Keith McCarty, founder of the well-funded pot delivery startup Eaze, is stepping down from his position as CEO.
Instead, the startup’s chief product and technology officer Jim Patterson will take on the role and McCarty will remain on the board of directors “as a strategic advisor on company growth,” says a blog post on the site announcing the change of roles.
McCarty enjoyed previous success as the fourth employee at Yammer (which sold to Microsoft for just over $1 billion) before founding Eaze; his pot delivery startup was one of the first to raise venture capital. The company now claims to serve hundreds of thousands of patients seeking relief through medical-grade marijuana.
McCarty and Patterson worked together at Yammer, where Patterson was the chief product officer and McCarty recruited Patterson in May to help him define Eaze’s company roadmap as it grew.
But it seems an odd time for McCarty to step out of the role. Many states have started to relax on medical and recreational pot use and Eaze recently raised $13 million in Series B funding to help it get into new markets.
Recreational use of marijuana is now legal in eight states and the District of Columbia. California, which holds the lion’s share of Eaze’s customer base and the industry as a whole, just legalized the recreational use of the drug and marijuana is expected to bring in close to $1 billion in state tax revenue by the end of the year in Colorado, where it has also been legalized for recreational use.
However, according to Eaze, Patterson is the guy for the next phase of growth.
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“Jim has a proven track record of building innovative technology products and has an acute understanding of the cannabis industry,” read a company statement. “His management background and technology expertise make him uniquely positioned to lead Eaze during a period of rapid industry growth. As our company expands, Jim has the experience to lead us through our next chapter, and we cannot wait to see where he takes us next.”
