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Good Leadership is Everything
NEA brings together a leadership team with deep business and cannabis knowledge and experience.
Chris Harkins Founder & CEO
NEA’s Founder and CEO, Chris Harkins works closely with state and local governments and oversees the acquisition of all real estate and directs the design, planning, and construction of all facilities. He has extensive experience in Real Estate Development and Private Equity. Chris worked for over 20 years as the founder and CEO of a real estate development company serving the Southern New England markets. Chris was a founding principal in a private equity business with assets under management over 30 million dollars. He has a diverse skill set and experience and sets the tone for the overall business vision, values, and leadership of the team. He has his undergraduate degree from the University of Massachusetts.
Kyle Bishop COO/CMO
NEA’s COO/CMO Kyle oversees our cultivation operation and manages branding and marketing for the company. Kyle is the creator and brand manager of Cannatini, Double Baked, Sweet Spot, Farm to Fam, NEA, and Sapúra. Kyle and his team won their first award from High Times in the 2011 Cannabis Cup in the Sativa category. Kyle has managed large scale operations since 2010 and has designed, built, furnished, and trained staff for the renowned 200,000 SQ FT warehouse “The Mother Ship” at Native Roots from 2014-2017. Kyle has won 47 Cannabis Awards including many High Times Cannabis Cups from 2010-2021 for both cultivation and extracts. He has consulted for many large companies on grow design, staffing strategies, and successful management focusing on scalability. He graduated from Fort Lewis College in 2009 with a focus on Ethnobotany and Finance.
Zac Cooper CPO
A distinguished leader within the cannabis industry with over 12 years of cannabis cultivation expertise, Zac Cooper, is NEA’s CPO and helps manage and supervise the creation of new products. Zac has gained unparalleled experience from the ground up, managing small grow operations, to large scale commercial cultivation, managing 200,000 SQ FT with over 80 growers in 2014. Zac has overseen the successful cultivation of over 30,000+ pounds of high-quality flower in CO. From 2014 to 2017, Zac served as Director of Operations for Native Roots’ cultivation facility, excelling in the development and standardization of SOPs for cultivation, IPM, facilities operation, instrument use, and compliance. Native Roots was awarded numerous awards during this time,including Top 100 Best Workplaces in CO two years in a row (2016-2017). He holds a BA in Psychology with a minor in business.
Rich Rosier Co-Founder & CFO
Rich Rosier serves as NEA’s CFO. A leadership expert, Rich has advised and coached leaders and executive teams from around the globe to enhance their leadership effectiveness and overall business results. His leadership experience includes P&L responsibility for multiple business units as well as global sales and marketing. His areas of expertise include finance, strategy, leading change, innovation and sales and marketing as well as identifying top talent and building high-performance cultures. He is the author of multiple books and articles including the Sloan Management Review article, “Leading in Unnerving Times” with Warren Bennis. He holds a BA in History from the University of Michigan.
Grant Troeger VP of Retail & Wholesale
NEA’s VP of Retail & Wholesale, Grant Troeger, is responsible for the strategic vision and expansion of the company’s operations. Grant’s priorities are building high-performing teams, driving revenue through innovative customer experiences and products, and executing expansion initiatives. He has 12 years of retail cannabis experience stemming from the Colorado, Massachusetts, Michigan, and Canadian markets. Grant was previously the Director of Retail at Native Roots Dispensary. He oversaw 20 retail locations in Colorado while supporting expansion for 4 new locations in Manitoba, Canada. Under his leadership, Native Roots was awarded “Best Dispensary” in the medical and recreational categories for 4 consecutive years, 2014-2018. He attended Endicott College in Beverly, MA, and the Metropolitan State University of Denver for Business Management.
