Snoop Dogg invests in Toronto-based pot software
TORONTO — Rapper Snoop Dogg is investing in another Canadian cannabis venture as the country prepares for the legalization of marijuana by Canada Day next year.
Toronto-based Trellis, a cannabis inventory management software provider, said Thursday the weedloving rapper’s venture capital firm is leading its latest $2.48-million seed round.
Snoop Dogg’s Casa Verde Capital invests in firms that support the cannabis industry but don’t directly touch marijuana. Trellis, which has offices in Toronto and Oakland, Calif., provides what it calls a seed-to-sale inventory management platform for the cannabis industry.
The chief executive and founder of Trellis Pranav Sood says Snoop Dogg’s involvement helps to give his Toronto-based company a higher profile.
“For us, I think it just elevates the discussion and helps to boost our brand visibility,” he said.
The $2.48-million seed round also includes reinvestment from Gateway, an Oakland, Calif.-based incubator focused on cannabis companies. Trellis was part of its latest cohort of companies from April 2016 to October 2017.
Casa Verde Capital’s investment comes about a year after Tweed Inc. and parent company Canopy Growth signed a deal with Snoop Dogg.
That deal granted the Canadian marijuana producer exclusive rights to use certain content and brands owned by the rapper’s company LBC Holdings.
And in October 2016, Tweed and Snoop Dogg announced that the rapper’s Leafs By Snoop brand of cannabis would be available in Canada, exclusively to customers that registered with the Canadian producer. The companies said they would offer three Canadian Leafs By Snoop varieties - Sunset, Ocean View and Palm Tree CBD.