Compliance Officer
Clint Cates was an early proponent of the legalization of cannabis in the state of Nevada, and he’s been directly involved in both the legal and commercial sides of the industry since 2013. Again and again, Mr. Cates has demonstrated his innate understanding of the vast potential in cannabis and hemp, and his work shows his clear commitment to growing the industries not just in Nevada, but across the United States and eventually throughout the world.
He was directly involved in the drafting process of the City of Reno’s Title 5 and 18 Ordinances on Medical Marijuana Establishments (MMEs), and vital sections of the Nevada Revised Statute (NRS) 453A and NAC 453A on MMEs. Mr. Cates also worked with the Governor’s Task Force and working groups for NRS 453D regarding Adult-Use Marijuana Regulations in Nevada, and is now using that insight and experience to focus on the hemp industry.
As a co-founder, Mr. Cates was instrumental in the successful building and state certification of the Cannavative Group’s 60,000-square-foot medical marijuana establishments (MME) in Reno in 2013. He drafted and submitted the group’s state MME applications, collaborated on the overall design of the vertically-integrated cultivation and production facility, managed the construction and operational setup, drafted the facility’s policies and procedures, and submitted and procured all of the pertinent city, county, and state special-use permitting and licensing. Mr. Cates sold his equity interest in the Company in 2015.
Currently, Mr. Cates serves as a partner, board member, and director of compliance for both KYND Cannabis Company & MYNT Cannabis Dispensaries. At KYND Cannabis Company in 2015, Mr. Cates was directly involved during the infant stages of operational set-up & structure, business development, compliance, licensing, product development, sales, and marketing for the company in Nevada’s medical and recreational marijuana markets. Mr. Cates also collaborated and completed the company’s $3M facility expansion and procurement of its recreational marijuana establishment licenses.
Mr. Cates was one of the co-founders of MYNT Cannabis, a dispensary that opened its first location in March of 2017. It enjoys the distinction of being the first and only dispensary in the downtown Reno entertainment district, and is positioned adjacent to a major casino and professional sports complex. MYNT was voted Best Dispensary in Reno in both 2017 and 2018. In August 2018, MYNT opened its second location in the growing North Valleys region of Reno, which has been thriving since its inception.
During the $60+ million sale process of KYND & MYNT to a Canadian public company, Mr. Cates played a vital role during negotiations, deal structuring, communications, due diligence, document management, the audit process, and the final execution. After the transition, Mr. Cates will remain as a key employee for the Canadian public company for its Nevada operations.
In 2018, Mr. Cates co-founded the company Wise Owl Team, Inc. This management company currently handles the entire executive, financial, human resources, compliance and operational oversight for MYNT Dispensaries, KYND Cannabis Company, and a few other clients. In 2018, Wise Owl Team also collaborated on a joint venture partnership with M&M Agriculture on a pilot hemp project in Douglas County, Nevada that was a huge success.
Mr. Cates has a B.S. in business administration with a marketing major from the University of Nevada, Reno. In addition to his other professional titles, he currently holds a minority partnership and advisory board role in Hygrade Gold Company. Prior to his work in the cannabis and mining industries, Mr. Cates spent three years playing professional golf and more than twelve years with Caesars Entertainment in Las Vegas, where he conducted and maintained the highest level of customer service for the VIP golf clientele of the casino’s Cascata Golf Club.