- Mr. DeGabrielle was an early entrepreneur and executive in the
U.S. cannabis industry; he founded and owns Los Sueños Farms LLC,
the largest outdoor grow in North
America, which he recently agreed to sell to Curaleaf,
Inc.
- Mr. Nicholas is an experienced finance professional and an
early investor in the global cannabis industry; he was one of the
founding shareholders of Alternative Medical Enterprises LLC, which
merged with Verano Holdings LLC in December
2020.
TORONTO and RIONEGRO,
Colombia, Sept. 1, 2021 /CNW/ - PharmaCielo Ltd.
("PharmaCielo" or the "Company") (TSXV: PCLO) (OTCQX: PCLOF), the
Canadian parent of Colombia's
premier cultivator and producer of medicinal-grade cannabis
extracts, PharmaCielo Colombia Holdings S.A.S., today announced
that two experienced cannabis market professionals - Bob DeGabrielle and Will
Nicholas – have been added to the Company's board of
directors. Bob DeGabrielle is an
experienced entrepreneur and operator in the sector, and
Will Nicholas is a successful
long-term investor in the space.
Bill Petron, Chairman and CEO
of PharmaCielo Ltd. commented, "As we focus on taking one
of the largest, lowest cost cannabis operations in the world, and
quickly leveraging it into a position of global leadership, we need
to have the right talent and guidance around the table. Bob brings
experience at every level of the cannabis value chain, with
particular expertise gained from founding, scaling and monetizing
the largest outdoor cannabis cultivation footprint in North America. Will brings a very
sophisticated global finance perspective, having funded some of the
most promising assets in the developing global cannabis industry
and helped build them into enduring businesses that create lasting
shareholder value."
Background – Bob
DeGabrielle
After a lengthy career in acquiring, developing, and selling
over US$1 billion of commercial and
residential real estate in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, Bob
DeGabrielle became a pioneer in the cannabis industry.
His involvement in the industry began in Florida where he was instrumental in assisting
with the Cannabis Ballot Initiative which passed in 2012. After his
successful efforts on the East Coast, he moved to Colorado where he built three dispensaries, a
testing lab, and a 25,000 sf indoor cultivation facility. Since
2015, Mr. DeGabrielle has been the managing partner and one of the
founders of Los Suenos Farms LLC, the largest outdoor cannabis farm
in North America consisting of 36
acres of sun-grown cannabis and an additional 36,000 sf
greenhouses. In addition, he is the owner of High Colorado Farms
and Nielsen Farms. Combined, all three farms consist of over 66
acres and are currently growing 60,000 plants that should produce
in excess of 90,000 pounds of biomass in 2021. Additionally, Mr.
DeGabrielle is the owner of Colorado Cannabis Associates comprised
of two retail dispensaries and an additional indoor cultivation
facility.
He serves on the board of Colorado Leads and MIG (Marijuana
Industry Group), the two leading cannabis industry associations in
Colorado. Mr. DeGabrielle was also
a founding member of the Cannabis Trade Federation, a national
industry association in the United
States.
In May, 2021, it was announced that these combined business
interests were acquired by Curaleaf, Inc., for US$78 million. The transaction is expected to
close in late 2021.
Background – Will
Nicholas
Will Nicholas is an experienced
finance professional with an extensive career in banking and
investment management in New York,
Zurich and London. Following a career in banking with
Bankers Trust Company, Swiss Bank Corporation and UBS Investment
Bank, Mr. Nicholas co-founded Oceanwood Capital Management, a
London based European-focused
event driven hedge fund manager. Mr. Nicholas served as COO and
then CEO of the firm over a decade and retired as CEO in 2017.
In 2014, Mr. Nicholas performed extensive research on the
burgeoning U.S. medical cannabis industry which led to him becoming
a "day 1" investor in Alternative Medical Enterprises ("AltMed").
