Our Story

World-renowned tea sommelier, Richard Guzauskas is the Director of Tea Product Development at Olli and one of the most sought-after tea specialists in the world. Richard curates Olli’s cannabis-infused teas creating unique and refreshing blends. Richard entered the specialty tea industry in 1988 by launching the Leaves Pure Tea brand and after selling that brand, Richard began working with DAVIDsTEA in its earliest stages and has remained Head of Blend Development since 2008.

Award-winning and Michelin-starred restaurant-trained chef Adrian Niman is the Executive Chef of Olli, creator of the premium, high-quality edibles in Olli’s product roster and brings his expertise and flair for the extraordinary to create its unique and healthy flavours. In addition to Olli, Adrian is the owner and Executive Chef of The Food Dudes, and studied at the Michelin-starred Reeds Hotel in Mallorca, Spain where he perfected his craft before moving back to Toronto to open and operate prominent restaurants Rasa, Pantry, Clay and Sara.

Tess has been immersed in the Canadian cannabis industry since early 2017. She has been working with the co-founders of Olli since the beginning, developing partnerships, managing cannabis licensing activities and working closely on the regulatory side for both food and cannabis. She is currently working through her MBA at the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. Prior to Olli, Tess spent three years in the hospitality industry, managing and operating one of the top restaurants in Toronto, Rasa, for three years, sitting in the seat next to the founders. Tess has worked in various industries over the years in addition to hospitality including media, marketing and operations. She has her Bachelor of Commerce degree from the DeGroote School of Business at McMaster University and has also attended the Aarhus School of Business in Denmark.

Rafael brings over ten years of experience as a plant manager, overseeing all of the organizations daily manufacturing operations, and production practices ensuring that the facility is running safely and efficiently. Rafael has worked in several industries across the board including baked goods, meat processing and ready-to-eat products, which has given him an extensive understanding of manufacturing processes and regulatory standards such as BRC, CFIA, FDA and SQF. With a Bachelor’s Degree in Industrial Engineering and a Post- Graduate Diploma in International Business, Rafael brings his knowledge and expertise to the Olli facility and ensures that all day-to-day operations are running smoothly.

Matt is no stranger to the restaurant industry. He’s been an integral asset to Food Dudes restaurant and catering company best known for their award-winning restaurants Rasa and Pantry. In the past decade, Matt has honed his skills working alongside noteworthy chefs and restaurateurs to become a master in management, logistics, and customer relations. Not only is he seasoned when it comes to experience, but he also comes armed with a Business Commerce Degree from Dalhousie University, making Matt a natural fit for the role of Head of Logistics. Led by his passion and love for the cannabis industry, Matt is eager to introduce cannabis edibles to the restaurant world. His meticulous nature is in full force when it comes to food detail, and his high-standards are consistently met from kitchen conception to final plate presentation. Food and safety protocol are top priority. Neither taste nor safeties are sacrificed under his watch. Matt’s love for both cannabis and food are reflected in the Olli cuisine and is sure to leave a lasting impression.

As the Product Development Manager for Olli, Klaudia combines her education and expertise from both the food and cannabis industries to create retail ready products. Working with R&D, production, and the culinary team, Klaudia ensures that products meet consumer needs especially when considering palatability, efficacy, and safety. Klaudia brings a range of perspectives from several roles including ingredient application, CPG commercialization, biotechnology innovation, and cannabis product development. Klaudia holds a Bachelor of Science in Food Science from The University of Guelph, as well as a Master of Science in Food Innovation Management from Maastricht University in The Netherlands.

Emerald is a recent graduate from the University of Guelph and holds a B.Sc in Food Science. Emerald has worked in the food industry for over a year and has previous product development and sensory experience. Here at Olli, Emerald contributes to the research and development of edible formulations.

Patrick is an uprising self-starter, and is trained formally in the Fine Arts. After spending his early career as an art educator and artist, he then made a switch-over to the hospitality industry. He worked his way up through the Food Dudes front-of-house roster to become an Event Chef with time spent at Clay Restaurant. Patrick now works as the Production Assistant at Olli diligently working behind the scenes to ensure all facility productions run smoothly and efficiently.

