Aleafia Health's CEO Geoffrey Benic will leave the Company, effective February 7, 2022. To succeed Benic, the Board named Tricia Symmes, previously the Company’s Chief Commercial Officer (CCO), as the Company’s new CEO.
“Geoff joined Aleafia in June 2018 at a turning point for the Company,” said Mark J. Sandler, board chair. “He brought to Aleafia Health a strong entrepreneurial background and helped the company develop its diversified indoor, greenhouse and outdoor production capabilities and its class-leading processing facilities. We wish Geoff well as he moves on to pursue other business interests.”
Symmes became Aleafia Health’s CCO in August 2020 and led the move into the branded recreation market, where the company recently entered the top 10 in the key market categories. She has extensive executive C-suite experience in the pharmaceutical, biotech, consumer-packaged, and cannabis industries in both North American and international markets. Before joining Aleafia, Symmes served as Chief Operating Officer and General Manager of multinational companies, including Alcon Canada and Novartis Pharmaceuticals, as well as General Manager at CX Industries, a wholly owned subsidiary of Entourage Health Corp. She is one of the first female CEOs in the Canadian cannabis industry.
“Tricia is exactly the right person to rise to the challenges of today’s market and lead the next phase of the company’s growth. Leveraging her 20 years of experience as a senior executive in salient industries, Aleafia has seen exponential growth in adult-use cannabis net revenue in only 6 months, while the company’s medical business has continued to move from strength-to-strength, including through the unparalleled partnership with Unifor,” said Sandler. “Her elevation to CEO is part of the natural evolution of the company and is based on her demonstrated achievements. We look forward to her continuing to improve the company’s operational efficiency, and to profitably building market share and brand recognition nationally and globally.”
Symmes holds an MBA from Charles Sturt University (Australia), and an Honours BSc in Kinesiology (Western University).
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