Debra Borchardt
MedMen Enterprises Inc. (MMNFF) said that it has completed the sale of three properties to Treehouse Real Estate Investment Trust with a net proceed of approximately $18.4 million. The properties will then be leased back to MedMen.
“These proceeds will be deployed into more accretive growth opportunities as we operationalize our national footprint,” said Adam Bierman, MedMen’s chief executive officer, and co-founder. According to an October filing, MedMen said it expected to sell additional properties to Treehouse.
The list of properties included in this sale are as follows:
- One retail storefront located on Lincoln Blvd in Venice, California;
- One retail storefront located on Robertson Blvd, the closest dispensary to Beverly Hills, California;
- One 45,000 sq. foot cultivation and production factory located in Sparks, Nevada.
Treehouse REIT
In January, MedMen announced that Treehouse has completed its first round of capital raise at $133 million and intended to partially use the funds to purchase properties from the company. Treehouse is a collaboration between MedMen and Stable Road Capital, a Venice, California based investment firm with successful track records in real estate and cannabis. Treehouse is governed by an independent board and has a management contract with MedMen to oversee day-to-day operations until Treehouse goes public, at which point management will be
internalized.
The Treehouse REIT is described as being externally managed, but it seems the two companies share several employees. The Treehouse Chief Executive Office is listed as Chris Ganan who is also the Chief Strategy Officer and a General Partner at MedMen. Treehouse’s Treasurer is Lisa Trager, who is MedMen’s general counsel. The Treehouse Chief Operating Officer is Zeeshan Hyder, who is MedMen’s Chief Corporate Development Officer. Brian Kabot the CIO of Stable Road Capital is listed as a Treehouse Director
It is expected that Treehouse’s initial sale-leaseback transactions will occur with MedMen. The company said it intends to use the proceeds from the prospective transactions to assist in funding the buildout of its national footprint. Subsequent to the initial transactions, Treehouse will have a three-year right of the first offer on
additional MedMen-owned facilities and development projects. With the launch of Treehouse, MedMen has the opportunity to significantly reduce future capital expenditures related to its retail and cultivation licenses.
Monetizing Real Estate
It isn’t uncommon for retail companies to monetize real estate assets. For example, Macy’s (M) has been selling off its real estate assets as retail sales shifted to more online transactions. Sear’s is another iconic department store that is also selling off its real estate assets in order to pay off debt.
In the cannabis industry, many companies are unable to obtain mortgages or finding willing landlords and must buy buildings outright. These buildings then become a source of capital for the company to draw upon. Typically, the buildings are sold to the highest bidder of outside parties.
