Marijuana business accelerator announces first deployment of oversubscribed $4M fund.
BOULDER, CO, May 7, 2019 – CanopyBoulder, a seed-stage business accelerator and growth stage venture fund for companies in the legal cannabis industry, is pleased to announce its first twelve new investments of 2019. In the first four months of the year, CanopyBoulder has deployed $1.375M into twelve early-stage companies. These businesses range from CBD/hemp consumer brands, to e-commerce and delivery platforms, to extraction tech IP.
Ten of these investments will participate in CanopyBoulder’s 16-week accelerator program, which is designed to jumpstart business development, refine strategy, and prepare companies to raise capital. Over 150 mentors, cannabis-focused venture firms, and key figures in the cannabis industry support the teams throughout the program. At the end of the 16-week program, the teams “graduate,” presenting their businesses to an audience of investors, cannabis business professionals, media, and local community.
The ten companies included in the accelerator cohort include:
- A Boring Life is a lifestyle brand with a core focus of providing easy and luxurious methods to use full spectrum hemp extract as a fabulous additive to delicious simple food, extraordinary eats for pets, rich & delightful products for the home.
- Backyard Soda Co. is an all natural, full spectrum CBD infused ready to drink soda made with 100% whole ingredients to produce unique flavors.
- CoaHemp.com delivers an easy to understand lab analysis for hemp to consumers and retail brands to increase transparency.
- CliqueMJ is a unified CRM and loyalty platform that helps dispensaries keep their customers captivated and increase retention.
- Dyspense Technologies, Inc. provides the legal cannabis industry a marketplace where licensed business can buy, sell and schedule deliveries.
- Jane is a platform that allows cannabis growers to track everything they do, helping them to develop their skills, learn from their mistakes and enabling success from seed to harvest
- MariGen is a platform that enhances cannabis product satisfaction and demand by aligning a customer’s genetic markers with their usage goals, creating tailored product recommendations.
- 6° Wellness leverages the power of community and human connection to improve access to pure, clean, thoughtfully produced hemp therapies.
- Stickyleaf is a platform that provides retail cannabis companies with an online storefront, rich tools to promote and grow their business, and meaningful analytics to help drive the decision making process.
- Strive Solutions, Inc. is the Amazon of Cannabis, connecting retailers, dispensaries, and brands to customers through a state-of-the-art digital experience. Strive offers on-demand delivery, subscription box, and video education through innovative, proprietary technology.
In addition to its accelerator class, the fund has also made two other venture investments. Those companies are
- Weller brings ground-breaking products to the market that will change the way consumers can access the power of CBD through simple, delicious, functional food and beverage products. Made with all-natural ingredients, Weller’s product line features CBD Sparkling Water, CBD Coconut Bites, and their CBD Barista Blend - a water-soluble drink powder.
- Gene Pool Technologies is a patent aggregation and licensing firm that has partnered with leading manufacturers, extractors, and inventors in cannabis to promote extraction technology that enhances quality, safety, and scalability for producers and consumers.
“These new investments are another opportunity for CanopyBoulder to support the infrastructure behind the legal cannabis industry,” said Patrick Rea, co-founder and Managing Director of CanopyBoulder. “As the industry evolves, so does what we look for in potential startups and we’re excited to expand beyond our accelerator investment model to growth stage businesses, and also into the emerging CBD & hemp space.”
About CanopyBoulder
CanopyBoulder is a venture fund and business accelerator working in partnership with the largest cannabis investor forum, the Arcview Group, for companies developing ancillary, or non-plant touching, products and services for the legal cannabis industry. Since 2013, CanopyBoulder has made 125 investments in 100 companies. . CanopyBoulder advisors and mentors work closely with each company, helping define business models, refine unique selling propositions, and focus marketing and fundraising activities. For more information, please visit www.canopyboulder.com.
About the Arcview Group
Founded in 2010, The Arcview Group is responsible for a number of groundbreaking ventures in the cannabis industry. The Arcview Investor Network includes more than 600 accredited investors who have put more than $240 million behind over 200 companies. Arcview Market Research produces the State of Legal Marijuana Markets report, which is the most oft-cited market data report. In 2015, Arcview became a partner in CanopyBoulder, the first seed-stage mentor-driven business accelerator in the cannabis industry. Arcview is also co-founder of Cannasure Insurance Services, the leading provider of business insurance to the cannabis industry. For more information, please visit www.arcviewgroup.com.