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Eteros Technologies Acquires Bloom Automation
Eteros Technologies USA, Inc., a global leader in cannabis harvesting equipment, acquired Bloom Automation, creating the first agricultural technology (Ag-tech) company focused on the post-harvest cannabis market. Founded in Canada in 2016, Eteros Technologies is now the premier manufacturer of cannabis automation equipment globally. As the parent company of the Triminator and Mobius brands, Eteros seeks to provide postharvest processing solutions for all levels of cannabis production. The acquisition of Bloom strengthens Eteros’ ability to deliver on that goal by bringing computer vision and artificial intelligence (AI) to cannabis producers. “As competitive as the cannabis market is today, this is only expected to increase as the market matures. In cannabis, there are so many areas where producers use manual labor because they need human intelligence. At Eteros, we see a tremendous opportunity to implement Bloom AI into harvest automation to gain a competitive advantage,” said Aaron McKellar, CEO of Eteros.
OEG Retail Cannabis to Acquire Retail Stores, Tokyo Smoke Brand From Canopy Growth in Cross-Country Expansion
As the next chapter in its story of rapid growth, expansion and Canadian market leadership, OEG Retail Cannabis (OEGRC) acquired 23 Tweed and Tokyo Smoke stores from Canopy Growth Corporation (CGC) in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Newfoundland and Labrador. In addition to the retail locations, OEGRC also acquired the Tokyo Smoke brand from Canopy Growth as it continues to lead in customer experience, product quality, choice, value and loyalty programs. Following the close of this acquisition, OEGRC will be the sole owner of the Tokyo Smoke brand and trademark and all Tweed retail stores acquired as part of this transaction will be rebranded.
Biden Announces Pardons for Federal Cannabis Offenders
President Joe Biden announced he is taking executive action to pardon thousands of people federally convicted of cannabis possession. He also has tasked the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) with reviewing the plant’s status under federal law. According to a DOJ statement, the department “will expeditiously administer the President’s proclamation, which pardons individuals who engaged in simple possession of marijuana, restoring political, civil, and other rights to those convicted of that offense. In coming days, the Office of the Pardon Attorney will begin implementing a process to provide impacted individuals with certificates of pardon.” The pardons will (1) clear people convicted on federal charges of simple possession since it became a crime in the 1970s (2) affect people who were convicted under District of Columbia drug laws (3) not apply to people convicted of selling or distributing cannabis (4) remove obstacles for people trying to get a job, find housing, apply to college or get federal benefits. President Biden will begin the process of working with the HHS to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I drug. This is the most significant achievement for the industry and NCIA’s government relations efforts since President Obama’s Department of Justice issued the “Cole Memo” in 2013.
The Green Organic Dutchman Completes Strategic Merger with BZAM Cannabis
The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd., a sustainable Canadian cannabis company and leading producer of premium, organically grown cannabis announced, it has completed the transaction whereby TGOD will acquire all of the issued and outstanding common shares of BZAM Holdings Inc. from BZAM’s sole shareholder, in exchange for common shares (the “Combined Entity Shares”) of TGOD (the “Transaction”). The transaction results in the BZAM Shareholder holding an approximate 49.5% of the issued and outstanding combined entity shares, with the ability to earn additional combined entity shares subject to achievement of certain financial milestones in 2023. Following the closing of the transaction, the Company is now led by Matt Milich as CEO, supported by Sean Bovingdon as CFO, Jordan Winnett as CCO and Michel Gagne as COO.
MFG Trays Becomes 100% Employee Owned, Celebrates 70th Anniversary
After 74 years of private ownership, the Morrison family sold 100% of its shares to the MFG Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), transitioning it to a 100% employeeowned company–an exciting move for the employees and a beneficial move for the local economy. Molded Fiber Glass Companies (MFG) was founded in 1948 by entrepreneur Robert S. Morrison (1909–2002) and has grown to be one of the largest local employers in the area. MFG has prided itself on being an innovative, family-owned enterprise spanning four generations of the Morrison family for the past seven decades. When it opened its doors, a small creative team worked diligently to figure out the best way to mass-produce the first polyester resin and fiberglass products. In 1953, MFG was selected to manufacture fiberglass body parts for the new Chevrolet Corvette. This move put MFG on the map as a significant player in the market and launched a sequence of other “firsts”, including the creation of the first fiberglass boats, high-volume truck and tractor parts, bakery trays, concrete forms, and satellite dishes, to name a few. These early successes allowed MFG to spin off specialized divisions, like MFG Tray, to support the evergrowing popularity and demand for fiberglass.
