LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Glass House Group, one of the most quickly expanding, privately held, vertically integrated cannabis and hemp companies, announced the appointment of two new board members: entrepreneur and active private investor Steve Ruchefsky; and co-founder of private investment firm Magu Capital Jocelyn Rosenwald. Ruchefsky and Rosenwald will leverage their combined experience across the financial, private investment, healthcare, pharmaceutical and cannabis sectors to support the company’s growth in California and other targeted markets.
“What makes Glass House Group so successful is our people,” said Glass House Group CEO Kyle Kazan. “Steve is a lawyer by training, who for the last 20 years, has been instrumental in building many successful businesses across industries and stages of development, including public companies acquired for billions by global giants. I have worked closely with Jocelyn in the private equity, real estate and cannabis sectors for years now. Both bring invaluable professional expertise that will enable us to quickly identify opportunities, remain nimble and strategically grow.”
Steve Ruchefsky
For more than two decades, Steve Ruchefsky has been an active private investor -- both as a principal and as an advisor. Through 2017, Ruchefsky served as the senior executive for the founder and chief executive officer of a multibillion-dollar hedge fund and was responsible for the initial funding of businesses and ventures such as Cougar Biotechnology Inc., which was acquired by Johnson & Johnson and Ziopharm Oncology Inc. (NASDAQ: ZIOP), among others.
Steve was an early investor in and founding director of Kite Pharma, Inc. (NASDAQ: KITE), which was acquired by Gilead Sciences in 2017 for $11.9 billion. Prior to Kite Pharma’s acquisition, Steve served on the company’s audit, compensation and nominating committees. Currently, he serves as the executive chairman of MD Solar Sciences, Inc., president and co-founder of Resilience Music Alliance LLC and Trustee of the Berklee College of Music.
“Although my career spans across sectors, it has always focused on areas where I could successfully capitalize on my commitment and passion to add strategic value and drive economic success while improving lives,” said Glass House Group Board Member Steve Ruchefsky. “When Kyle laid out his vision, I knew right away that he had a winning combination of the right business environment, opportunities, people and culture. As the company continues to scale, I look forward to continue using my experience to drive change that positively impacts people’s lives.”
Jocelyn Rosenwald
Jocelyn Rosenwald is the co-founder of private investment firm Magu Capital, a California-based venture capital fund and the Glass House Group Director of Retail.
From 2013 through 2018, Rosenwald began her work with Glass House Group CEO Kyle Kazan, serving as the director of acquisitions at Beach Front Property Management LLC, where she managed a $500 million portfolio of opportunistic real estate investments.
In 2016 as the co-founder and co-manager at Magu Capital -- the investment fund that launched the Glass House Group’s thesis -- Rosenwald began supervising the operations of four different funds focused on opportunities in the highly regulated, state-legal cannabis marketplace.
As the Glass House Group Director of Retail, Jocelyn is responsible for overseeing the company’s retail division and retail acquisitions and strategies as well as overseeing the success of loyalty programs and the executive between the company’s operations, marketing and retail teams.
Jocelyn began her career as a Teach For America Corps member in New York City. In 2011, she became a founding teacher at KIPP Star Elementary School, and then, quickly became a teacher leader. Rosenwald holds a B.A. degree from the University of Pennsylvania, M.Ed from Hunter College and MBA from UCLA Anderson School of Business.
“Glass House Group has brought together a one-of-kind portfolio that is poised for success,” said Glass House Group Board Member Jocelyn Rosenwald. “Having worked with Kyle for years now building several successful private equity funds in cannabis and real estate investment, I am confident in Kyle’s management style, work ethic and his ability to identify opportunities where others don’t readily see them. I look forward to identifying new opportunities that add value to what is already one of the strongest portfolios in the cannabis sector.”
Recently, Glass House Group announced several key members of its leadership team, including: Glass House Group CEO Kyle Kazan; Glass House Group COO Daryl Kato; Glass House Group CFO Derrek Higgins; President of Glass House Farms and Officer of the Glass House Group Graham Farrar. Additional members of Glass House Group’s leadership team are expected to be announced in the near future.
For more information and company updates, visit https://www.glasshousegroup.com.
About Glass House Group
Glass House Group is one of the most quickly expanding, privately held, vertically integrated cannabis and hemp companies. Its family of eco-friendly, community-conscious cultivation, manufacturing, brands and retail locations bring to market only the finest strains of cannabis and hemp using cutting-edge care, technologies and environmental sensibility to deliver uncompromising craft-quality strains, flower, extracts, pre-rolls, vaporizers, cartridges and apparel. As a leading brand-enabling company, celebrities, artists, athletes and influencers turn to Glass House Group to create powerful partnerships that reach new audiences and drive consumer engagement. Currently, Glass House Group is expanding its suite of companies, product lines and brands and is expected to see sizable growth throughout 2019 and beyond. For more information and company updates, visit https://www.glasshousegroup.com.