Here at Olli, Cory oversees the development and implementation of quality management systems in support of safe food manufacturing and cannabis processing. Prior to his involvement in Quality Assurance, Cory was responsible for facilitating regulatory compliance surrounding GMP site licensing and natural health product applications. His commitment to high-quality health & food products stems from an academic background in Nutritional and Nutraceutical Sciences at the University of Guelph (B.Sc. Honours) alongside a master’s thesis (M.Sc.) with the department of Biochemistry & Chemistry at the University of Windsor. As a graduate student, Cory’s focus was the scientific validation of naturally occurring compounds derived from plants and their efficacy in treating various diseases such as cancer. His work specific to the treatment of Hodgkin’s and Non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas now appears in a multidisciplinary medical journal.

Iren has been working with Olli since 2018 in developing the Quality Manual, to be compliant with Health Canada’s requirements for the issuance of Olli’s Processing License. Iren has extensive experience as a chemistry analytical technician and Quality Assurance technician and has a B.SC in Analytical Chemistry from Carleton University.

Jenitta recently obtained her MSc at the University of Guelph for Food Safety & Quality Assurance. Jenitta has been working in the sauce industry for the past 5 years as a QA Coordinator. With her past experience in working a manufacturing plant, she brings with her knowledge of implementing quality assurance programs, assisting with audits, and creating policies. Currently at Olli Brands, Jenitta will be assisting in developing and implementing of quality programs.

Sophia brings over six years of experience in marketing as a brand owner to our team. Her passion for marketing began at Concordia University, where she was the marketing lead for a real estate association. She’s acquired strong brand management expertise by working for top-tier companies such as Coca-Cola & General Mills, holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Finance from Concordia University, and is currently enrolled part-time in the University of Toronto’s MBA program. She works alongside Olli’s co-founder Sarah Gillin to implement and execute all of our marketing and sales initiatives as well as our public relations outreach.

Graduating from McMaster University with a B.Sc. in Medical and Health Physics, Tina has applied that expertise while working in the food industry over the past 15 years. She has experience in a wide range of food industry sectors, from ingredient manufacturing to consumer retail products, and has held a variety of key roles overseeing Regulatory, Quality Control & Assurance, Research & Development, and Operations departments. Tina started her career from the operation floor, leading her to develop a sharp understanding of the manufacturing process and an extensive knowledge of various regulatory requirements, including CFIA, FDA, SQF, Organic, Gluten-Free, and BRC qualifications. She’s also been an integral part of several startup companies, with her most recent role prior to joining us focused on launching 2.0 Cannabis products.

Kevin brings over 10 years of sales and marketing experience to his role as Business Development Manager at Olli Brands Inc. With a background rooted in CPG and beverage alcohol sales, he later transitioned into nutraceuticals, where he co-founded a successful sports supplement company. Working closely with our marketing department, Kevin leverages his experience in sales and brand management to oversee and support all sales aspects of our business, from commercialization to our partner and agency relationships. A dedicated team member, he is passionate and enthusiastic about the cannabis industry and building the Olli brand.  He has a Bachelor of Commerce Degree from the University of Guelph.

With over seven years of experience in the finance industry, Charun brings an expertise in accounting and transaction advisory to the team, with additional experience in food manufacturing and investment, tax, and audit-planning. An integral part of the Finance team at OBi, Charun oversees the development and management of all our accounting processes, ensuring we report the most accurate numbers and adhere to the highest accounting standards.

Bassam credits the diverse field of production management for providing numerous learning opportunities throughout his career before joining Olli as a Production Shift Supervisor. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology, majoring in Microbiology, and has over eight years of experience working in both the food and cosmetics industries, where he’s undertaken a variety of professional responsibilities to ensure the highest quality of production. Bassam’s professional training includes courses in allergen cleaning, HACCP system development and implementation, investigation of accidents & incidents, GMP, health & safety, and vendor operating standards. He holds professional certifications in OSG, supervisor health and safety awareness, and WHMIS2015 (AIX safety).