Cannabis Movers & Shakers: Khiron, Aleafia, Green Scientific Labs, 4Front Ventures, Halo Collective, Kiva Sales & Service, Sharp Capital Advisors, Simplifya, Organigram

Khiron Appoints Dr. Eduardo Faveret As Medical Director For Zerenia Brazil

Based in Toronto with operations in Latin America and Europe, vertically integrated cannabis company Khiron Life Sciences Corp. KHRN KHRNF (Frankfurt: A2JMZC) has named Dr. Eduardo Faveret, as medical director for Zerenia Brazil.

Faveret is a pediatric neurologist and clinical physiologist as well as medical cannabis advocate based in Brazil.

He is the founder and former medical director of the Epilepsy Center at the Paulo Niemeyer State Brain Institute in Rio de Janeiro.

"We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Faveret to our team," Alvaro Torres, CEO and director of Khiron, said Thursday. "With over eight years experience helping patients access medical cannabis, Dr. Faveret is a leading medical cannabis specialist in Brazil who shares our mission of improving patients' lives through medical cannabis."

Aleafia Taps Mark J. Sandler To Serve As Board Chairman

Canadian cannabis company Aleafia Health Inc. AH ALEAF announced Thursday it has named Mark J. Sandler chairman of its board of directors.

Sandler currently serves as a senior partner at Cooper, Sandler, Shime & Bergman LLP. In addition, Sandler served three terms as an elected member of the Law Society of Ontario’s governing body.

“Aleafia Health is well-positioned to continue on its growth trajectory of the last three years, from a pre-revenue startup to a leading global cannabis company,” Sandler commented. “In supporting the objectives of the company, we will continue to prioritize strong corporate governance and sustainable growth in the adult-use, medical and international markets.”

Green Scientific Labs Promotes Kristofer Marsh To CSO Amid Its Nationwide Rollout

Cannabis and hemp testing laboratory Green Scientific Labs has promoted Kristofer Marsh, Ph.D. to chief scientific officer.

Marsh, who previously served as director of integrated sciences, has vast experience in chemistry.

At his new position, he will assist in developing GSL's test method development and decrease turnaround time.

The Davie, Florida-based company also disclosed that it is launching a full-service laboratory in Phoenix, Arizona, with additional locations in the midwest and northeast coming soon.

"Our competition has been focused on acquiring labs in various states however we wanted to avoid the pitfalls of this strategy," said Michael Richmond, the company's co-founder and chairman. "Green Scientific Labs is taking a more organic approach to our rollout plans. We felt consistency was key when it came to instrumentation, methods, training, and technology. Dr. Marsh is the right leader to execute this strategy. "

4Front Ventures' Kris Krane Steps Down As President Of Mission Dispensaries, Takes On Advisory Role

Vertically integrated cannabis company 4Front Ventures Corp. FFNT FFNTF revealed Friday that Kris Krane, 4Front's co-founder and president of Mission Dispensaries, has stepped down.

The Phoenix-based company disclosed that it would continue to serve as its strategic advisor.

"Kris has been an invaluable leader not only at our Company and in its formation, success, and development, but also in our collective efforts to advance the cannabis industry, the legalization movement, and sound regulatory policies," Leo Gontmakher, the company's CEO said.

Krane is pleased that he was instrumental in the company's growth.

"In the last 11 years, we went from a few people in a room with an idea, to building a national, vertically integrated cannabis operator with operations and facilities in strategic medical and adult-use cannabis markets, including California, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, and Washington," Krane added.

Halo Collective Shakes Up Its Management Team Amid Its International Reorganization To Create Akanda

Halo Collective Inc. HALO HCANF (Germany: A9KN) underwent several

management changes Friday in relation to the previously announced reorganization of its international assets to create Akanda Corp.

Ontario-based Akanda is formed in connection with the proposed International reorganization. Once the restructuring is finalized, Akanda will operate as an international medical cannabis company, with a portfolio that will include key businesses such as Bophelo BioScience & Wellness Pty. Ltd., Halo's cultivation and processing campus in the Kingdom of Lesotho in Southern Africa, as well as Halo's UK-based fully approved pharmaceutical importer and distributor.

