with extensive knowledge in marketing and leadership.

He has been on "our Board of Advisors since inception, and having him sign on to lead our marketing efforts as Chief Marketing Officer is a huge value add for DELIC," founder and CEO Matt Stang noted Friday.

The company has hired John Coleman, Ph.D., a former president of Anandia Labs, to serve as vice president of business development.

Prior to this, Coleman was the Department Head of the Centre for Drug Research and Development's (CDRD, now adMare BioInnovations) Project Search and Evaluation Division.

Stang praised Coleman's corporate and scientific expertise, adding they are "very fortunate to have" him join their team.

Mind Cure Appoints Tarik Lebbadi As COO

Psychedelic-focused mental health and wellness company Mind Cure Health Inc. MCUR MCURF has appointed Tarik Lebbadi to oversee its operations.

Lebbadi, who replaces President and CEO Kelsey Ramsden, brings experience in healthcare and technology and is a seasoned international executive.

During his career, he served at Johnson & Johnson alongside several high-growth technology companies.

Prior to this, he served at Aurora Cannabis in a strategic, operational capacity.

Ramsden is excited that Lebbadi opted to join the company.

"With his diverse and relevant operational experience, he is the right leader to step in and drive our commercial team forward," Ramsden disclosed Monday.

Schwazze Strengthens Board With 2 New Additions

Schwazze — which formerly operated as Medicine Man Technologies Inc. SHWZ — has welcomed Jeff Cozad and Salim Wahdan to its board of directors.

The company now has six board members.

Cozad, who is the co-founder of CRW Cann Holdings LLC, a special purpose vehicle supporting the company within the Colorado cannabis market, will also serve on three committees, including Audit, Compensation, and Corporate Governance.

In addition, he is also a managing partner at Cozad Investments, LP, his family office.

Wahdan, who will also serve on the Audit Committee, brings vast experience in entrepreneurship, being the owner and operator of retail businesses.

Previously, he served as a partner and operator of Star Buds in Adams, Louisville, and Westminster.

Schwazze inked a definitive agreement to purchase 14 Start Buds Colorado locations, including 13 dispensaries and one cultivation in June.

Last month the company confirmed closing a $9.3 million deal to acquire two Star Buds Colorado dispensaries located in Denver.

“Salim has over 20 years of hands-on retail experience,” Justin Dye, the company’s chairman, and CEO explained Monday. "I believe his recent cannabis experience will represent the voice of the customer to our board."

Curaleaf Names VP Of Investor Relations, Capital Markets

Curaleaf Holdings, Inc. CURA CURLF has appointed Carlos Madrazo to serve as senior vice president of investor relations and capital markets.

At his newly created position, Madrazo will collaborate with the executive leadership team to better position the company within the global cannabis and consumer packaged goods markets.

In addition, he will oversee Curaleaf's successful track record for growth and execution.

Madrazo brings over two decades of experience in investor relations, investment banking, and operations.

CEO Joseph Bayern said he is "truly excited to welcome Carlos to the Curaleaf team as we continue our expansion into new markets domestically as well as internationally."

The Wakefield, Massachusetts-based company is poised to expand to Europe via the acquisition of one of Europe's largest cannabis companies, EMMAC Life Sciences, for roughly $286 million in cash and stock.

Trulieve Announces Set Of Promotions And Hires

Trulieve Cannabis Corp TRUL TCNNF has promoted Eric Powers to a chief legal officer.

Prior to this, Powers served as the company's general counsel and corporate secretary.

The Tallahassee, Florida-based company also tapped Ronda Sheffield to serve as chief human resources officer, Zachary Kobrin as general counsel, and Aaron Lopez as its first director of government affairs.

Sheffield has over two decades of experience in leading organizational transformations, most recently overseeing the human resources department at ModWash.

Kobrin was Akerman LLP's partner, leading its nationally recognized cannabis practice group.

Lopez was the Political Capital LLC's founder. He also served as head of government affairs within various industries, such as pharmaceutical, hospitality, oil and gas, and financial services.

"With the addition of Ronda, Zack, and Aaron, we are ideally positioned to drive and support Trulieve's growth initiatives and execute on our national expansion strategy as one of the largest and most trusted cannabis brands," Trulieve CEO Kim Rivers said.

Fyllo Taps New VP Of Product Management And Board Member

Cannabis technology platform Fyllo has tapped Joe Raaen to serve as vice president of product management.

Prior to joining Fyllo, Raaen served at Omnicom Group OMC as Director of Global Strategic Partnerships for Annalect, Omnicom's data and analytics hub.

"Joe's deep media and data experience will be incredibly valuable as we continue to build out the Fyllo Data Marketplace to serve mainstream brands and agencies," Erik Shani, co-founder, and CPO said Tuesday.

Simultaneously, the Chicago-based company welcomed marketing expert Roxanne Taylor to its board of directors.

Taylor spent over thirty years building brands for several companies.

Currently, she oversees marketing and communications at Cancer Center in New York.

"This role with Fyllo aligns perfectly with my focus on the digital transformation of industries and how technology can be used to empower people to drive innovation," Taylor commented.

Over the last year, Fyllo reinforced its management team by appointing Grassroots' co-founder Mitch Kahn to serve as the chairman of the company's board in July, former Playboy CEO Christie Hefner to its board, as well as the former Dunkin Brands' CMO and Digitas's CEO Tony Weisman and Omnicom Media Group's EVP Steve Katelman, to serve as strategic advisors.

The company recently welcomed former Twitter Inc. TWTR executive Katie Ford to serve as its new chief operating officer.

Connected Cannabis Names Former Nike Exec New VP Head Of Marketing

Connected Cannabis revealed Tuesday that former Nike’s Senior Director of Brand Marketing in North America, Craig Lyon, opted to join the company as vice president, head of marketing.

Lyon had served at a sports apparel brand for ten years, serving in advertising, digital marketing, and brand marketing.

“The opportunity to work for a legacy brand like Connected at this inflection point for the industry is what truly motivated me to work in cannabis,” Lyon told Benzinga.