FFF Podcast Episode 22: BRAD NATTRASS, CEO OF CEA CONSTRUCTION FIRM URBAN-GRO

There is a “lot of momentum” in the European cannabis market, says Urban-Gro boss.

In the latest episode of the FFF podcast, Brad Nattrass, CEO, Urban-Gro, talks about the CEA (controlled environment agriculture)  specialist, life as a Nasdaq-listed business, and offers his insights into the future of vertical farming and the cannabis industries.

Urban-Gro provides architectural, engineering and construction services to the Controlled Environment Agriculture, industrial, and healthcare sectors.

It specialises in the CEA space but has recently diversified its business to work across other facilities.

Urban-Gro uplisted to the Nasdaq in 2021.

“Access to capital was the main reason we IPO’d in the first place,” says Nattrass, who says it also gave the business visibility.

“We listed on the Nasdaq at the perfect time, it was the height of the cannabis momentum,” he adds.

The Colorado business, which has forecasted revenues of around $90m this year and has six offices in the US and a European operation in the Netherlands, employs around 150 people.

The cannabis market has faced some challenges in the US but Nattrass earmarks Europe as a key market.

He says: “The momentum in cannabis in Europe is equivalent to what it was in the US seven years ago.”

Nattrass admits the US vertical farming market “has been tough” but is optimistic about the future, pinpointing a vision of “urban vertical farms”, located in highly populated areas bypassing the regular grocery distribution network.