MJBiz - May/June 2024 - 47

INDUSTRY PLAYERS
color at Clorox to hold a C-suite
post in the company's centuryplus
history.
But the cannabis industry
was heading into a downturn
when Datcher joined, and
TPCO lost millions of dollars
through January 2023, when it
restructured to cut costs. One
month later, TPCO merged with
Gold Flora Corp.
Datcher was designated chair
of the newly created company,
and Gold Flora CEO Laurie Holcomb
was appointed chief executive
officer (see page 10). The new
entity was called New Parent but
operates as Gold Flora Corp.
" His vision for an industry
based on diversity, equality and
community was an inspiration
to all of us who benefited from
the opportunity to work with
him, " Holcomb said of Datcher
in a statement. " He broke barriers
as the first Black CEO of a
major publicly traded cannabis
company and strove to elevate
others alongside himself. "
Schwazze Appoints Interim
Chief Executive Officer
Denver-based
Medicine Man
Technologies,
operating as
Schwazze,
appointed
Chief Financial
Officer Forrest
Hoffmaster as interim chief
executive officer.
Hoffmaster succeeds Nirup
specialty gourmet food retailer
where he started as chief financial
officer, became co-president
and finished as CEO.
Before New Seasons, he spent
nearly 14 years with Whole
Foods Market, where he was
global executive coordinator of
finance. Hoffmaster also spent
three years as finance manager
at H-E-B, a San Antonio-based
supermarket chain, and held senior
finance management posts at
AMD and Arthur Andersen.
" Forrest is well-positioned to
seamlessly step in and lead the
company's day-to-day operations
as we conduct our search
for a permanent successor, "
board chair Justin Dye said.
Cann Hires Former
Keef CEO Tharp
Los Angeles-based infusedbeverage
business Cann
appointed Travis Tharp, the
former CEO of Keef Brands, a
well-known marijuana beverage
and products company, as chief
operating officer.
Tharp spent more than six
years with Keef, which he joined
as chief financial officer before
being appointed CEO.
Before Keef, Tharp spent
Forrest Hoffmaster
almost three years with Handy
HQ, a home-services technology
firm, and was general manager
for Wheelz, a car-sharing
company.
Cann also appointed Nick
Krishnamurthy, who resigned
as CEO and as a member of the
board, in February.
Hoffmaster joined Schwazze,
which has operations in Colorado
and New Mexico, in January
2023. His experience includes
nearly five years with New Seasons
Market, an Oregon-based
Fasano as a fractional chief
revenue officer. Fasano spent
almost five years as chief
revenue officer with Eaze, a
California-based cannabisdelivery
service, before joining
Cann.
Fasano will be tasked with
driving national expansion
through traditional beverage
retailers and the adult-use
cannabis ecosystem, while Tharp
will be responsible for scaling
Cann's operations to meet the
rapid growth.
Simona
King
Pharma Vet Joins
Edmonton Cannabis Giant
Edmonton, Alberta-based Aurora
Cannabis appointed Simona
King, a veteran executive of
multinational pharmaceutical
company Bristol Myers Squibb,
as chief financial officer.
The company in recent years
has concentrated on the medical
side of the cannabis industry,
including hiring pharmaceutical
industry veterans. For example,
in 2021, the company appointed
to its board Theresa Firestone,
who helped launch Shoppers
Drug Mart's medical cannabis
business. She was previously
with Pfizer. King's appointment
seems to be part of that effort.
King spent 19 years in senior
finance positions with BristolMeyers
Squibb. She finished
her career there as executive
director and head of finance for
the corporate financial planning
and analyses department. She
also was CFO of the company's
enterprise services division and
finance director of the research
and development department.
King takes over from Glen
Ibbott, one of the longestserving
executives at Aurora. The
company said in a news release
that Ibbott stepped down " to
mjbizdaily.com | May-June 2024 47
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