MJBizMag November-December 2021 - 12

FiveQuestions | with Joe Bayern
Preparing an MSO for Legalization
Curaleaf CEO leans on mainstream background to prepare
marijuana company for the future
By Jeff Smith
J
oe Bayern, who became the CEO
of marijuana multistate operator
Curaleaf in January, has a deep
background in corporate and brand
strategy. Bayern was part of a team
that revitalized the Snapple beverage
brand in the late 1990s.
He held executive positions at
mainstream businesses such as chief
operating officer and chief strategy
officer of Snapple, head of global
strategy for Cadbury Schweppes
and chief operating officer at Voss of
Norway, an artesian water company.
Before joining Curaleaf, Bayern
served as president of Indus Holdings,
a California-based vertically integrated
cannabis company that has since
merged with Lowell Farms.
He replaced Curaleaf co-founder
Joseph Lusardi, who is now executive
vice chair of the company's board of
directors.
At Curaleaf, Bayern oversees one of
the largest U.S. cannabis companies
by revenue. He believes the company
is still in the " very early innings " of its
growth as a cannabis business.
Bayern spoke at MJBizCon in
October on a panel titled, " Clash of the
Titans: Can Cannabis Culture and Big
Business Co-Exist? " For this issue of
MJBizMagazine, he provided insight
about what lies ahead for the cannabis
industry.
What about your consumer
packaged goods (CPG)
background is most useful to
lead Curaleaf's next phase?
I'm fortunate that my background
aligns with Curaleaf's long-term
view that the cannabis industry will
ultimately be much like traditional CPG,
where trusted brands will stand apart
and create value for the long term,
continuing to capture higher margins
and consumer wallet share.
Smart and innovative CPG products
drive the country's consumer
economy, and the growing demand for
cannabis will soon redefine what CPG
is capable of.
With Curaleaf and Select, we are
building and scaling the first nationally
recognized cannabis brands. We have
the opportunity to employ the tools
of traditional CPG to foster brand
familiarity, preference and loyalty-in
turn furthering mainstream acceptance
of the plant.
Do you think marijuana can
become a mainstream industry?
Yes. It's not a question of if but
when. Curaleaf's long-term strategy
is centered around the belief that
12 MJBizMagazine | November-December 2021
cannabis will be no different than
every other consumer goods product,
which is why we're investing in the
expansion of our footprint, brand
development and innovative product
R&D.
To what extent is Curaleaf trying
to position itself for federal
legalization?
Curaleaf maintains one of the
strongest balance sheets in the sector,
which allows us to invest in high-return
growth opportunities that will build
our footprint and differentiate us at
scale in the industry once cannabis is
federally legal.
One recent example is our
acquisition of Los Sueños in Colorado,
which provides Curaleaf with outdoor
cannabis cultivation expertise at
commercial scale. This deal furthers
our strategy of constructing low-cost
supply chains that will secure healthy
MJBizMag November-December 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of MJBizMag November-December 2021