Mr. Nicholas provided AltMed with strategic advice on the European
medical cannabis market prior to its merger with Verano Holdings
Corp. Mr. Nicholas, a resident of Oxford,
England, continues to actively follow developments in the
European Medical cannabis market and has developed a network of
industry contacts in the UK, Germany, Poland, Portugal and the Czech Republic.
About PharmaCielo
PharmaCielo Ltd. (TSXV: PCLO, OTCQX: PCLOF) is a global company,
headquartered in Canada, with a
focus on ethical and sustainable processing and supplying of all
natural, medicinal-grade cannabis oil extracts and related products
to large channel distributors. PharmaCielo's principal (and wholly
owned) subsidiary is PharmaCielo Colombia Holdings S.A.S.,
headquartered at its cultivation and processing centre located in
Rionegro, Colombia.
The board of directors and executive team of PharmaCielo are
comprised of a diversely talented group of international business
executives and specialists with relevant and varied expertise.
PharmaCielo recognized the significant role that Colombia's ideal location plays in building a
sustainable business in the medical cannabis industry, and the
Company, together with its directors and executives, is executing
on a business plan focused on supplying the international
marketplace.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words
such as "expects", "is expected", "intends", "anticipates",
"believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that
certain actions, events or results "may" or "will" be taken, occur
or be completed or achieved. Forward-looking statements in this
news release include, without limitation, statements with respect
to: Company expectations that GMP audits will be scheduled by
potential customers, the completion of scheduled GMP audits by
potential customers, expectations that potential customers that
have scheduled or completed audits will become customers of the
Company, the success or traction of the Company's sales strategy,
collaboration with pharmaceutical companies in their product
development cycle and the expectation that such collaboration will
result in a competitive advantage to the Company and that the
advantage will be sustainable, expectations that the successful
completion of audits will grow the Company's sales pipeline or
build its reputation as a global supplier of choice, the expected
timing of the completion of Mexican and Colombian GMP audit
processes, the Company obtaining approvals or licenses related to
importing Company products into Mexico, and the expectation by the
Company that the timing of completion of the Colombian GMP
certification will not affect sales. The forward-looking statements
in this news release are necessarily based on assumptions,
including assumptions with respect to: PharmaCielo's ability to
execute its business plan as currently contemplated, PharmaCielo's
ability to obtain necessary regulatory approvals for the export of
its products from Colombia and
import of its products into other countries, sufficient demand for
the Company's products, that potential customers will be satisfied
with the results of audit processes, that any changes to Colombian
cannabis legislation will not negatively impact the Company's
business, that the Company will be able to locate and retain
necessary personnel to achieve its business goals, PharmaCielo's
ability to maintain its distribution contracts in good standing and
the accuracy of PharmaCielo's projections regarding the market for
cannabinoid products. Though management believes that its
assumptions are reasonable in the circumstances, the actual
results, performance or achievements of PharmaCielo's business may
be materially different from any future results, performance or
achievements expressed or implied by any forward-looking statements
herein. Forward-looking statements can be affected by known and
unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, including changes
to PharmaCielo's development plans, the failure to obtain and
maintain all necessary regulatory approvals relating to the export
of cannabinoid products and the import of these products into other
countries, TSXV approval, the inability to export or distribute
commercial products through sales channels as anticipated due to
economic or operational circumstances, risks associated with
operating in Colombia, fluctuation
of the market price for the Company's products, risks associated
with global economic instability relating to COVID-19, risks
related to retention of key Company personnel, currency exchange
risk, competition in PharmaCielo's market and other risks discussed
or referred to under the heading "Risk Factors" in PharmaCielo's
Annual Information Form for the financial year ended December 31, 2019, which is available at
www.sedar.com. Accordingly, readers should not place
undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Except as required by
law, PharmaCielo undertakes no obligation to publicly update any
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise.
Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as
that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts
responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press
release.
SOURCE PharmaCielo Ltd.