The Brains management team brings unparalleled access to unique and proven investment strategies, extensive cannabis and hemp sector expertise, and M&A experience that together help establish significant competitive advantages.
An experienced Chartered Professional Accountant with over 30 years of experience in providing personal and corporate taxation, corporate restructuring, financing, public offering and human resources management services. Kalsi is the Chief Financial Officer for Brains Bioceutical Corp., a global manufacturer of naturally-sourced active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). In this role, Kalsi is responsible for overseeing and managing the fiscal health of the group, implementing best practices with respect to finance, accounting and internal controls, obtaining funding, providing recommendations on mergers and acquisitions and working collaboratively with the CEO and Board of Directors on strategy. In addition, Kalsi will be responsible to regulatory entities and authorities, including any security exchange commissions.
Kalsi was an audit partner at KPMG focusing on small, medium and large private, government sector and public audit clients. He was the Human Resource Manager in charge of recruiting, staff development and training, and a member of KPMG’s Professional Practice Group. Subsequent to KPMG, Kalsi was the Chief Financial Officer / Chief Executive Officer of a variety of private companies including 6.5 years with a pharmaceutical fulfillment provider and API developer.
Kalsi has a proven track record in hiring top-level senior executives, restructuring companies to minimize tax and maximize cash flows, raising financing and creating a cohesive culture.
Kalsi has a passion for wellness and has created several initiatives and partnered with several leading-edge individuals to help people create and enjoy the best versions of themselves. He sees the use cannabinoids as a major tool to facilitate one’s optimum lifestyle.
With the team and infrastructure in place, Brains Bioceutical has quickly become an industry leader in both the nutraceutical and pharmaceutical cannabinoid industries, with several clinical trials and academic studies underway evaluating the efficacy of cannabinoids to treat major diseases. Under Brar’s leadership, Brains Bioceutical has already established market dominance, as it is the only company in the world to sell bulk API commercially around the world, supporting both the pharmaceutical and wellness sectors. With ambitious plans to expand Brains Bioceutical into a global biotech company specializing in cannabinoid health and wellness solutions, Brar is pioneering a new frontier in medicinal and wellness solutions across the world.
A seasoned finance executive with experience in private and public companies of varying sizes, complexity, and industries including complex, multinational companies. Jennifer has extensive experience in the pharmaceutical and biotech sector. She was the former CFO of Cardiome Pharma Corp., a European Specialty Pharmaceutical Company
Barinder brings two decades of experience as a trusted strategic advisor on public affairs, government relations, community and stakeholder engagement. Through his public and private sector work, Barinder has worked with domestic and international Governments on public policy and trade relations.
Barinder has served in various senior roles within the Government, including Director of Policy in the office of the British Columbia Premier, where he worked to ensure specific policy development aligned with the government’s broader objectives. In this role, he led a team responsible for strategic planning and cross-government coordination. As Senior Director of International Missions for the British Columbia Government, Barinder identified and led the execution of targeted international trade missions and events, ensuring missions delivered trade and investment outcomes for BC. Mr. Bhullar engaged with external parties in Canada and International Markets to encourage business to business, and business-government relationships. Barinder also served as chief of staff to the Minister of Health.
Outside of Government, Barinder was the Principal of Mainland Strategies Inc., a consultancy firm where Barinder worked with International Clients in the tech and Agtech sectors. Barinder also served as Vice President of International Affairs for a leading Health Canada licensed Canadian Cannabis Producer, leading the global market strategy for medical cannabis. In this role, Barinder worked with Governments in the UK and Brussels to provide input on Europe’s medical cannabis policy. He also sat on the Center for Medicinal Cannabis advisory boards in Europe and the UK’s Conservative Drug Policy Reform Group, sharing his expertise across the globe, including keynote and panel speaking opportunities.
William is a senior executive with broad international experience in commercial management, business development and finance in start-up and multi-national companies.
A proven leader who excels at identifying opportunities for growth and driving execution to deliver results in high-pressure environments. William has extensive experience in developing and executing profitable market strategies that create value for customers, employees and partners while delivering sustainable performance improvements across the organization.
Gurdeep Brains comes to Brains with a wealth of financial experience across industries. In his time at Brains, Gurdeep has already led the purchase of the company’s EU-GMP-certified CBD API production facility, one of just two in the world at the time. He has also led the charge on raising $10 million of financing.
Gurdeep began his foray into the cannabis sector as the CFO of Zenabis Global Inc., a leading Canadian licensed producer. During his time there, he raised over $140 million while the company was private, and led the company through a reverse takeover to have Zenabis start trading at a $1 billion market cap. Gurdeep was also CFO at OK Tire Stores Inc., Canada’s largest independent tire and auto service retailer, where he raised $34 million with 100% return in three years. Prior to his time at OK Tire, Gurdeep spent 10 years at Canaccord Genuity, where he oversaw M&A transactions totaling over USD$850 million.
When Jorja Emerson was just one year old, doctors discovered that she had a rare condition that caused intense seizures. They estimated that she wouldn’t survive intensive care. In a mission to save his daughter, Robin Emerson spoke to individuals, advocates, and political leaders around the world—and they led him to cannabis.