Lift Cannabis Business Conference & Trade Show Expands to the U.S.
Lift Events & Experiences announced that it has expanded across North Amercia, announcing its debut U.S. show at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, Wednesday, August 2 to Friday, August 4, 2023. Honouring the grassroots legacy of the cannabis industry, while serving its unique modern audiences, the inaugural U.S. show will feature live product on the show floor for attendees to see, touch and smell. A new look welcomes the new era for the shows, whil staying true to the well-regarded advocacy-oriented content, inclusive networking, irresistible activations and unmatched new product discovery opportunities for attendees. Must be 19+ to attend. No cannabis products are available for purchase at this event. For exhibitor and sponsorship enquiries, please visit liftexpo.ca/ exhibit-partner.
The French Connection: How Great White North Growers Became Synonymous with Quebec Cannabis
By David Halpert
In a few short years, Great White North Growers has gone from a licensed producer of its house brand and 514 Cannabis to an sales powerhourse working with over 30 growers in the province to get its products in SDQC retail stores. We sat down with George Goulakos, Co-Founder and Executive VP of Sales and Marketing, to learn how the company came to be what is is today and the current state of the Quebec cannabis landscape.
How did Great White North Growers (GWNG) first get started? Tell us the history of the firm. Its mission.
My partner Peter Schissler and I realized that there was a fantastic opportunity in this new exciting industry, and we decided to get in early. We applied in 2013 and received our licences in 2019. We always wanted to be a company with a conscience, mentoring the young and getting mentored by legacy people who have embraced legalization. Our mission is to be a proud Canadian company with strong values and a social conscience. The journey of obtaining a licence paled in comparison to the challenges that faced us at the start of legalization.
We were one of the first Licensed Producers (LPs) in Quebec to be granted all Health Canada (HC) licences and saw an opportunity to assist Quebec-based LPs and Micro Cultivators (Micros) bring their products to market. We are working with more than 30 Quebec-based producers. We are a debt free, nimble operation that responds quickly to new opportunities. Both Peter and I are handson operators.
How did you get into cannabis? Does your team come from a cannabis background or does it lend its expertise from other industries?
I was fortunate to be a broadcaster for 25 years with CFCF, a legacy CTV station in Montreal. I lived through the rise and fall of television, another regulated industry that was fast paced and full of change. Strong affiliates were gobbled up by the telcos, their identities stolen, history erased. My background in a fast-changing regulated industry has helped me tremendously. My partner Peter also has a diverse background in consulting, direct marketing, printing and publishing - always an entrepreneur. We were both at the right age and have a lot of experience to draw upon, so we’re not intimidated.
We were attracted by the opportunity and the challenges of this new Cannabis industry.
Where does GWNG stand today in terms of brands, products and other companies it represents in its portfolio?
We have two in-house brands: Great White North Growers and 514 Cannabis. 514 is the area code of Montreal – our home base. So representing that name puts pressure on us to produce the absolute best products possible, since it’s fast-becoming Montreal’s local brand. Both brands are sold in Quebec and Alberta and we’re expecting to launch a few SKUs in Ontario and Saskatchewan in the coming months. We are fortunate to be working with a lot of great Quebec-based partners that represent more than forty SKUs at the SQDC and we’re starting to bring them across Canada.
Beyond the fact that Quebec cannabis markets operate under a public framework, what are some key provincial differences in terms of supply, distribution and regulations?
Every province has a slightly different model. In Quebec for instance, the sale of cannabis is restricted to adults of at least 21 years of age. Flower and extracts are limited to a maximum 30% THC. Vapes are not authorized and edibles are extremely restricted. Cannabis is not permitted to be grown at home either. Distribution of cannabis products at the retail level is handled by the Société Québécoise du Cannabis (SQDC). This provincially run organization owns and operates all the retail locations (90) and deals directly with the general public and the LPs. LPs are responsible for delivering product to each location on a weekly basis. Our company is a founding member of the AQIQ (Quebec Cannabis Industry Association) and we are in constant communication with the SQDC on how we can improve the industry together.
As a Quebec company, can you speak to the current Quebec cannabis market? How do you see the market evolving as we head to 2023?
The Quebec market is strong, however growth has stalled lately, primarily due to a strike affecting roughly 23 of the 90 stores for the past several months. In the longer term, store counts will need to be increased to properly serve the market. On a positive note, we are starting to see more Cannabis 2.0 products being introduced. Quebec has been the most conservative province, preferring to start slowly, controlling all facets of retail distribution. We would like to have more stores and more variety in products, but the government has moved slowly and strategically. We do our best to work with the government and continue to be active with the association to bring positive change to the industry.
