Adam Bierman

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Adam Bierman
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Born (1982-02-08) February 8, 1982 (age 42)
NationalityAmerican
CitizenshipUnited States of America
OccupationBusinessman

Adam Bierman (born February 8, 1982) is an American businessman and entrepreneur. He is best known for co-founding the global cannabis brand MedMen (“The Apple of Cannabis”) with partner Andrew Modlin, where he was CEO from 2010 until 2020.

Early Life

Adam Bierman was born in 1982 in Scottsdale, Arizona. As a child, his family moved him around often, before eventually settling in San Diego in his high school years. Bierman attended Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts and departed after a year to attend LACC in order to pursue baseball more seriously. He transferred to USC,[1] dropping out shortly after the transfer went through to pursue his career building his sports agency.[2]

Sports Agency

From 2002-2006, Bierman repped fellow baseball players while residing in Resida, California. His first client was La Costa Alum Jesse Schmidt. With Bierman’s help Schmidt ended up going to Cal State Sacramento, and getting drafted by the SF Giants, where he lingered in the minors. Bierman would end up building a roster of over 30 players, but the agency didn’t supply a steady income, and as players were promoted to the Major League they left for other more established agencies. The Company pivoted from sports to general business marketing and was renamed XTS Global.[3]

MedMen

In 2010, Bierman and Modlin were operating a branding and marketing firm, Brand X[4] out of Culver City, CA. A routine sales call turned into the encounter that would ignite Bierman’s passion for the legal cannabis industry. At a pitch meeting inside a California medical marijuana dispensary Bierman met the Blue Haired Lady,[5] a dispensary owner who was generating $300,000 a month and was looking for advice on how to double that.

Inspired by the chance encounter with the Blue Haired Lady, Bierman and Modlin transitioned into the world of cannabis. In 2010, Treehouse medical marijuana dispensary opened for $13K.[6] After slightly over a year, Treehouse was sold for $250K. During this time, Bierman and Modlin also transitioned Brand X into ModMan Enterprises, a design, branding, and construction company.[7]

In September of 2012, the ModMan name was changed to MedMen and the DBA was filed. Bierman’s exclusive trade became legal marijuana. The licensing applications for medical dispensaries in Massachusetts opened in 2013[8] and Bierman briefly did some consulting into the application process. After realizing how the business model was moving forward in the cannabis industry, MedMen made the switch from consultancy to a management firm[9]. In late 2013, Bierman stopped looking into the Massachusetts application process, and instead, focused on Nevada’s market to sell management services and win licenses.[10]

With the rise of successes through MedMen, Bierman became a notable leader in the cannabis industry. He was featured in major news outlets including CNBC,[11] Bloomberg News,[12] Forbes,[13] Time Magazine,[14] The Los Angeles Times,[15] U.S. News & World Report,[16] and many others and spoke at many industry conferences.[17] [18] Despite being young, Bierman was able to see the potential in the cannabis industry’s future, making him a sought after expert for thought leadership.[19] He also penned opinion articles on the cannabis industry for multiple outlets, as well as blogged with HuffPost.[20]

Over the next decade, Bierman grew MedMen to five states,[21] with a total of 33 retail stores,[22] and over 1,500 employees. It also became a publicly traded company[23] with a $2 billion market cap. In January of 2020, Bierman agreed to step down[24] from his role as CEO of MedMen to assume a more strategic board position, a move which the courts would later find was fraudulently induced by the Board.

PharmaCann Acquisition

In late 2018, MedMen signed a deal[25] to acquire PharmaCann for $682 million, the largest acquisition in U.S. cannabis history. Bill Barr and the Department of Justice opposed the deal and due to the dirty politics[26], the merger was terminated[27] in October of 2019.

Venture Funding and Capital Raises

Bierman was able to secure millions in venture funding for MedMen. In April of 2016, Cap-Meridian Ventures invested $15 million dollars.[28] Two months later, Bierman launched Opportunity Fund I, which raised $60 million in 9 months.[29] The following year, Opportunity Fund II launched, securing $75 million in 6 months.[30]

Bierman continued to pursue investments into MedMen in 2018. In February, a $38 million private investment closed. In October, Bierman secured a loan for $94 million,[31] one of the first true senior secured loans in cannabis. A few days later, the loan increased to $100 million.[32]

In March of 2019, Bierman helped MedMen secure a $250 million investment deal with Gotham Green Partners,[33] which raised an additional $30 million in July.[34] In December, Wicklow Partner also invested an additional $27 million.[35]

Successful Legal Battles

Bierman was the target of several allegations, ranging from mismanagement of money to personal biases. Most of these allegations arose out of a lawsuit in 2019 from former MedMen CFO Parker,[36] of which the jury found no proof, and ruled in favor of MedMen and Adam Bierman.[37] In regards to this lawsuit, Bierman stated, “He clearly threw anything he could fabricate against the wall to see if it would stick. The problem is, as the jury found, none of it was true. They did however agree with James Parker’s assessment of the suit when he himself called it “silly”.

In January of 2019, Bierman and Modlin were subjects of a lawsuit from a shareholder entity in MedMen, claiming breach of fiduciary duty.[38] The lawsuit was dismissed in June of the same year.[39]

In 2022, Bierman was awarded a $3 million total in his lawsuit against MedMen for wrongful termination.

