VANCOUVER, BC, Feb. 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ – Village Farms International, Inc. BB #:263321 today announced the appointment of Ann Gillin Lefever to the position of Executive Vice President of Corporate Affairs, reporting directly to the Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately.
In this newly created role, Ms. Gillin Lefever will be responsible for overseeing investor relations, providing guidance on strategy, growth (including potential mergers and acquisitions) and risk, and leading internal communications, as well as supporting government and public affairs.
Ms. Gillin Lefever is an accomplished business, financial and capital markets executive, who has leveraged her deep experience in equity analysis, capital markets, governance and business strategy for a successful career as an advisor to C-level and board leadership on structuring businesses to create a foundation for positive long-term operating performance, strategy and communications.
“I am thrilled to welcome Ann to the Village Farms’ executive team,” said Michael DeGiglio, CEO, Village Farms.
“Village Farms’ has had the benefit of Ann’s expertise and experience for several years as a consultant to the Company, throughout which time her counsel has been integral to our strategic planning, analysis, capital markets strategy and communication. She brings a unique and valued perspective to the team that is firmly aligned with our evolution to a vertically integrated plant-based consumer products company, focused on cannabinoids and related health products, with opportunities in North America and around the world. I look forward to her continued contribution, now as a full-time member of the Village Farms’ team.”
In addition to Village Farms, Ms. Gillin Lefever advised several other organizations on governance and financial strategies while dedicating time to her family, whom she describes as her life-mentors.
Her prior professional experience includes roles in the Equities Division management teams of Barclays Capital and Lehman Brothers, where she was Head of the Institutional Sales Team for four years. She also developed a business model, Desk-Based Analytics, that created synergies between equity traders and institutional clients and led to increased market share and profitability through innovative content.
As a Senior Equity Research analyst covering Consumer Products at both Lehman Brothers and Sanford Bernstein, Ann won many awards for ground-breaking coverage and relished a partnership with other esteemed Food, Beverage and Tobacco analysts at Lehman Brothers. Ms. Gillin Lefever holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Finance from Georgetown University and an MBA from The Wharton School. Currently, she sits on Georgetown University McDonough School’s Board of Advisors.
About Village Farms International, Inc.
Village Farms leverages decades of experience as a large-scale, Controlled Environment Agriculture-based, vertically integrated supplier for high-value, high-growth plant-based Consumer Packaged Goods opportunities, with a strong foundation as a leading fresh produce supplier to grocery and large-format retailers throughout the US and Canada, and new high-growth opportunities in the cannabis and CBD categories in North America and selected markets internationally.
In Canada, the Company’s wholly-owned Canadian subsidiary, Pure Sunfarms, is one of the single largest cannabis operations in the world, the lowest-cost greenhouse producer and one of Canada’s best-selling brands. The Company also owns 70% of Québec-based, ROSE LifeScience, a leading third-party cannabis products commercialization expert in the Province of Québec,
In the US, wholly-owned Balanced Health Botanicals is one of the leading CBD brands and e-commerce platforms in the country. Subject to compliance with all applicable US federal and state laws and stock exchange rules, Village Farms plans to enter the US high-THC cannabis market via multiple strategies, leveraging one of the largest greenhouse operations in the country (more than 5.5 million square feet in West Texas), as well as the operational and product expertise gained through Pure Sunfarms’ cannabis success in Canada.
Internationally, Village Farms is targeting selected, nascent, legal cannabis and CBD opportunities with significant medium- and long-term potential, with an initial focus on the Asia-Pacific region and Europe.
