Saturday, May 21, 2022
High Yields Cannabis/Marijuana/ Weed News
  • Home
  • Cannabis Stocks
  • Cannabis Strains
  • Cannabis Laws
    • Marijuana Laws in All 50 States
    • International Marijuana Laws 2021
  • Product Reviews
  • Growing
  • Write for Us
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Cannabis Stocks
  • Cannabis Strains
  • Cannabis Laws
    • Marijuana Laws in All 50 States
    • International Marijuana Laws 2021
  • Product Reviews
  • Growing
  • Write for Us
No Result
View All Result
High Yields
No Result
View All Result
Home News

Flower-Side Chats Part 10: What’s Next for Audacious

Jeremy Vedder by Jeremy Vedder
November 5, 2021
in News
0
Cronos Group Launches Delicious New Dual-Flavor Cannabis

READ ALSO

Canopy Growth Acquires Jetty Extracts

Will CBD Smokers Widely Switch To Vaporizers?

Flower continues to be the dominant product category in US cannabis sales. In this “Flower-Side Chats” series of articles, Aaron Green interviews integrated cannabis companies and flower brands that are bringing unique business models to the industry. Particular attention is focused on how these businesses navigate a rapidly changing landscape of regulatory, supply chain and consumer demand.

Audacious (OCTQB: AUSA) is an Aurora (TSX: ACB) spinoff formerly known as Australis Capital, Inc. They have focused on an asset-light expansion strategy whereby they leverage their expertise in designing cannabis facilities in exchange for favorable cost plus arrangements for a percentage of the facilities’ production.

We interviewed Marc Lakmaaker, SVP of Capital Markets at Audacious. Prior to joining Audacious, Marc worked with Terry Booth at Aurora. His background is in investor relations.

Aaron Green: Marc, how did you get involved in the cannabis industry?

Marc Lakmaker: I was working for an investor relations agency. and one of my colleagues left and she had a cannabis client that I took over, which was Bedrocan, Canada. I started working with them. They were then acquired by Tree, which became Canopy. The guy I was working with at the time at Bedrocan was Ken Bradley, who then went to Aurora. As soon as he joined Oracle, he said, “I need some help.” So, I came in house and worked there until July 2019. When I left, I set up my own agency, but by that time, I’d been working with Terry Booth for a few years. Then, this past December, Terry got in touch with me and said he needed my help. It was after the concerned shareholders had won the shareholder battle around Australis and the rest is history. So, I’ve now been working with Audacious, which was Australis, since December of last year, roughly.

Green: Just quickly on Australis: So, Audacious is basically a spin off of Aurora, correct?

Lakmaaker: Correct. So, at the time, Aurora had a couple of US assets on its balance sheet was Koala Land and an annuity through company Michigan. We were listed on the TSX. We were going to list or had just listed on the NYSE and were arranging for loan facility with a syndicate of banks. They said, “even though these assets are dormant, you can’t have any US assets on your balance sheet.” So, we spun Australis off – a little bit how Canopy had spun off Canopy Rivers. But it was really the idea that Australis is going to become the foothold for Aurora in the US cannabis market because Aurora has backend rights.

The management team was put in place and started making some investments in the cannabis space, but kind of drifted away, sort of more into FinTech. First, it was FinTech related to cannabis and then FinTech, full stop. That’s when the shareholders were like, “we don’t agree with this.” Then the proxy battle started in which the dissident shareholders, or the concerned shareholders, won overwhelmingly. The Board left. The management team left. A new management team was put in place, a new Board in place, and it was kind of a restart.

So, we feel like we’re a bit of a startup. But a very rapidly moving startup. We’ve done an incredible amount of work in just the last seven to ten months. There was a lot of housekeeping to do. A lot of stuff related to restructuring the company, dealing with the departing management teams, dealing with bringing new management, etc. There were some deals that had to be unwound… Housekeeping if you will.

Green: Australis went down the FinTech route. What are the plans for Audacious now?

Lakmaaker: We’ve already started. We pivoted right away. In early January, we announced two acquisitions. One of Alps, and the other one of Green Therapeutics. Alps is really what is enabling us to execute on our strategy. It’s a very different strategy. It’s an asset light model, because we figured out that in order to grow quickly in this market without spending huge amounts of shareholder money, you need to be able to get into markets in a capital-light fashion. Alps is the world’s preeminent greenhouse design company. Not just greenhouses, but also indoor facilities. They’ve got a 35-year track record in fruits and vegetables. They’ve got an eight-year-plus track record in cannabis – and built some of the best facilities in the world. They’ve got a lot of IP.

