Cannabis Movers & Shakers: The Parent Company, HempFusion, MJardin, Albert Labs, GrowGeneration, Metrc, Napalm Brands

The Parent Company Appoints Seven Seasoned Experts To Social Equity Fund Advisory Committee

The Parent Company GRAM GRAMF has appointed George Atallah, Marcia Dyson, Jeff Gray, Faith Leach, Carmen Perez, Mary Pryor and Angela Rye to serve on the advisory committee of its corporate venture capital social equity initiative.

The newly formed equity fund seeks to discover the industry’s future entrepreneurs of color, offering them the capital and mentorship necessary to build generational wealth as part of a more equitable and diverse cannabis industry.

“We established this fund to help break down the systematic barriers that Black and other minority entrepreneurs face as they seek to secure meaningful participation, growth, and leadership in this multi-billion-dollar industry,” said Desiree Perez, board member and chief social equity officer of The Parent Company.

HempFusion To Sponsor Bobsled Legend Kaillie Humphries For 2022 Winter Olympics In Beijing    

HempFusion Wellness Inc. CBD CBDHF is backing two-time Olympic Gold Medalist and five-time World Champion Kaillie Humphries as her exclusive sponsor for February’s Olympic Games in Beijing 2022.

Humphries will be competing for Team USA in both the two-woman bobsleigh and the newly introduced women’s monobob, the Denver-based company disclosed last week.

Humphries said she is thrilled to partner with the HempFusion family of brands.

“I’ve done my due diligence with a number of CBD brands, and I concluded that HempFusion is not only highly effective but the CBD brand that I can trust to be free of THC and other contaminants.” 

MJardin Group Strengthens Board Of Directors

MJardin Group, Inc. MJAR MJARF disclosed recently that Blair Jordan and Anthony Dutton have opted to join its board of directors.

Jordan serves as the managing partner of Restructur Advisors, a Canada-based restructuring consulting firm focusing on the cannabis and CBD sector.

Dutton is a business executive and entrepreneur with vast experience in early-stage investing and business founding. He previously served as co-founder, CEO, and director of Cannex Capital, prior to its merger with 4Front Holdings Ltd., resulting in the creation of 4Front Ventures Corp. FFNT FFNTF.

Albert Labs To Form Two Advisory Boards, Names Chairs Of Boards

Psychedelic company Albert Labs has tapped Jo Neill to serve as chair of its clinical advisory board and Parminder Singh to chair its scientific advisory committee.

Neill agreed to assist in guiding decisions related to the company's Real World Evidence trials program centered around psychedelics-based therapeutics addressing urgent and unmet mental health indications.

The company plans, in the near future, to announce its complete boards consisting of experts in the fields of psychology, psychiatry, palliative care, oncology, as well as mycology and medicinal plant licensing.

"We are delighted to have such authority with Jo and Parminder, they bring a wealth of knowledge and expertise in each of their disciplines, and we look forward to working with them in driving our clinical and scientific advisory boards," said Graeme McFarlane, chief commercial officer of Albert Labs.

GrowGeneration Appoints Paul Rutenis As Its Chief Merchant Officer

GrowGeneration Corp. GRWG has named Paul Rutenis as its chief merchant officer.

Rutenis brings years of experience as merchandising executive, having led retail and merchandising strategy in some of the largest retail chains in the country, including West Marine and Dicks Sporting Goods.

"GrowGen is uniquely positioned in one of the most exciting and dynamic emerging industries in the country, and I look forward to helping build GrowGen's national brand and portfolio of private-label products," Rutenis said last week.

Metrc Welcomes Michael Johnson As CFO

Metrc, a Lakeland, Florida-based provider of cannabis regulatory systems, has hired Michael Johnson to oversee its finance department.

Prior to joining Metrc, Johnson served as CFO for a genetics services provider, InformedDNA. He was also the CFO of CM Group.

“As a seasoned SaaS executive with experience scaling other hypergrowth technology businesses, Michael brings a wealth of expertise to Metrc and will be instrumental to enhancing our business practices, working with our investors, and overseeing our financial operations,” Jeff Wells, CEO of Metrc, said recently.

Napalm Brands Taps U.S. Army Veteran Chris “Nug” Naganuma To Serve As CEO

Cannabis lifestyle company Napalm Brands named U.S. Army veteran Chris “Nug” Naganuma as its new CEO.

The Los Angeles native served in Operation Iraqi Freedom in Infantry Unit 1/25th 3-21 Stryker Brigade and was deployed in Mosul in 2004. In 2008 Naganuma was honorably discharged at the rank of sergeant.

After using cannabis to treat his post-traumatic stress disorder, Naganuma became an advocate.

“The Napalm Brands team has an opportunity to do something truly transformative, and while I am new to the cannabis industry, I am ready for the challenge my new role presents,” Naganuma said.

Photo by David Gabrić on Unsplash