Benzinga - by Adam Eckert, Benzinga Staff Writer.
Canopy Growth Corp (NASDAQ:CGC) confirmed this week that shareholders gave the green light for the company’s Canopy USA plans.
This sets the stage for accelerated acquisitions of Wana and other U.S. brands.
Canopy Growth CEO David Klein and a pair of executives from Wana Brands talked about the opportunity in a panel Wednesday at the Benzinga Cannabis Capital Conference in Hollywood, Florida.
“I don’t think our investors understand the value that sits inside of Canopy. I don’t think we get any credit for Wana. I don’t think we get any credit for Jetty or Acreage and I think this new structure will allow us to demonstrate that as we go forward,” Klein said.
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What To Know: Earlier this week, Canopy Growth announced that its shareholders voted to approve the spin out of Canopy USA, which will accelerate Canopy's entry into the U.S. market and allow the company to move quickly to acquire its U.S. assets in Wana Brands, as well as Jetty and Acreage.
Wana Brands entered into an agreement in 2021 to be acquired by Canopy Growth in a deal valued at $279.5 million. The company stood out to Canopy because of the strength of its team, Klein told the crowd at the Benzinga conference.
Nancy Whiteman, co-founder and CEO Wana Brands, built the company from her home kitchen.
When it reached the point when it was time to take it to the next level, she realized she did not want to be the chief of a public company. So, she began looking for strategic partners.
Canopy understood the “magic of brands,” Whiteman said. The key was finding someone who understood that you shouldn’t acquire successful brands and then try to change them.
“We were really looking for the cultural fit with each other and we were really looking for value alignment — people who didn’t just see cannabis as an alcohol replacement or a way to get high, but who shared our vision for cannabis as a way to enhance lives,” Whiteman said.
“I really felt with Canopy we had found the right partner, and I still feel that way.”
Wana Brands announced this week that Whiteman will be stepping down from her day-to-day role at the end of May to pursue other interests.
She is set to join Canopy USA’s board of managers where she will work to drive Canopy USA's strategy, including the integration and future growth of the companies within the Canopy USA ecosystem.
Joe Hodas, chief marketing officer of Wana Brands, is set to take over as CEO. At the Benzinga conference on Wednesday, Hodas said he has an innate understanding of the brand since he helped build it and shares a vision with Whiteman and the team at Canopy.
Hodas told the crowd that Wana is about to launch in “several” new markets and increase its footprint by nearly 25% in the near term. He also suggested that new partnerships could soon be announced.
The incoming Wana Brands CEO noted that he will be focused on figuring out how to leverage Canopy’s assets to boost Wana’s model, but also on how to take existing Canopy products into new markets with the companies marketing synergies.
“I think for us, as Wana, we continue to innovate within that category that we know really well, which right now is gummies. And if we find another delivery vehicle that we think is equal to or better than gummies, we’ll certainly look at that, but gummies work really well and we continue to find a lot of success there,” Hodas said.
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CGC Price Action: Canopy Growth shares were down 6.27% at $6.28 at the time of publication, according to Benzinga Pro.
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