Marc Lakmaaker, SVP of Capital Markets at Audacious (formerly Australis)

The proof point of that is our relationship with Bell Fleur. It’s a social equity license holder in Massachusetts. We helped them build their facility. We’re not contractors, but we do the design and engineering. We help them with partner selection. We do the construction management. We bring in a general contractor. Then we do the commissioning, and optionally, post-commissioning services, making sure that the facilities are dialed in. In return for all that IP, because what people know what they get at the end of it is high quality, consistent cannabis and very low operating costs, we ask our clients to dedicate a certain percentage of the canopies grown with our cultivar. Those we will write back on a cost plus arrangement and we use that to launch our brands into whatever jurisdiction.

So, in Massachusetts, we’re working with Bell Fleur. We’re getting 10% of the canopy. We’re buying it back at cost plus 5%. So, we don’t have to sink money into building the facility. We’re not carrying the cost of capital there. We’re also not paying wholesale prices. And these relationships are locked in for a long time. I can’t remember if it was five or 10 years. So, it’s a very, it’s a different strategy, but it’s not contrarian – it’s very de-risked, that allows us to launch into new countries.

Then for Green Therapeutics, we’ve got a number of award-winning brands like Provisions and Tsunami. We’re kind of phasing out GT Flowers and there will be something else in its place. We also acquired Loose, which caters to a younger demographic, with a high potency shot beverage line that is now for sale in California.

We also have a partnership with PBR, the Professional Bull Riders Association. There’s some statistics around that that just absolutely blew me away – 83 million permanent fans! That’s 25% of the US population. I think the average income is $70,000. That’s well above the national average and the general split is fairly even too; it’s 53/47, male/female. Proper American sport! They have hundreds of hours of exposure on CBS. They’ve got 2 billion imprints on social media. So, with PBR, we launched Wreck Relief, which has several recognized and approved pain products in the lineup.

Green: What markets are you in right now?

Lakmaaker: Right now we’re in Nevada with cannabis products. This is our home market where our head offices are in Las Vegas. We’re in California. We just bought a dispensary in San Jose that comes with a partnership with Eaze. On top of that, we’re operationalizing in Missouri and Oklahoma, and officially building in Massachusetts.

Then through Alps because they does both cannabis and non-cannabis, we’re in a number of states. We’re looking to get more of the supply deals. We’re also doing a lot of vegetable facilities throughout the entire world. We’re in Europe, we’re in Asia, in the Middle and in North America, we build these facilities from the desert up to the Arctic.

There’s a big movement right now to produce food that is safe and has a smaller carbon footprint. So, our facilities are kind of inherently more sustainable. It uses only 94-95%, less water, less labor, less energy, less prone to disease, crop failure, everything. And because you are local producing for local communities, you reduce the transport carbon footprint.

Green: What in your personal life or in cannabis are you most interested in learning about?

Lakmaaker: I really like the sciences. I’m a chemical engineer by training. I think what is going to take an incredible flight in the years to come is the application of medical scientific research that’s being done right now. To me, that’s fascinating because the cannabis plant is something special. It’s got such a broad utility that we know, anecdotally. I think we’re moving towards a world where we’re going to see a lot of breakthroughs on the medical side.

I’m very excited about the other end too – cultivation. I think tissue culture is going to play an incredible and important role.

Green: Thanks Marc, that concludes the interview.

Lakmaaker: Cheers, Aaron.

[Original Source]

Total
0
Shares
Share 0
Tweet 0
Pin it 0
Share 0

Related Posts

California cannabis brands fined for violating Environmental Laws
News

Canopy Growth Acquires Jetty Extracts

May 19, 2022
Will CBD Smokers Widely Switch To Vaporizers?
News

Will CBD Smokers Widely Switch To Vaporizers?

