Goodleaf to expand into the UK and Western Europe

Goodleaf, Africa’s largest cannabis goods retailer, is set to expand into the UK and Western Europe with its offering of premium cannabidiol (CBD) products.

The company, founded in 2018, recently announced it would merge with Lesothobased Highlands Investments, formerly Canopy Growth Africa.

Goodleaf sells products which are focused on SA’s recreational retail market. These include beverages, cosmetics and vapes. It was SA’s first commercial cannabis product seller and was launched within a year of the Constitutional Court ruling which decriminalised the personal use of cannabis.

On Friday, CEO and founder Warren Schewitz said Goodleaf’s growth had been rapid and the company was now in a position where it could sell worldclass CBD products in the largest CBD markets. He said Goodleaf was a company worth almost $50m (R742m).

This was the largest merger in the history of Africa’s CBD market, creating the biggest vertically integrated cannabis operation on the continent, with an investment in excess of $25m so far.

Highlands Investments’ shareholders own 35% of Goodleaf while Goodleaf shareholders hold the remaining 65%.

“Europe is widely considered as the biggest market in the world for cannabis exports and Prohibition Partners estimate that the European cannabis market will be worth €403.4m (R7bn) by the end of 2021,” Schewitz said.

He said that according to the research, the European cannabis market would grow at a compound annual growth rate of 67.4% from 2021 to reach €3.2bn by 2025.

The global CBD skincare market was set to surge to $959m by 2024 to represent 10% of the total global skincare market, he said. This had also attracted Goodleaf to Europe.

“Following a successful rollout in SA, Goodleaf is expanding into the UK and other carefully selected EU destinations later this year. The CBD industry is highly regulated with highly complex distribution networks. We will be adopting a very targeted approach to these new territories,” Schewitz said.

“Customers are looking for new and exciting products derived from natural and sustainable sources and cannabis continues to fit this mould. This provides our 13 product skincare range a fantastic opportunity to showcase the unique and powerful African Botanicals that have been sourced and included in every product,” he said.

Highlands Investments, which is Goodleaf’s cultivation arm and is headed by Jody Aufrichtig, is Africa’s first and largest ISO 22000 certified licensed producer.

ISO 22000 maps out what an organisation needs to do to ensure that the products it produces are safe. It covers all the processes in the value chain that affect the safety of the end product, including the management

CUSTOMERS ARE LOOKING FOR NEW PRODUCTS DERIVED FROM NATURAL SOURCES. CANNABIS FITS THIS MOULD

of systems, personnel, internal and external communication and hygiene principles.

The company has harvested 10 tonnes of cannabis for sale in international markets, according to Schewitz.

Goodleaf — which competes with the likes of JSE-listed Labat’s CannAfrica — sells a portfolio of 30 products, and has established distribution lines through retail stores including Woolworths, Pick n Pay, Spar, Checkers, Vida e Caffè and Poetry as well as through an online website.