LOS ANGELES, CA, April 25, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PRESS RELEASE -- The founder of Verdant Distribution, Brian Blatz, has announced that beverage distribution professional Nick Rinella was named chief operating officer of Verdant Distribution, according to a press release. Despite Rinella’s family legacy as a Midwestern beverage distributor for over 60 years with clients such as Anheuser-Busch and Dr. Pepper/Snapple, Rinella left his position running the Rinella Company with his father to enter the cannabis industry as Verdant Distribution’s COO.
Rinella said, “After analyzing the size and scope of the national market for cannabis products and long discussions with my family, including my grandfather who founded the Rinella Company, I knew it was the chance of a lifetime. Not to mention, working alongside Brian Blatz is an honor; he was instrumental in drafting and passing the state cannabis distribution law and regulations as part of a coalition that included labor, law enforcement and local government. In addition, Brian has been working in the cannabis industry for years researching, analyzing, and most importantly, networking with industry leaders.” Rinella continued, “The cannabis industry is maturing in ways identical to the beverage industry, which allows us to apply the procedures developed by my family over several generations. Verdant will use those same techniques and programs to capture market share for our brand clients in the emerging cannabis industry.”
When asked about the addition of Rinella to the team and adding over six decades of beverage distribution experience to the cannabis industry, Blatz said, “It’s a game-changer. I founded Verdant Distribution specifically to operate as an independent distributor because I knew we wouldn’t have to ‘re-create the wheel’ since independent distribution is such an integral part of so many industries that are much more mature than cannabis. To be able to work with Nick and utilize the business plan honed by the Rinella Family over generations takes so much of the risk and guesswork out of execution.”
Rinella states, “California requires that licensed dispensaries only purchase cannabis and cannabis products from a licensed distributor. It is illegal for brands to sell directly to dispensaries unless they have their own distribution license. Only a licensed distributor may coordinate with a state-licensed laboratory to test all products before they may be sold to a dispensary by a licensed distributor so a brand must use a licensed distributor for state-required testing unless they have their own distribution license.” Consequently, Verdant Distribution strives to only work with licensed cannabis operators who follow state and local rules and regulations.