Bierman Today

Today, Bierman is working on new consulting projects with global cannabis companies.[40][41]

References

  1. ↑ "Debra Borchardt, Green Market Report Interviews Medmen's Adam Bierman". Cannabis Law Report. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  2. ↑ Schreckinger, Ben; Zhang, Mona. "Lavish Parties, Greedy Pols and Panic Rooms: How the 'Apple of Pot' Collapsed". Politico. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  3. ↑ Lee, Shawn. "The City of Palm Springs Hires XTS Global to Boost Tourism in a Down Market". IT Wire. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
  4. ↑ Bierman, Adam. "Sex Sells - The Value of Testosterone Driven Marketing that has flooded our Media". Blogspot. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
  5. ↑ Staff, Green Entrepreuneur. "Listen: MedMen's Adam Bierman on Building the Apple Store of Weed". News Times. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  6. ↑ Sacirbey, Omar. "No Apologies". MJBiz Daily. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
  7. ↑ "Modman is making a splash in the food service industry". Food & Beverage 101. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
  8. ↑ "1st Medical Marijuana Applications Due In Mass". WBUR. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
  9. ↑ "MMMG LLC". Bloomberg.
  10. ↑ "The MedMen Announce the Formation of Monthly Medical Cannabis Work Group and Discussions in Nevada". Business Wire. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
  11. ↑ Gurdus, Lizzy. "CEO of US marijuana company MedMen says Oregon, Colorado are 'horrible markets' to be in". CNBC. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  12. ↑ "MedMen Has a Great Opportunity to Maximize Margins, CEO Says". Bloomberg News. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  13. ↑ Hasse, Javier. "MedMen's CEO Responds To South Park's Brutal Parody: 'Humbled To Be Considered The Most Culturally Relevant Cannabis Brand'". Forbes. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  14. ↑ Gray, Eliza. "Dope Dreams". Time. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  15. ↑ Koren, James Rufus. "Must Reads: L.A. pot retailer MedMen has 12 shops, a $1.6-billion valuation and, coming soon, Canadian stock". LA Times. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  16. ↑ Chmielewski, Dawn. "Pot is Golden in California". US News & World Report. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  17. ↑ "MedMen Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer Adam Bierman to Present at the 31st Annual ROTH Conference". Financial Post. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
  18. ↑ "SXSW 2019 to Feature MedMen Co-Founder & CEO Adam Bierman". Business Wire. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
  19. ↑ Bierman, Adam. "Marijuana Entrepreneur: When a Market Doesn't Exist, Create Your Own". Fortune. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
  20. ↑ "Adam Bierman". HuffPost.
  21. ↑ Waters, TaMaryn. "MedMen Enterprises medical marijuana dispensary opens in Midtown". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  22. ↑ Mathis, Katie Brune. "MedMen plans locations in Five Points, Jacksonville Beach". Jacksonville Daily Record. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  23. ↑ "MedMen, Largest U.S. Cannabis Company, Begins Trading on the Canadian Securities Exchange May 29th Under Ticker Symbol "MMEN"". Business Wire. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  24. ↑ Ward, Andrew. "Adam Bierman Steps Down As MedMen CEO, Stock Trades Higher". Benzinga.
  25. ↑ Berke, Jeremy. "High-end marijuana retailer MedMen just spent $682 million on the largest US cannabis acquisition in history". Business Insider. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  26. ↑ "Attorney General Barr ordered cannabis merger investigation over staff objections, US DOJ whistleblower says". Mlex Market Insight. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  27. ↑ Amore, Samson. "MedMen Terminates PharmaCann Purchase, CFO". LA Business Journal.
  28. ↑ "MedMen Closes Strategic and Financial Deal With Global VC Group Cap-Meridian Ventures". PR Newswire.
  29. ↑ Chen, I-Chun. "Medmen Raises Additional $60 Million for Legal Marijuana Investment Fund". L.A. Business First. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  30. ↑ Kaufman, Karl. "How To Build A Marijuana Unicorn: An Interview With MedMen Spokesman Daniel Yi". Forbes. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  31. ↑ "MedMen Raises $94 Million with Senior Secured Term Loan at 7.5%". New Cannabis Ventures. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  32. ↑ "MedMen Increases Term Loan Facility to C$100 Million". Business Wire. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  33. ↑ "MedMen Announces US$250 Million Investment From Gotham Green Partners". Business Wire. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  34. ↑ Kilgore, Tomi. "Medmen receives additional $30 million equity investment led by Gotham Green Partners". Market Watch. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  35. ↑ "MedMen Raises $27 Million at US$0.43 as Creditors to Receive Higher Interest Rates". New Cannabis Ventures. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
  36. ↑ Peltz, James F. "Fast-growing pot seller MedMen faces lawsuit by former insider". LA Times. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  37. ↑ Borchardt, Debra. "MedMen Wins Case Against Former CFO James Parker". Green Market Report. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  38. ↑ Staff. "Marijuana firm MedMen, top execs face $20 million suit for allegedly breaching duties, enriching selves". MJBiz Daily. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  39. ↑ "Litigious Investors Dismiss Faulty Court Action Against MedMen". Bloomberg. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  40. ↑ "Adam Bierman". LinkedIn. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
  41. ↑ "Red Workshop". Red Workshop. Retrieved 15 March 2023.

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