My understanding is that GWNG started with 514 cannabis but eventually grew to encompass more brands under one umbrella requiring expertise in the Quebec market. How did GWNG evolve from a firm investing in cannabis to operating as a sales agency for the Quebec market?
We entered the cannabis business with an open mind knowing that in all new industries, opportunities present themselves and that to succeed it would be important to be nimble and pivot quickly. We created a turnkey cannabis logistics company offering packaging solutions and delivery to all stores. We collaborate with our partners to determine “We were one of the first
pricing, format, etc. and consult with the SQDC as one voice. We are an open book so our partners feel at home here. We are navigating this overly complicated industry with lots of dialogue and brainstorming, together we are all stronger.
The fact that we are honed Quebec entrepreneurs has served us well as we are not intimidated with the logistics, commitment and the nuances of the Quebec marketplace - it was the natural thing to do.
Does GWNG distribute its portfolio brands outside Quebec?
We have a few SKUs listed in Alberta and expect to be listed in Saskatchewan and Ontario in the near future. Our plan is to move strategically across the country with our portfolio of partner products.
We still have a lot of room to grow in Quebec but are incredibly happy to have chosen Alberta as the first province outside of Quebec to have products from the Great White North family. The fact that we have some of the best Quebec producers in our group is also attractive to many retailers in other parts of Canada who want to offer a portfolio of premium Quebec strains to their clientele.
Can you speak of the vision you and the company want for GWNG, and what kind of experience you want to cultivate for LPs and processors in the Quebec market? What does the future hold for GWNG?
Great White North Growers is a proud Quebec, Canadian company focused on excellence in all that we do. We will continue to collaborate with the talented growers and processors in Quebec, believing that together we are stronger. We brainstorm, strategize, and learn from each other. We want to foster a sense of openness where our partners can interact among each other, while we provide them with our counsel. We are already seeing many of them share their experiences together and creating a sense of family - making us all the better for it. The future is exciting - we will continue to be an aggregator of Quebec cannabis companies offering synergies in buying, transport, cultivation and processing.
We will continue lobbying the various governments for change and act as a gatekeeper ensuring that all our partners deliver premium products to market. Lastly, we will continue to develop new products that resonate with the needs of Canadians, expanding this business one step at time, just like our forefathers did.
FIVE WAYS TO CREATE A CUTTING EDGE USING TECHNOLOGY
By Tom Blackburn, CEO of Turff Analytics
At first glance, hearing phrases like ‘cannabis technology’ and ‘weed tech’ can be easily dismissed as buzz words, but take a deeper look and you’ll see how technology is transforming the way cannabis businesses are run. In order for companies to break into the legal cannabis market, they needed to rapidly build operations in a digital-first environment. Today, knowing how to leverage and optimize technology is vital across all verticals of the cannabis industry. To that end, here are five ways technology is quietly transforming the industry, and how you can gain a competitive edge by taking advantage of them.
UNDERSTANDING WHERE YOU RANK
The cannabis land grab is now over in Canada. In Ontario alone, there are more than 1400 retailers in the market, more than all of California combined. Companies are now asking themselves how to stay profitable and increase market share. Naturally, this is going to lead to a shakeout that separates the highly-efficient operators from the laggards. The first step in getting ahead is having an understanding of where you rank amongst your competitors. While you may know how well your business is doing, it can be a challenge to see how you fare against others in the market, especially in a niche industry still in its infancy. By using a platform that has access to market data and relevant KPIs, cannabis companies can easily compare themselves with their competitors and see where exactly improvements need to be made. This applies not only to retailers but also to licensed producers, manufacturers and companies with large stakes in the industry.
DIGGING DEEPER INTO WHERE YOU’RE WINNING AND LOSING
Once you know where you stand, it’s time to put together a plan for where you want to go. A comprehensive data platform allows you to dig deeper into key metrics that are important to your specific segment.
For retailers, gross margin is a metric that matters. As shown in (Figure.1), most retailers in Ontario struggle to maintain margins over 40%. Optimizing the pricing of 250 SKUs on a daily basis while keeping tabs on the competition down the street is a near-impossible task for a retail employee, but is one that is well suited for a machine. Time is money after all, and companies win by using proven, readily available technology that integrates it into their decision-making processes.
