TORONTO — Pita Pit Canada and WeedMD Inc. — a federally licensed producer and distributor of medical-grade cannabis — have partnered to launch a national retail-services provider, Pioneer Cannabis Corp.
Pioneer provides a platform for Canadians with the goal of owning and operating their own cannabis retail store and will provide retailers with a variety of services, including identifying locations; providing assistance with licensing and security processes; point-of-sale and payment systems; marketing services; and training platforms (including cannabis educational programs).
“We are enthusiastic about this unique opportunity to apply our retail development and operating expertise to support finding the right people and retail locations for this distinct business as it unfolds in an exciting, rapidly emerging industry,” said Chris Fountain, CEO of Pita Pit.
Pioneer is being led by president Kristie Smith, who boasts more than eight years of experience as a senior executive at Pita Pit. She is joined by CEO Jordan Schwartz, who was most recently managing director at Serruya Private Equity where he oversaw acquisitions, investment and asset management of several retail, real estate and consumer-product businesses.
Pioneer’s Chief Development Officer, Alexander Liszka, has more than 12 years experience advising private and public clients across the globe on acquisitions, commercial arrangements, project development and regulatory compliance. Most recently Liszka was senior legal counsel at IBI Group Inc., a global architectural, engineering, design and technology company.
“Pioneer brings an opportunity to those entrepreneurs interested in joining the cannabis industry, but who may not have the financial backing or the operational experience to pursue opening their own retail cannabis store,” says Smith. “Through this collaboration of established Canadian companies, we are paving the way for small businesses to participate in the emerging retail cannabis space that will promote local economic growth and opportunities.”
