Green Thumb Industries

Green Thumb Industries (GTI) is one of the bright spots in the U.S. cannabis industry: a company that has managed to remain profitable while most of its competitors were burning through cash. Founded in Chicago in 2014 by Ben Kovler, GTI is also one of the industry’s most iconic companies: its founder is the heir to one of the most iconic American liquor dynasties.

Jim Beam's Heir in the Cannabis Industry

Ben Kovler grew up with a clear idea of what the end of a ban can bring. His great-grandfather, Harry Blum, led Jim Beam for 30 years after the end of Prohibition, transforming what had been clandestine moonshine into an industrial empire. Kovler, a graduate of Pomona College with a degree in philosophy, politics, and economics and an MBA from Chicago Booth, worked in private equity before voting for Proposition 215 to legalize marijuana in California in 1996—convinced that history would repeat itself.

When Illinois passed its medical cannabis law in 2013, Kovler founded GTI in 2014. His argument is simple: «History doesn’t repeat itself; it rhymes. Just as trusted brands transformed the alcohol industry after Prohibition, the same dynamics apply to cannabis.»

The Regulated Markets Strategy

While other MSOs are spreading out across California, GTI is taking the opposite approach: focusing on markets with limited licenses—Illinois, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. In these heavily regulated states, the number of operators is limited, margins are higher, and competition from the black market is less intense.

In 2015, GTI was awarded three of the 20 medical cannabis cultivation licenses in Illinois but then decided to return one, believing that two were already more than enough for a startup. This display of operational discipline set the tone for the company’s culture.

GTI went public on the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) in 2018 and trades on the U.S. OTCQX market. Its brands (RYTHM, Dogwalkers, incredibles, Beboe, Good Green) are distributed through its RISE dispensaries located in 14 states. In 2021, revenue exceeded $500 million. GTI maintains consistent adjusted operating profitability despite the tax burden imposed by Section 280E.

Among its early investors are Leon Cooperman and Snoop Dogg through Casa Verde Capital. In 2025, GTI announced a partnership with The Salt Shed concert venue in Chicago to sell THC products there, including Señorita THC margaritas.