“Porn King” Fabian Thylmann, the founder of numerous adult websites, is financially backing a German cannabis startup founded in 2017. Initially, Thylmann invested a six-figure sum, but by the end of 2017, his investment company SN Invest poured at least a million into the Cologne-based Cannamedical, company CEO David Henn told Marijuana.com.
In November 2016, just two months before the German Bundestag decided to legalize cannabis for medical purposes, Henn founded Cannamedical. Today, Cannamedical has 20 employees and is looking to fill 10 open positions for 2018.
Thylmann made his first millions with websites like Youporn and Pornhub and founded the Manwin group (now MindGeek), which he sold in 2013. Shortly before selling Manwin, Thylmann was charged with a tax offense in Germany which was resolved in December 2016 after a payment of several million euros.
“The medical cannabis business has similar financing issues as I had in the past. It is a very profitable business but few banks and funds today are comfortable with it globally. My old network puts me in a unique position to help companies in this field move forward more than others, and I have no fear investing in businesses I believe are beneficial for mankind, as long as they are legal. Cannamedical is one of the very few companies with a permit to distribute in Germany. They are in a unique position in a very strong market and are very well set up for unprecedented growth. Who is better positioned than a German company with German principles and accuracy?” Thylmann said in an exclusive interview with Marijuana.com.
Henn expects sales to increase by tenfold in 2018
For months, Cannamedical has been able to import cannabis into Germany for medical purposes. During the past year, the youngest of the four cannabis import companies was able to sell 300 kilograms of cannabis to German Pharmacies to the tune of 2.2 million euros (2.4 million U.S. dollars).
Cannamedical is currently sourcing all products from the Netherlands, but this will soon change. In the near future, a Canadian licensed producer is expected to help support the company’s projected demand of 250 kilograms of cannabis per month, providing Cannamedical the supply needed to increase sales tenfold.
Henn has received a great deal of cooperation request from potential growers abroad, and strangely enough, a large number of requests came from the small country of Lesotho. But Henn believes the high European production standards would be difficult if not impossible to meet in the kingdom that’s encircled by South Africa.
After Cannamedical had received numerous rejections by potential investors in early 2017, the prominent Youporn founder and Playboy TV operator offered to finance the young company. “Thylmann is a strong, independent partner who invests from his own assets, not relying on funding bodies’ approval. By the time the media began to report regularly on the law passed in March, potential investors were still being scared off by the word cannabis. We were among the classic three exclusion categories of alcohol, drugs, and sex,” said Henn. “That’s why we were lucky to find investors even before the legitimacy of medical cannabis was widely accepted.”
Now that the die has been cast for the company, the investors have started lining up. “Since the potential of cannabis became more popular due to numerous media reports, many potential investors have expressed interest — just nine months too late.”
credit:marijuana.com