Over 50 Years of Regulated Cannabis Experience

The Why

The cannabis and hemp industries are far more complex, fragmented, and capital intensive than most entrepreneurs anticipate. The transition or scaling up to commercial production from a smaller clandestine and black market operations presents many challenges, process changes, HR needs, but most important opportunities. However, without proper market insight, team, and a comprehensive, well-thought-out plan; it’s much easier to lose all or part of your investment than see a return.
Catalyst brings together a team of industry experts with decades of experience and a verifiable track record of performance and several successful exits over the past 14 years, including a 9 figure transaction. Our team leverages a true passion for the plant, years of hands-on operational knowledge to help you avoid catastrophic pitfalls to guide and sherpa you through the gauntlet of funding, designing, building, and operating a profitable cannabis or hemp business; we call this “planning to win”. From aspirational to operational, Catalyst supports you when and where you need it most.

45+

Licenses secured with our help
We have helped secure 46+ licenses for cultivation, manufacturing, and retail dispensaries.

11M+ ft2

Of cultivation and production space design
Over 11 million square feet of highly efficient, productive, and sustainable cultivation and production space.

3000+

Compliant and lab-tested harvest batches produced
As owners and operators, operating under complete conformity with all local and state regulations (CO, CA, IL, MA) with zero compliance infractions or product recalls.

Meet the Catalyst BC Team

Catalyst BC brings together a team of dynamic business professionals and cannabis and hemp pioneers.

Ian Miller, CEO of Catalyst BC

Chief Executive Officer

Ian Miller is a serial entrepreneur whose professional, educational and personal experiences have helped shaped his career and positioned him as a striking leader in the cannabinoid industry. His journey to and through the cannabinoid space began with his formal education, having completed his Bachelor of Arts degree in Architectural Design, with a concentration in accounting, and went on to complete his Master of Science degree in Building Construction, both from the University of Florida.
Michael Williamson, COO of Catalyst BC

Chief Operating Officer

After nearly a decade of working for Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals, specializing in Multiple Sclerosis, Michael Williamson realized the therapeutic benefits of medical cannabinoid and relocated to Denver, Colorado to pursue a career in the cannabinoid industry. In 2008, Michael co-founded and operated Kind Love; a vertically-operated medical cannabinoid company in Colorado. Both award-winning and nationally recognized, Kind Love has been, and continues to be, celebrated for its unique and diverse cultivars as well as highly-sophisticated and as a cutting-edge medical cannabinoid center.
Leif Olsen, Chief Marketing Officer of Catalyst BC

Chief Marketing Officer

Leif Olsen is a regulated cannabis licensing, operations, and marketing expert. With a 14-year track record spanning owner, operator, and advisor roles working with plant-touching and ancillary businesses, Leif has become a seasoned and globally sought-after cannabis application & licensing specialist, operations expert, and seasoned entrepreneur. Leif began his career in the regulated cannabis industry in 2008.
Eric Forington, Chief Research Officer of Catalyst BC

Director of Genetics & Breeding

With over 20 years of cultivation experience, Eric Forington brings an immense amount of ingenuity, expertise, and passion to the Catalyst BC team in his role as Chief Research Officer. Eric has successfully bred cannabinoid producing varietals for over a decade, with over half of that time focused on developing genetics.
Andy Schnack, Operations Advisor of Catalyst BC

Operations Advisor

Andy Schnack is a cannabinoid industry professional with a vastly diverse background. In 2009, Andy graduated from the University of Alabama, where he majored in Criminal Justice and was a member of the Alabama Crimson Tide Men’s Swim Team. Swimming injuries and nerve complications led Andy to...
Laura Anderson, Operations Manager of Catalyst BC

Operations Manager

Laura Anderson began her professional career in the electronic discovery legal field, where for nearly a decade she progressed from providing project management for hundreds of internal projects to the document management of numerous cases for law firms nationwide. While seeing to the operational needs of...
Roy Cantrell, Scientific Advisor of Catalyst BC

Scientific Advisor

With almost four decades of experience as a plant breeder in both the public and private sectors, Roy Cantrell brings immense expertise and sought-after specialty to his role as Scientific Advisor at Catalyst BC. His career began on his family farm in Texas and has taken him around the world.

Testimonials

The Catalyst Team have an unprecedented work ethic and an extensive experience in vertical farming, cultivation space programming, workflow and in the optimization of the entire facility. We would strongly recommend that any company in the medical cannabis industry that wants to develop a fully controlled and optimized facility and improve the process and workers flow should consider using the services that Catalyst BC Team provided.

Ana Sofia Barros
Co-founder and Technical Responsible, CannThyrso – Portugal

On short notice, we needed someone to support us through some big decisions in the design phase of our cultivation facility. The Catalyst team has expertise in the style of cultivation that we are implementing and clearly demonstrates what success looks like at various scales. It is obvious that Catalyst is passionate about supporting their clients through any project, big or small, and ensuring their deliverables exceed expectations.

Laurel Friesen
Co-Founder, Cielo Jardin - Ohio

Contact Us

Enough about us. We want to hear more about you, your project, and your vision! Get in touch with a real live person today. Don’t worry, we don’t have a long, confusing phone menu, and your email isn’t going to the abyss, we promise. At Catalyst, we provide the service and support we’d want to experience ourselves!