May 19, 2022
Massachusetts Adult-Use Marijuana Sales Officially Exceed $3 Billion, State Reports
News

Massachusetts Adult-Use Marijuana Sales Officially Exceed $3 Billion, State Reports

May 18, 2022
Aleafia Health Announces the Appointment of Mark J. Sandler
News

Best Cannabis Movie Quotes of All Time

May 18, 2022
MedMen’s Tracy McCourt appointed President of West Hollywood cannabis organization
News

FDA Issues Warning Over Copycat Cannabis Consumables

May 17, 2022
Medical Marijuana, Inc. CEO Featured on Seeking Alpha’s CEO
News

Arizona Recreational Marijuana Sales Hit A New Record In March, State Reports

May 16, 2022
Next Post
TILT Holdings to Report Second Quarter Results on Tuesday,

The USDA & Controlled Environment Agriculture: A Q&A with Derek Smith, Executive Director of the RII

  • Trending
  • Comments
  • Latest
Monthly Spotlight: The Best of Plain Jane CBD

Monthly Spotlight: The Best of Plain Jane CBD

April 8, 2022
The Ultimate Dr. Dabber Stella Vaporizer Review for 2022

The Ultimate Dr. Dabber Stella Vaporizer Review for 2022

April 19, 2022
volcano hybrid review 2022

The 2022 Volcano Hybrid Vaporizer Review: All You Need To Know

March 19, 2022
The Utillian 5 v3 Wax Pen Review for 2022

The Utillian 5 v3 Wax Pen Review for 2022

March 27, 2022

The 7 Best Smell-Proof Weed Bags To Keep Your Bud Stash Safe

April 27, 2022
The Best Synthetic Urine Kit to Pass Your Drug Test in 2022

The Best Synthetic Urine Kit to Pass Your Drug Test in 2022

March 28, 2022
The 10 Best Smell Proof Backpacks for Weed in 2022

The 10 Best Smell Proof Backpacks for Weed in 2022

May 5, 2022
Cronos Group Launches Delicious New Dual-Flavor Cannabis

Watch a new documentary focused on Nipsey Hussle’s cannabis business

May 21, 2022
Former NFL Running Back Marshawn Lynch Launches Premium Blunt Brand

Former NFL Running Back Marshawn Lynch Launches Premium Blunt Brand

0
Major Marijuana Coalition Forms To Coordinate Legalization Push, But Some Key Advocacy Players Aren’t Involved

Major Marijuana Coalition Forms To Coordinate Legalization Push

0
MMJRecs - cannabis leaf

How Medical Marijuana Can Help Treat Sleep Disorders

0
Colorado Cannabis Sales Exceed $2 Billion in 2020

Colorado Cannabis Sales Exceed $2 Billion in 2020

0
Cronos Group Launches Delicious New Dual-Flavor Cannabis

Watch a new documentary focused on Nipsey Hussle’s cannabis business

May 21, 2022
Stem Holdings Reports Fiscal Full Year 2021 Financial

Pasadena cannabis licensing suits can proceed, California panel says

May 21, 2022
Jushi Holdings Inc. Expands Partnership with Laundry

From The Earth seeks atty fees in kickback case against LA suburb

May 21, 2022
Anything Technologies Media, Inc. Gives Update Regarding

3 armed suspects rob marijuana dispensary near Pasadena

May 21, 2022

Archives

  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • March 2020

Categories

  • 1933 Industries
  • 4front Ventures
  • Acreage Holdings
  • Ascend Wellness
  • Ayr Wellness
  • Body & Mind
  • C21 Investments
  • Cannabis Stock Quotes & News
  • Cansortium Inc
  • Captor Capital
  • Ceres Acquisition Corp
  • Chalice Brands
  • Columbia Care
  • Cresco Labs
  • CuraLeaf
  • Gage Growth
  • Glass House Brands
  • Green Thumb Industries
  • Grown Rogue International
  • Harborside
  • Item 9 Labs
  • Jushi Holdings
  • Lowell Farms
  • MariMed
  • MedMen Enterprises
  • News
  • Next Green Wave
  • Planet 13
  • Plus Products
  • Product Reviews
  • Red White & Bloom
  • SLANG Worldwide
  • Sol Global Investments
  • TerrAscend
  • TILT Holdings
  • Trulieve
  • Verano Holdings
  • Vext Sciences
  • Vibe Growth

Recent Posts

  • Watch a new documentary focused on Nipsey Hussle’s cannabis business
  • Pasadena cannabis licensing suits can proceed, California panel says
  • From The Earth seeks atty fees in kickback case against LA suburb
  • 3 armed suspects rob marijuana dispensary near Pasadena

QR Code

Flower-Side Chats Part 10: What’s Next for Audacious
No Result
View All Result
  • Homepages
    • Home Page 1
  • News

© 2021 High Yields