If you’re a brand, having full visibility into where your category, brand and SKUs are performing is critical. The ability to focus sales efforts on closing gaps in distribution while simultaneously reinforcing areas of strength is key to driving week-over-week sales performance.
SPOT TRENDS EARLY TO FORECAST AND PLAN ACCORDINGLY
Often what really sets winners apart from their competitors is simply being better at planning and forecasting. The cannabis industry is fast changing and complex with multiple sizes, strains, price bands and potencies. A great recent example is a dramatic shift in the vape category toward larger +1 g formats.
Being able to easily visualize all these dimensions and identify trends is critical in making both small and large pivots. If you are a retailer,
Ontario Retail Market - Store & Product Gross Margin % as of 11/6/2022 you want to be stocking up on the most popular products and ditching the duds because your survival depends on it. If you are a licensed producer you should be looking to stay ahead of the competition and obtain category leadership. This may mean making difficult decisions about a product that has historically done well but is no longer flying off the shelves. Brands need to be able to make quick decisions on whether they should stop producing the product or find other ways to better market, price or improve it. It’s about “skating where the puck will be” and deciding on the appropriate actions as early as possible in the product life cycle.
ACCESSING DATA ALL IN ONE PLACE
One of the major benefits of cannabis technology platforms is being able to unlock and access all the data in one place. For most companies, it’s a continual challenge to combine, clean and consolidate data from multiple sources. Trying to update and integrate multiple data sources can be a resource-intensive task that few can afford. Companies benefit from a consistent single source of truth to make unbiased and unambiguous operational decisions quickly.
SPEND LESS TIME IN SPREADSHEETS
Adaptive technologies allow you to spend less of your time in email and Excel, whether it’s normalizing data, finding insights or creating reports. Cannabis platforms are now fully integrated with leading-edge analytic tools such as Tableau, Looker and Power BI.
Everything’s calculated for you automatically, and in just a few clicks, presentation-ready reports are available. You get the power of a fully-fledged BI team at your fingertips at a fraction of the cost.
As the cannabis industry struggles to meet the expectations that investors had in 2018, companies need to find ways to drive operational efficiency and profitable growth. While the use of technology isn’t new, it’s an opportunity to adopt proven technology platforms to solve the problems that plague other industries in a rapidly growing and relatively open ecosystem. The business drivers are simple: increase sales, margins and customer engagement, while reducing costs.
Tom Blackburn is the Founder and CEO of Turff Analytics, a cannabis platform that uses the latest technology to help cannabis companies stay ahead of their competition by delivering personalized data and analytics that are simple, seamless and secure. To get in touch with Tom and learn more about Turff, contact contact@turff.ca.
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Small Batch, Big Gains: Is Sitka’s Micro-Park A New Model for Canada’s Craft Cannabis Industry?
By Jessica Brown
It’s said that it can be lonely at the top unless you bring your friends—or at least 10 micro-cultivators. That’s the foundation of Sitka’s micro-park, a +10-acre plot of land that houses 10 of British Columbia’s best growers, with room for over 40 more. Sitka is a Health Canada-licensed standard processor and producer with both adultuse and medical sales licences, as well as a recent extraction sales licence. This allows it to package and sell cannabis across the country and create cannabis derivatives such as concentrates from small batch, craft grown dried flower. Along with growing its own weed, Sitka partners with passionate, experienced cultivators to bring a wide range of small batch, craft product offerings to market. Recognizable and often sold-out brands processed by Sitka include a collective of Sitka Legends (featuring legacy growers like QuadEssence and K n’ L Cannabis) and Greenade (Sitka’s house brand) with two new brands, Kahoona and Glasshouse, coming up for extract enthusiasts.
Building the Playing Field
Craft cannabis is an easy sell, but it isn’t an easy game. Canadians are ready to support quality bud, but small producers were largely absent immediately following federal legalization. As The Cannabis Act stumbles into its fourth year, ready for review, small and medium-sized companies are advocating for better legislation that is necessary to build a thriving and sustainable industry.
One of the major challenges with bringing craft cannabis to the market is the prohibitive start-up costs, which are still often in the millions. Follow that with processing and marketing requirements and you’ve got a high barrier to entry that has left many long-time cultivators out of the legal landscape (never mind an excise tax policy that leaves many producers without profit—a topic for another article).
Sitka’s Field of Dreams model—build it, and they will grow—offers craft cultivators an easier entry to the market by handling the initial build and rezoning requirements up front and leasing out units that can be custom-fitted, specifically designed to the growers’ preferences and needs. This significantly reduces the start-up capital and red tape that can hinder establishing a business in the regulated cannabis space.
