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As co-founder and former chief executive officer of popular online grocery service FreshDirect, Jason Ackerman went head-to-head with e-commerce giants like Amazon on a daily basis. Now, the Scotch Plains native is taking on a new challenge — establishing himself in New Jersey’s emerging cannabis market.
In launching Joyleaf as the first recreational dispensary in Roselle, Ackerman opened one of the 100-plus legalized storefronts that can now be found across the state.
Ackerman is no stranger to the industry. Following his 2018 departure from FreshDirect, he went on to serve as CEO and executive chairman of cannabis giant TerrAscend, a multistate operator that has nearly 40 dispensaries nationwide, including three in New Jersey (Lodi, Maplewood and Phillipsburg).
Now, he’s tapping into the expertise he gained in each sector to rethink the retail experience so that customers can engage with cannabis in a way that is both comfortable and empowering.
For Ackerman, running a cannabusiness “is not that different” from managing an e-grocery venture. “When you look at it, the merchandising, the growing practices, the product selection practices, the retail practices, knowing who your customer is, communicating to build loyalty and retention of customers is the