Halo announced Friday that the Akanda board would include seven experts, including both non-independent and independent directors. Currently, the board includes Louisa Mojela, Akanda's executive chairman and former Halo board member; Tej Virk, who is a cannabis and corporate finance and banking industry executive who also serves as Akanda's founding CEO and director; Charles Kie, who resigned from Halo's board to serve as a lead independent director of Akanda, and Philip van den Berg, who agreed to become a director on Akanda board while continuing to serve as director and CFO of Halo.

"We believe that implementing sound corporate governance practices such as these will ensure that Akanda operates ethically and with integrity and that at all times, it is managed to maximize the long-term interests of all of our stakeholders," Virk stated.

In addition, Katie Field, currently president of Halo, agreed to join the Halo board, while Ryan Kunkel, presently a director of Halo, opted to serve as chairman of the Halo board, succeeding Louisa Mojela.

Following the reorganization, the Halo board will consist of seven members, including  Kiran Sidhu, Katie Field, and Philip van den Berg as non-independent directors. Peter McRae, Andrew Turman, Anmol Sidhu and Ryan Kunkel will serve as independent directors.

Kiva Sales & Service Names Former Southern Glazer's Wine and Spirits Exec Brooks Jorgensen President

California-based cannabis distributor Kiva Sales & Service has tapped Brooks Jorgensen to serve as president.

At his new position, the former vice president and general manager of domains and estates division at Southern Glazer's Wine and Spirits, will "take KSS through the next stage of growth, including refining operations and growing suppliers within the portfolio."

Jorgensen has more than two decades of commercial and sales management experience.

"I look forward to learning the nuances of the cannabis industry from the KSS team," Jorgensen disclosed, adding he plans to pair that "with the experience I bring from wine and spirits to accelerate KSS's growth as a best-in-class, full-service distributor known for cultivating the most successful and authentic brands."

Sharp Capital Advisors Welcomes Colin Campbell As Managing Director

Sharp Capital Advisors announced Wednesday that it has tapped Colin Campbell to serve as its managing director.

Campbell, a seasoned investment banker, will lead the company's client relationships and new business origination on the west coast in his new role. Prior to this, he worked at Sharp affiliate, Livingstone Partners for four years.

“This is an exciting time for Sharp Capital Advisors as the firm is experiencing explosive growth in its first year of operations," Stephen Miles, the firm's co-founder and CEO said. "Colin's collaborative, communicative style, entrepreneurial background, and deep investment banking experience will be pivotal to achieving Sharp's goal of becoming the blue-chip M&A and capital markets advisor to privately-held operators in the cannabis space."

Simplifya Names Katrina Skinner As General Counsel & Chief Banking Officer

Cannabis-focused regulatory and operational compliance software platform Simplifya has hired cannabis banking, financial services and compliance expert Katrina Skinner to serve as its general counsel and chief banking officer.

Skinner, who will report directly to Marion Mariathasan, the company’s CEO and co-founder, agreed to provide strategic legal counsel and guidance to Simplifya’s officers and senior management on legal matters as well as supervise the firm’s entrance into the multi-million dollar banking, financial and payment-related services sector.

“As we prepare to bring to market an expanded suite of cutting-edge banking and financial-related solutions, Katrina’s banking, financial, and compliance expertise in cannabis will not only add tremendous value to our Company, but to our clients as well,” Mariathasan disclosed Wednesday.

Organigram Holdings Names Beena Goldenberg New CEO

Organigram Holdings Inc. OGI OGI, the parent company of Canadian cannabis producer Organigram Inc. has named a seasoned business expert Beena Goldenberg as its new CEO. The decision is effective September 9.

Goldenberg is the former CEO of The Supreme Cannabis Company Inc. and Hain-Celestial Canada, ULC. She has held several positions in various companies, including Ronzoni Foods Canada Corporation, Parmalat Canada, Pillsbury Company Limited and Weston Research Centre.

Goldenberg brings over three decades of experience in consumer-packaged goods, manufacturing and marketing.

“Beena has an impressive track record of building exceptional consumer businesses and is known for creating engaging workplace environments that encourage the development of strong teams that are empowered to achieve industry-leading results,” Peter Amirault, executive chair at Organigram, commented.

Photo: Courtesy of David Gabrić on Unsplash