Its micro-park is Canada’s first and only combination micro-cultivation and small-batch processing facility. The property was the first site in BC to be rezoned for cannabis production back in 2014 and has been licensed and operating under the Cannabis Act since 2019.
Park ‘n Play
The micro-park leases state-of-the-art growing facilities to licensed craft cultivators. Each unit is approximately 4,250 to 6,000 sq. ft. and contains two to six boutique flower rooms, allowing for up to 800 kg of craft cannabis to be grown annually per unit. Lessees are able to customize their grow rooms to accommodate their tried-and-true techniques—a key feature in honouring the craft legacy.
Phase 1 of the project hosts six growers across 10 licensed units, with phase 2 gearing up to lease out an additional 25 move-in ready units by summer 2023. The first crops from phase 2 cultivators are anticipated to be released in early 2024. At full capacity, the micro-park will have 53 operational units and is projected to produce upwards of 40,000 kg of dried cannabis per year. Sitka produces 20,000 handmade pre-rolls per day, with plans to expand exponentially as new units become available. The micro-park’s founding tenants (or the Original Six, for truly Canadian moni-
ker) produce between 50 and 70 kg of dried flower per month each. Premium cultivars are grown on a smaller scale, producing 25 to 35 kg batches every two months.
In an effort to bring the best genetics to the market and provide variety, each cultivator will cycle through up to eight cultivars per year. Sitka also has plans to expand its nursery with an ability to supply the micro-park with 60,000 mature plants per month. This will facilitate a faster turnover rate for grow cycles and ultimately help bring products to market faster.
In addition to providing the facility structure, Sitka is also responsible for building out electrical and water infrastructure for all micro-cultivators. Depending on the season, Sitka utilizes a roof rain catchment system or will truck in water during the drier months. Tenants pay approximately $9,000 CAD per month to lease a unit and share 65-70% of revenue from sales with Sitka.
Micro-cultivators are keen to partner with Sitka - who purchases cannabis from its tenants, process it, package it, and sell it - partly because of the streamlined entry to the legal market, including lower costs and rezoning requirements, and also because of its knowledge of market demands and relationships with provincial distributors. With Sitka managing the operations and distribution, growers at the micro-park are able to focus on what they do best—growing great craft weed.
This BC Bud’s for You
Vancouver Island is known for its easy lifestyle, extensive beauty, and world-class cannabis. Based near Sooke—just a short drive from the province’s capital—Sitka is making sure that BC bud maintains an international reputation by helping legacy growers transition to the mainstream market.
Its deep knowledge of craft cannabis predates 2018’s federal legalization of the plant, a knowledge that guides its in its cultivation partnerships. By understanding consumer preferences based on historical and current insights, Sitka is able to bring cultivars to the retail space that satisfy both long-term and new tokers.
Buying cannabis isn’t what it used to be, leaving many nostalgic for big, glass jars that would stink up a room as you were handed a nug to sniff and squish. However, Sitka is committed to providing that bag appeal at home. By regularly checking in with the micro-growers, Sitka is able to share distributor, retail and consumer insights that help direct strain and format selection to serve the legal market. Having established a recognizable brand with Greenade and with top-notch strains like G13 Triangle and Dragon Fruit Mints and Grease Monkey, through Sitka Leg-
ends Quadessence and K n’ L, Sitka’s products are consistently picked up across the country (available in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Northwest Territories and Yukon) and sell out quickly.
Concentrated Quality
Following up on the success of Sitka Legends and Greenade, two new craft brands are getting ready to roll out.
Kahoona will be making a splash (had to, sorry) with their Rip Tide and Tidal Wave SKUs. The THCa diamond-infused pre-rolls will feature a rotation of Sativa and Indica strains which will be labeled on the package so folks know exactly what they are buying and can easily identify the limited edition, single-strain, small batch releases.
Glasshouse, Sitka’s concentrate brand, will feature premium shatter that has been hydrocarbon processed from the micro-park’s craft flower. Staying true to the adage “quality in, quality out”, extract-heads can expect a super terpy, flavourful product made from some of the best flower in the country.
A Lasting Legacy With skin in the game, Sitka wants to bring along as many talented growers as possible to support those that helped create this industry long before the government came to play and give consumers a truly great cannabis experience that reminds them of the good ol’ days.
Keeping up with tradition while forging a future for craft cannabis, Sitka is where legends grow.
For more information visit sitkalegends.com and visit ther instagram @sitka.legends.
