The Parent Company assembles 'powerhouse group of thought leaders' to advise its corporate venture social equity initiative

The Parent Company assembles 'powerhouse group of thought leaders' to advise its corporate venture social equity initiative

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TPCO Holding Corp (The Parent Company) (NEO:GRAM) (OTCQX:GRAMF) said it has named George Atallah, Marcia Dyson, Jeff Gray, Faith Leach, Carmen Perez, Mary Pryor and Angela Rye to the advisory committee of its corporate venture capital social equity initiative. With initial funding of $10 million, plus 2% of all future net income, The Parent Company’s social equity fund’s goal is to discover the industry’s future entrepreneurs of color and provide them the capital and mentorship necessary to build generational wealth as part of a more equitable and diverse cannabis industry, the company said.  The fund’s advisory committee assembles a “powerhouse group of thought leaders” across cannabis, civil rights activism, criminal justice reform, policy advocacy and impact investing to serve as a sounding board on all investment and partnership opportunities, the company said, while offering mentorship to the fund’s management team, portfolio companies and non-profit partners. READ: The Parent Company wraps up its first quarter as a public company with US$281M in cash “We established this fund to help break down the systematic barriers that Black and other minority entrepreneurs face as they seek to secure meaningful participation, growth and leadership in this multi-billion-dollar industry,” TPCO's chief social equity officer Desiree Perez said in a statement. “I’m proud of the impressive group of advisors that has agreed to join us in this mission and look forward to working together towards our vision of a legal cannabis industry in which Black and minority entrepreneurs have the opportunity to build peak levels of success and value for their communities.” George Atallah has been the assistant executive director of external affairs for the NFL Players Association since 2009. He manages the NFLPA’s strategic communications, including media relations, crisis management, digital content and social media. Atallah was born in Lebanon and immigrated to New York City, where he grew up in Queens. Marcia Dyson is the CEO and founder of Women’s Global Initiative and one of the country’s most respected civic-social activists and communication specialists. The WGI is a for-profit entity to enhance the lives of women through “profitable and purposeful social engagement.” She was also selected to be on the Women’s Global Summit Leadership board by former Secretary of State Madeline Albright.  Jeff Gray is co-founder, owner and CEO of SC Labs, one of the first independent analytical laboratories for cannabis and hemp in the US. SC Labs’ vision is to inform and evolve people’s understanding of and experience with cannabis and cannabis therapeutics by partnering with organizations that address diversity in STEM, progressive testing standards, compassionate relief for patients and social equity in the cannabis industry.  As one of the few African American owner-operators in the California cannabis industry, Gray has served as a mentor to countless entrepreneurs and professionals from marginalized communities who seek to enter the cannabis industry, the company said. Faith Leach is the deputy mayor for equity, health and human services in Baltimore, and she is responsible for overseeing city agencies dealing primarily with quality of life issues such as recreation and parks, library services and the city’s coronavirus public health response. Leach previously served as chief of staff for the JP Morgan Chase Foundation, where she oversaw a five-year, $2 billion global investment to create inclusive economic growth in vulnerable communities.  Carmen Perez, CEO of The Gathering for Justice, is an award-winning civil and human rights leader. She co-founded Justice League NYC and Justice League CA, two state-based task forces for advancing a juvenile and criminal justice reform agenda, where she spearheaded the Free Meek Mill and Take a Knee with Colin Kaepernick campaigns.  Perez was a national co-chair of the 2017 Women’s March, and she was named one of Fortune’s Top 50 World Leaders, TIME’s 100 most influential people, Glamour Woman of the Year and Forbes’ 100 Mujeres Mas Poderosas Mary Pryor is the cofounder of Cannaclusive, a company created to facilitate the fair representation of minority cannabis consumers in the cannabis industry, and Cannabis for Black Lives, a coalition of cannabis companies galvanizing the industry to support Black lives. She is also leading marketing efforts for TONIC/Tricolla Farms and advises brands such as Flor De Maria Chocolates, Dieux Skin and OKO.  Angela Rye is the CEO of Impact Strategies a political commentator on outlets including CNN and NPR. She hosts the weekly podcast “On One with Angela Rye,” and her thoughtful yet incisive commentary and real talk about social justice, politics, culture, and history sparks much-needed conversation about the state of America, the company said. The Parent Company is a California-based, vertically integrated cannabis company that brings together global icon and entrepreneur Shawn "JAY-Z" Carter and agency Roc Nation with the direct-to-consumer platform Caliva and the cannabis manufacturer Left Coast Ventures to form a cannabis industry leader for the post-prohibition era. Contact Andrew Kessel at andrew.kessel@proactiveinvestors.com Follow him on Twitter @andrew_kessel

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