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16 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | FEBRUARY 19, 2024 Rino Ferrarese in the Portland cannabis grow facility he oversees as the manager of Affinity Grow. HBJ PHOTO | SKYLER FRAZER Home Roots After helping launch CT's largest cannabis grow facility, Rino Ferrarese spearheads startup micro-cultivator requires a minimum of 15,000 square feet of grow space. Affinity Grow, which has 30 employees, made its first product delivery in October, Ferrarese said, and now sells to all of Connecticut's more than two dozen cannabis dispensaries. Glenn Noffsinger, of New Haven, is the company's qualified social equity partner, which means he owns at least 50% of the cultivation busi- ness. Ferrarese also has an equity stake in Affinity Grow. The company is a welcomed addition to the state's legal cannabis industry, which has been facing a product shortage that was exacer- bated by increased demand during the holiday season, from Thanks- giving to New Year's. Medical marijuana patients have tried to raise awareness in recent months that certain products they use as treatments haven't been as readily available as they were prior to the launch of Connecticut's recreational market in January 2023. The state Department of Consumer Protection (DCP) said it's "aware of a limited variety of certain prod- ucts, and is continuing to monitor the situation." "As a new agricultural industry, there are natural fluctuations in supply and demand," said Kaitlyn Krasselt, a DCP spokesperson. Cannabis roots Before getting into the cannabis industry, Ferrarese worked at East Hampton-based American Distilling, a botanical extractor of witch hazel for use in soaps, cleansers and other cosmetic and cleaning products. That's where he met Tom Schultz, a lawyer and investment banker who oversaw American Distilling's merger with E. Dickinson & Company. The two would eventually strike up a business relationship and co-founded CTPharma in 2013. Schultz served as CEO, and Ferra- rese was chief operating officer. Five years later, in 2018, the partners sold their business to New York invest- ment firm Tuatara Capital L.P. for an undisclosed sum, but stayed on with the company. With its private equity backing, CTPharma relocated in 2020 from Portland to a more than 200,000-square-foot facility in Rocky Hill. At the time, it was one of the largest cannabis grow operations in the country, and the largest in Connecticut. By Skyler Frazer sfrazer@hartfordbusiness.com R ino Ferrarese's cannabis career has come full circle — literally. Perhaps one of the most influen- tial executives in the short history of Connecticut's legal marijuana industry, Ferrarese co-founded Connecticut Pharmaceutical Solutions (CTPharma), one of the four original cannabis cultivators that served the medical market when it first launched in 2014. After two separate sales of CTPharma, including most recently in 2021 to Chicago-based Verano Hold- ings Corp. for an undisclosed sum, Ferrarese left the company last year. Now, the 53-year-old cannabis entrepreneur is helping lead a new startup in familiar territory. He's the manager of Affinity Grow, an equity joint venture micro-cultivator business launched by Affinity Health & Well- ness, a local cannabis company that also operates dispensaries in New Haven and Bridgeport. Affinity Grow is the state's newest marijuana producer and first active micro-cultivator that operates out of an 18,000-square-foot property in Portland, at 47 Lower Main St. It's the same location where CTPharma was founded about a decade ago, before the company relo- cated to a larger complex in Rocky Hill. Verano Holdings in 2022 sold the Portland facility, which has six flower rooms and lab space for extraction processes, to Affinity for about $4 million. "Here we are 10 years later and I'm sitting in the building where it all started," Ferrarese said. As a micro-cultivator, Affinity Grow is authorized to operate up to 10,000 square feet of grow space; a regular cultivation license in Connecticut RINO FERRARESE Manager Affinity Grow Education: Bachelor's degree in biology, UConn Age: 53 *Includes recreational and medical marijuana products | Source: CT Dept. of Consumer Protection 800K 700K 600K 500K 400K 300K 200K 100K 0 JAN '23 FEB '23 MAR '23 APR '23 MAY '23 JUN '23 JUL '23 AUG '23 SEP '23 OCT '23 NOV '23 DEC '23 CANNABIS PRODUCTS SOLD IN CT* Total number of legal cannabis products sold in CT