Jay Czarkowski

Jay Czarkowski’s impact on the cannabis industry is undeniable and stretches back to his building one of the first vertical operations in Colorado in 2009. Since then, Jay’s work as an entrepreneur, investor, and advocate can be seen across the US and beyond. His flawless reputation and broad influence have seated Jay as a household name in the industry as a connector of people and a connector of capital.

Jay approaches building the cannabis industry with a keen sense for seeing the trends, seeing the opportunities, and seeing the path to success. Above all, Jay operates with his knowing that this success is, ultimately, built on relationships and his values of integrity, hard work, loyalty.

As Canna Advisors’ founding partner, Jay’s work started with winning multiple licenses in Connecticut in 2014 for Client #1 who later sold their business for $80 million. Through Jay’s vision, influence, and building a world-class team of experts, Canna Advisors has grown to winning licenses and helping build cannabis businesses in 36 states and internationally, and leading additional clients to lucrative exits.

Under Jay’s leadership, Canna Advisors has built a massive, loyal client base and positioned them for success while building a number of MSOs and creating billions of dollars of industry wealth along the way. Jay’s entrepreneurial spark and ability to read trends ahead of the curve also led to the creation of H2 Talent in 2018 as the first cannabis recruiting firm to solely focus on executive level talent.

As a cannabis investor, Jay holds business interests in 25 states  – including iconic industry brands – and internationally. Jay and his investment partners, through their private equity firm Trailhead, see investing as more than a money game and provide the added value of strategic advice and access to Jay’s deep industry connections and network of resources.

Jay has played central founding and leadership roles in premier industry organizations such as Arcview, NCIA, and SSDP and has been awarded top accolades from many of these groups. Jay’s impact on legalization campaigns across the U.S. is lasting – from Amendment 64 in Colorado to Florida for Care to the Northeast markets and the Midwest. Jay is known as a tireless advocate and financial contributor for ballot initiatives and for influencing state and local legislative legalization efforts.

In this current phase of industry development, Jay spends his time on the ground working with influencers and making connections with attorneys, lobbyists, and money people in key markets. As a trusted authority and lively speaker, Jay often speaks at industry events and serves as a trusted source for journalists and as a mentor to other industry insiders. His immediate focus is on providing retail advisory, sales advisory, and mergers & acquisitions guidance to address issues and needs of existing cannabis industry operators.



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