Northern Helm and J. Supply Co. Entering New Frontier with JBL Venture Holdings
The collaboration marks another step towards the normalization of cannabis in the U.S.
NEW YORK, USA - JBL Venture Holdings (JBL), backed by cannabis industry leader Lorne Gertner, announces a collaboration with J Supply Co. Holdings (JSH), which has opened 11 cannabis retail stores under the J. Supply Co. and Northern Helm banners across Ontario over the past year. The two companies will seek to establish a presence of consumer-focused, locally-owned cannabis retail environments in New York in 2022.
The team is excited about the opportunity to leverage its members’ cumulative backgrounds to demonstrate a sustainable business model that includes local ownership. They’re working to create the welcoming, inclusive retail environments that New Yorkers expect, based on the belief that cannabis has the ability to cultivate better lives for customers and communities.
“We are thrilled to announce a partnership with JSH to establish operations in New York and beyond,” says Gertner. “Our combined expertise and networks will allow us to thrive in the most important cannabis markets in America.”
Considered one of the founders of the legal cannabis industry, Gertner brings a deep understanding of cannabis branding and consumer behavior to JBL, in addition to an extensive network of contacts and significant experience as a board member of many publicly traded companies.
Gertner, the co-founder of Tokyo Smoke and PharmaCan Capital (now The Cronos Group) formed JBL Venture Holdings with partners Jeremy Schwartz and Bernard Birnbaum. Jeremy Schwartz, who has successfully exited from ownership interests and senior management roles in a health care business and flagship Tokyo Smoke store, will take on the role of Managing Director at JBL. Bernard Birnbaum, also a Director, owns and manages an extensive portfolio of commercial real estate in New York and brings significant market knowledge and ties within the business and political communities.
Under the J. Supply Co. banner, JSH opened one of the first legal Ontario cannabis retail stores in April 2019. Stylish and approachable, J. Supply Co. has stayed focused on their customer and serves a diverse range of discerning clientele. Northern Helm has worked with local owners to create inviting retail spaces that help guests navigate their cannabis journeys. Offering a carefully curated selection of products and accessories in a variety of formats, Northern Helm is bringing a fresh perspective to cannabis retail.
“This group brings together experiences from a number of consumer focused ventures and puts us in a great position to create retail environments that guests will love,“ says David Côté, COO of JSH. Côté, who was born in New York and is the Founder of Northern Helm, has been in leadership roles in the cannabis retail space since joining Tokyo Smoke in early 2018, developing the Tweed and Tokyo Smoke platforms for scale after the acquisition by Canopy. Xristos Silaidis, the CEO of JSH who has spent his career developing and scaling businesses to better meet the needs of their customers, has been the driver behind the growth of the business since January 2019. Silaidis maintains a long term focus and an eye on sustainable operations for years to come. Geoff DeGrasse, who heads up operations, people ops and compliance at JSH, was a founding partner at Tokyo Smoke in 2015 and supported the growth of Tokyo Smoke into Hiku Brands, which later sold to Canopy.
More information about the partnership will be released later this year.