International provider of consumer cannabis products, Curaleaf has appointed Matt Darin as Chief Executive Officer as exiting CEO Joe Bayern prepares to launch and run a new division of Curaleaf.
Curaleaf has announced that Matt Darin has stepped into the role of Chief Executive Officer at the international cannabis company, effective yesterday (9 May). As a founder of the Chicago-based cannabis company Grassroots, Darin was a first entrant in some of the United States’ key cannabis markets, including Illinois and Pennsylvania. Since joining Curaleaf in July 2020, he led the central US region which the company said is its largest region by footprint and revenue. In 2021 he added the southeast region to his responsibilities, helping increase Curaleaf’s market share by 55%.
The announcement was made in conjunction with the company’s quarterly earnings call, during which Curaleaf reported first quarter revenue with year-over-year revenue growth of 20% to $313 million, and year-over-year adjusted EBITDA growth of 16% to $73 million with operating cash flow of $57 million.
“I firmly believe we are building the best team in cannabis and I’m energized and humbled to lead Curaleaf at this pivotal moment,” Darin said in a statement. “We’ve built the foundation to continue to be the industry leader for the long term with a focus on operational excellence in every aspect of our business. We are leveraging the power of our 131 highly productive dispensaries and the accelerating distribution of our brands in 2,200 wholesale accounts throughout the U.S. Â I’m grateful to the board for their confidence in me as we move to the next phase of our journey.”
Curaleaf’s current CEO Joe Bayern will launch and run a new division of Curaleaf developing a new consumer packaged goods (CPG) based business model while working closely with Darin during the transition period through the second quarter. Executive Charman Boris Jordan said the company is “incredibly grateful” for Bayern’s tenure as CEO stating that he brought the firm into a “new way of working and thinking strategically as a CPG company”.
“I’m thrilled to begin this new chapter with Curaleaf,” Bayern said. “Working with this team has been an amazing ride and we’re just getting started. I’m deeply grateful to Boris, Joe Lusardi, the board, and every team member at Curaleaf; I am proud of what we’ve built together, and I know that our new venture will be another strong asset in Curaleaf’s undisputed leadership of our exciting industry.”
Boris Jordan added: “This move positions us well on several fronts; we will benefit from Matt’s proven track record of building winning teams and cannabis industry experience, and Joe Bayern’s extensive experience driving CPG strategy to launch our new division. I have the utmost confidence that this change is the natural next step in Curaleaf’s journey as the leading global cannabis company serving both the adult use and health and wellness markets. In fact, we’ve never been more bullish about our future.”