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The basics:
ROOTS program helps small cannabis businesses in NJ, Mass. prep for corporate supply chains
Program offers mentorship, finance coaching, self-paced curriculum
Participants can pitch businesses to potential buyers, partners
Developed with NuProject to support social equity, BIPOC-owned cannabis businesses
Ascend Wellness Holdings Inc. is launching a new six-month program designed to help small cannabis businesses in New Jersey and Massachusetts prepare to work with large corporate supply chains.
ROOTS – Readying Opportunities for Operational & Trade Sustainability – seeks to help businesses improve financial processes and systems, strengthen leadership practices and prepare for enterprise procurement opportunities within competitive cannabis markets. Ascend developed the course in partnership with nonprofit NuProject.
According to the multistate operator, participants will have access to mentors, a self-paced curriculum and subject matter experts. Instructors will provide valuable finance and accounting services to improve cash flow and financial mastery crucial for business stability. The program concludes with an opportunity for participants to present their businesses and growth strategies to potential buyers and partners connected to Ascend’s supply chain network, the company said.
According to an Ascend spokesperson, it will offer ROOTS only in the legalized markets of New Jersey and Massachusetts, for now.
Deep impact
NuProject CEO Jeanette Ward shared, “Securing procurement contracts with large customers is an important growth and stability goal for burgeoning companies, but one that can be challenging without connections to decision-makers or knowledge of necessary requirements.”
“NuProject helps founders land their ‘big fish’ clients, and we are thrilled to have a partnership with Ascend that provides the resources to build up a cohort of founders with the skills and preparation needed to be successfully positioned for growth,” she said.
Oregon-based NuProject focuses on supporting cannabis entrepreneurs from historically disadvantaged communities. It launched in 2018.
To advance its mission of building generational wealth for Black, Indigenous and other people of color disproportionately impacted by cannabis criminalization, NuProject provides grants, low-interest loans, training and mentorship. It aims to help small cannabis businesses start, grow and access larger opportunities.
In New Jersey, Ascend Wellness Holdings also runs a Franklin-based cultivation and processing facility, in addition to its local retail stores. – PROVIDED BY ASCEND WELLNESS HOLDINGS
NuProject works to support cannabis entrepreneurs through capital access and business coaching. To date, that includes more than 5,000 hours of coaching and $4.9 million deployed through mission-based lending.
ROOTS builds on Ascend’s ongoing social equity efforts. Since the 2024 launch of its CO-LAB for Social Equity, the MSO has conducted over 60 expungement clinics nationally. Additionally, it’s donated nearly $2 million to grassroots organizations as well as supported over 150 Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) businesses.
Ascend Vice President of Social Equity Danielle Drummond said, “Sponsoring ROOTS is the continuation of Ascend CO-LAB’s commitment to creating a stronger and more equitable cannabis industry. We are looking to deepen our impact and build on our partnerships. Creating strong relationships between large and small businesses is the way our industry thrives.”
The MSO’s footprint covers nearly 50 dispensaries across seven states. Ascend has four sites in New Jersey: Fort Lee, Little Falls, Rochelle Park and Wharton.