Given the UK’s stance on cannabis, Mr. Emerson had to become an advocate himself, fighting for his daughter’s right for a medical cannabis prescription. In 2018, his efforts were rewarded, and Jorja became the first child in the UK to be prescribed cannabis. Since then, she has been thriving: she’s playing with the family dogs, going to school, living the life of a child. And it’s all thanks to cannabis.
In light of this experience, Mr. Emerson is in the process of launching Jorja’s Botanicals, a brand of CBD products that will be his daughter’s legacy. As Mr. Emerson joins our team as Head of Corporate and Social Responsibility, and Jorja’s Botanicals becomes part of the Brains Bioceutical family, we’re further accelerating our mission to provide accessible, safe CBD products to those who need them.
Dr. Mike Bowen brings over 20 years of experience in the UK medical industry. His various roles notably include his time as senior medical officer with the Royal Navy as well as years of experience as a gynecologist at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust. He is currently a medical advisor at Precision Xstract, a leading pharmaceutical consultancy firm for drug strategy and development.
With over 40 years of experience in sports medicine, Dr. Jack Taunton is a valuable addition to the Brains advisory team. Beyond teaching sports medicine at the University of British Columbia for decades, he is also a former executive director of the World Anti-Doping Agency and the co-founder of the Allan McGavin Sports Medicine Centre.
As a licensed naturopathic physician, Dr. Sharon Gurm received her doctorate from the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine. Over the course of her career, she founded her own clinic and is currently a director at the Oncology Association of Naturopathic Physicians as well as a member of the American Society for Clinical Oncology and the Society of Integrative Oncology.
Dr. David Putrino is a physiotherapist with a PhD in neuroscience. With an educational background from Harvard and MIT, he has used his extensive skill set in roles such as the director of rehabilitation innovation at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and the chief scientific officer of Not Impossible Labs.
Dr. Gerry Ramogida has years of experience in the sports industry. He is currently the performance therapist for the Golden State Warriors, and played the same role for the Seattle Seahawks for over 15 years. His experience also includes his role as senior sports medicine advisor at ALTIS, a professional athletics training and education facility.
Norma brings a wealth of experience to the Brains team. She spent 28 years in leadership positions at Merck and eight years as a trustee at Providence Healthcare. Other key roles include her board memberships at PHEMI Systems and at GlycoNet, where she led their glycomics research network.
Dean Billington brings a wealth of experience working in the global pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on CBD. He is a consultant with a proven track record in providing comprehensive support services to all areas of the pharmaceutical, biotech and healthcare industries, all of which need to meet the exacting standards, regulations, and expectations.
Dean has held senior leadership positions at a number of companies including Calgiro Rx and Fisher Clinical Services. He was also an applied chemistry executive at GW Pharma, the UK’s leader in the development of plant-derived cannabinoid therapeutics. He holds a BSc in Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry from Huddersfield University.
Terry O’Regan is an experienced leader and strategist with a proven track record of exceeding ambitious performance goals in the USA, Europe and International. He has successfully led large teams, launched several market leaders, returned mature businesses back to growth, successfully negotiated the reimbursement of products, built franchises, defended against generic erosion of a major brand and negotiated the approval of a rare disease treatment for its full licensed indication on the NHS.
Former elected Chairperson of the ‘American Pharmaceutical Group’ to raise the profile and reputation of the Pharma-Biotech industry in the UK, including influencing Government Policy within the Life Science sector.
Rick Brar is a serial entrepreneur with unparalleled foresight into the cannabis space stemming from his years of experience within and beyond the industry. Throughout his career, he has used his business savvy to build companies from the ground up, actively contribute to the development of the Canadian cannabis industry, and uncover strategic opportunities. These experiences have given him the ability to accurately assess the cannabis market, anticipate and predict market shifts, and respond accordingly.
Rick launched his career as a sole owner of a seed-to-farm herb and nutraceutical supplier for grocers and pharmaceuticals that consistently led rankings like AC Nielsen. Over the years, he grew this operation to span 6,600 acres across eight countries in order to augment supply demand from Europe. He then entered the packaged consumer goods space, building relationships with major grocers like Loblaws, Shoppers Drugmart, Walmart, and Sobeys.
In the early 2010s, Rick saw the opportunity to transition his experience with nutraceuticals and plants to become a pioneer in the Canadian cannabis industry. In 2011, he co-founded Zenabis Global Inc., a leading Canadian licensed producer, and during his tenure helped grow the company to a market cap of close to CAD$900 million. Rick has also been an active contributor to existing regulations, having been a part of the ACPMR Stakeholder Roundtable for Bill C45.
Over the course of his career, Rick has found opportunities to actively participate in a number of committees including the US Product Marketing Association, the US Marine Hotel Association, the Canadian Produce Marketing Association, and the Loblaw’s President’s Choice Innovation Committee, which helped position President’s Choice as one of the leading brands in the world. He’s also taken his advisory skills overseas, supporting the Colombian ministry of agriculture as they built their herb and fresh flower export market.
Now, leading the helm at Brains Bioceutical, Rick is following his knowledge of the cannabis space into Europe. He has used his extensive insight and expertise to enable the company to become a leading producer of EU-GMP-certified CBD active pharmaceutical ingredient (API), establish the company’s product as Brazil’s first registered medical cannabis product, and develop a partnership with the UK’s largest vitamin distribution company.