Exit readiness & valuation
Understand what a sophisticated buyer is likely to value, what may reduce leverage and whether the business is ready to go to market.
Cannabis retail M&A
Built by founders who scaled and exited.
Blue Osprey helps cannabis retailers understand what their business is worth, prepare for a sale, reach the right buyers and get a transaction to close.
Since 2015Operating in Canadian cannabis
5 Retail BannersBuilt and operated in Canada
>12Recent seller-side transactions
Thinking about selling?
Your exit deserves an operator’s perspective.
A buyer is not simply acquiring revenue and EBITDA. It is acquiring leases, employees, licences, systems, inventory, customer relationships and regulatory obligations.
We have managed those details ourselves. That means we can see the business through a buyer’s eyes before those details become transaction problems.
What we do
From first conversation to closed transaction.
Practical sell-side support for cannabis retailers at every stage of an exit.
Buyer strategy & outreach
Identify the strategic buyers most likely to value the business and approach the market with discipline and confidentiality.
Transaction execution
Maintain momentum from indications of interest through negotiation, information requests and diligence.
Structure, close & transition
Help work through the details that determine whether headline value becomes realized value.
Experience
We have sat on the seller’s side of the table.
Blue Osprey is not advising cannabis entrepreneurs from a distance. Its principals have built stores, managed teams and regulators, opened the data room, negotiated transaction documents and completed an exit.
01 / 06
Tokyo Smoke
Early-stage brand building and regulatory navigation. Helped shape an emerging cannabis concept into a functioning consumer business, developing the retail experience, operating systems and guest journey while navigating an evolving pre-legalization regulatory environment.
Who we work with
You do not need to be a large chain to run a disciplined process.
01
A single-store independent wondering what the business may be worth.
02
A multi-store founder considering liquidity or an orderly exit.
03
An operator approached directly by a consolidator who wants to understand their options.
04
A regional platform that needs preparation, buyer access and transaction execution.
Principals
Operators first.
David Côté
Principal
David has leveraged experience from time SC Johnson, Accenture, and Restaurant Brands International into cannabis retail. Prior to Canadian legalization, he joined Tokyo Smoke to operationalize stores and launched the franchising platform for Canopy Growth after Tokyo Smoke was acquired. He co-founded and sold Cannabis Jacks before going on to found Northern Helm. After five years of successful operations and a series of private and public transactions, Northern Helm was exited.
Whether completing a private asset transaction or reshaping an entity's capital structure or executing a full share sale, David has a track-record of preserving shareholder value and maintaining positive relationships.
LinkedInGeoffrey DeGrasse
Principal
Geoffrey was a founding partner and early operator at Tokyo Smoke in 2015, helping build its operating model before Canadian legalization. He was closely involved in the transactions that shaped the company’s growth, including its acquisitions of Van der Pop and Maitri, the formation of Hiku Brands with Doja, and Hiku’s subsequent acquisition by Canopy Growth. He later helped build and scale Northern Helm and J. Supply, including through the 2026 sale of Northern Helm stores to High Tide.
Across these businesses, Geoffrey has focused on operating strategy, organizational design, retail performance and regulatory execution. His track record includes building high-performing teams, translating strategy into repeatable operating models, using data to improve decision-making, and developing the systems required to scale complex consumer businesses through growth, change and transactions.
LinkedInStart a conversation
Thinking about selling?
An exit often starts with a confidential, exploratory conversation. We can talk through the business, the buyer landscape and what a realistic path forward might look like.
A useful first conversation can cover:
- Is the business saleable today?
- What will buyers care about most?
- What could improve value or reduce friction?
- Who are the logical strategic buyers?