Canopy Rivers Inc. , a Toronto-based venture capital firm specializing in cannabis, has further bolstered its Strategic Advisory Board, adding Thirty Five Ventures, the business owned by NBA star Kevin Durant and sports business executive Rich Kleiman.
 

Thirty Five Ventures will collaborate with Canopy Rivers as it continues to strengthen its global portfolio of leading cannabis companies and pursue its global growth strategy. Canopy Rivers will also look to co-invest with Thirty Five Ventures on cannabis-related deals, leveraging the group’s experience in brand development, marketing, and the sports and entertainment industry.

Since its inception, Thirty Five Ventures has invested in a number of exciting tech companies, including Silicon Valley success stories Lime, Ember, Postmates, Coinbase, and Robinhood. Additionally, Thirty Five Ventures’ media arm produces The Boardroom, an ESPN+ show leveraging Durant and Kleiman’s knowledge of the business of sports.

“We’re thrilled to have Thirty Five Ventures join the Canopy Rivers team,” said Narbé Alexandrian, President & CEO, Canopy Rivers. “Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman have built an incredible brand worldwide, investing in and growing some of the cannabis and tech industry’s hottest companies. We’re excited to combine our venture capital knowledge and cannabis domain expertise, and we believe that this partnership will drive success for our portfolio as we continue to grow it in the years ahead.”

“We’ve recognized that Canopy Rivers has taken a data-backed approach to map out forward-looking opportunities in the industry,” said Rich Kleiman, Partner, Thirty Five Ventures. “We are looking forward to joining the Advisory Board, and helping to align with some of the most disruptive founders in the space.”

Canopy Rivers launched the Advisory Board in September 2019. In its role as a consultant on the Advisory Board, Thirty Five joins Canadian Council of Innovators’ and founder of OMERS Ventures John Ruffolo, Imperial Brands PLC’s former co-head of M&A Meg Lovell, former Campbell Canada president Philip Donne, and Breakthru Beverage Canada’s regional president Julian Burzynski.