Cannabis Branding Company Raises $8M for National Expansion

A marijuana branding company with a portfolio that includes partners in three western states announced on Tuesday that it has raised $8 million to support an ambitious expansion plan.

The company, Las Vegas-based Strainz, said in a press release that the influx of capital will allow the company to continue building its portfolio in Colorado, Nevada and Washington State, as well as expand into other markets and keep adding to its staff.

To date, Strainz’ Colorado partner, the Bronnor Corporation, has constructed a 25,000-square-foot infused product manufacturing facility in Denver, and products are scheduled to begin shipping this month to retailers. Strainz also expects its Nevada partner, a cultivation operation, to begin shipping product to medical dispensaries in May. And in Washington, Strainz has partnered with infused product maker Db3, which manufactures the Zoots product line as well as Strainz products.

The only executive named in either the release or on Strainz’ website is CEO Hugh Hempel, a Nevada real estate businessman. Hempel’s resume also includes stints at Netscape and Apple from 1988 to 2000, as director of online marketing and manager of engineering and science markets respectively. His wife, Chris, is also part of the management team and also worked at Netscape in the 1990s before founding a San Francisco-based public relations firm, Sparkpr.