Alexandre Lacarré is without doubt the most talked-about player in the Swiss CBD industry. His outstanding media coverage is due not only to his deadly punchlines and the talent of his PR manager Samuel Botton, but also to a commercial success that commands respect. In 2020, his company Phytocann posted a colossal turnover of ten million euros. To achieve this, the Swiss company harvests five tons of legal cannabis a year, and relies on a network of several thousand points of sale in Switzerland and France.
For those who don’t know you yet, can you introduce yourself?
Alexandre Lacarré. I’m Alexandre-Henri Lacarré, 33, the age of Christ. I’m the CEO of Phytocann, one of Europe’s biggest CBD producers, supplier to 70% of the French population and nicknamed “the legal drug baron”.
A few words about your company, Phytocann?
Phytocann is 6 wellness brands with Ivory & Easy Weed (flowers), Kanolia & Harvest Laboratoire (cosmetics and oils), Buddies & Herboristerie Alexandra (food & beverage) and Qanabox (CBD distributor).
“i’ve always been a lover of the cannabis plant and flowers”
Why the cannabis business?
And why not? Joking aside, I’ve always been a lover of the cannabis plant and flowers, even though it’s been 10 years since I last touched them. One day, in 2016, I was on vacation with my wife and child, and my lawyer called me:
“-Alex, do you know what legal cannabis is?
-What kind of bullshit are you talking about?
-It’s CBD, a THC-free cannabis flower…”.
He didn’t even have time to finish his sentence before I was already on the plane to launch Phytocann, a pioneer in this sector. And from my point of view, it was all or nothing. I wasn’t interested in 2 cannabis plants in a cupboard, I wanted to be number 1!
Did you collaborate with Vincent Faudemer?
So, if you don’t mind, let’s get down to the nitty-gritty. The collab’ with Vincent (Faudemer) concerns the Ivory brand. For this partnership, we used Vincent’s Alien X universe to create a series of collector’s pouches. Through a joint venture, we are currently developing the “Ghosty Buds” project. In simple terms, it’s weed and aliens in a new, unique universe. We’re also working on other activations more focused on web.3 and metavers.
“I wasn’t interested in growing 2 stalks of cannabis in a cupboard, I wanted to be number 1”.
What about the one you did with Booba?
For Booba, it’s the development of a unique genetics, specially created for him, which will be available on the market in seed form, the B-45. And we’re talking about Silent Seeds, a collector’s seed bank.
What do you mean?
When you want to work with number 1, you need a crack team to back it up. Silent Seeds is the return in force of Dinafem (the famous Spanish seed bank which closed its doors in September 2020). The Phoenix rises from the ashes and comes back to fuck it all up. They are the creators of Moby Dick, Critical + 2.0 and Original Amnesia.
How did this collaboration with B2O come about?
Thanks to my partner Pierre Vannineuse, a genius businessman, and our friend Abdoulaye Fadiga, one of France’s most successful Thai boxers, now a successful entrepreneur. Things were pretty straightforward with Booba, and we quickly hit it off. The teams put in an incredible amount of work to come up with the latest version of the B-45. It represents months of testing and research. We plan to present it at the various Cannabis Cup 2023 events, with Spannabis as our first stop.
Who’s next?
If I tell you, it’s more of a surprise. A lot of people have taken a liking to Phytocann. We’re building a pretty nice ecosystem. Other names will follow. We’ll probably round things off with some big events. As for the rest, we’re continuing to work, and we’ve got some shit on the grater.
“we are interested in the US market (…) for certain types of products that are attracting a lot of interest there”.
What’s the plan with Halo Collective?
We are clearly aiming for an IPO on the North American market by June 2023. Let’s see this as a mutually beneficial rapprochement. From Phytocann’s point of view, nothing changes. We retain our autonomy and decision-making power. I remain CEO of the group, of course.
Why the Halo connection?
Halo Collective is enjoying exponential growth across the Atlantic. In particular, they have accelerated their retail strategy and their ambition is to establish themselves on the European market. But codes, habits and customs are not the same here. That’s where Phytocann comes in. In the same way, the US market is of interest to us as it is to many of our competitors, particularly for certain types of product which are attracting a great deal of interest there. We draw on each other’s expertise.
“Unlike France, our authorities have simple and inexpensive equipment to differentiate CBD and THC.”
What about THC in Switzerland?
Better than in France… (laughs). What do you want me to say? The Federal Office of Health has just launched a trial on recreational cannabis use in Basel. Decriminalization is here, legalization is on the way. There have also been major advances in the medical field. Unlike France, our authorities have simple, inexpensive equipment for differentiating between CBD and THC. In short, all the lights are green on our side and things are progressing well… It’s a pity the same isn’t true in France.
What’s new at Phytocann?
We’re continuing on our merry way. Some projects are more complex than others and take a little longer, but the course is set and maintained. We’re still aiming for an IPO on the European stock market within the next few months, by the end of 2023. An IPOis generally a complex, time-consuming affair, where every possible scenario has to be considered. We leave nothing to chance. We are also in talks with one of Europe’s top pharmacy networks about in-store distribution of some of our ranges.
“We’re hiring like crazy (…) We’re raising an army”.
I see you’re in the middle of recruiting…
We’re hiring like crazy. It’s a war and we’re recruiting warriors (laughs). We’re looking for salesmen and saleswomen, preferably with CBD experience. We’re raising an army! Diploma or not, black or white, criminal record or not, we’re looking for people who want it! What matters is who you are today. The only criteria you need to check off to come to Phytocann is willingness, respect for our values and efficiency.
