Former Whole Foods co-CEO Walter Robb is doubling down on cannabis.

The natural foods industry veteran will serve as retail advisor to e-commerce company Jane Technologies, bringing with him decades of experience in natural and organic foods — an industry he says felt similar in its early days to the cannabis industry now.

"The natural food business … at the beginning it was very small — just a few players on the fringe. It took a long time to gain acceptance to get the mainstream shopper. And now natural and organic foods, everybody's talking about them," Robb said. "It's a parallel with [the cannabis industry] that's [in its] early days. It's finding its way."

In his role as retail advisor, Robb will guide Jane Technologies' executives in forging strategic partnerships, crafting data-driven e-commerce solutions, and scaling their online cannabis marketplace iheartjane.com or I Heart Jane. Jane Technologies co-founder and CEO Socrates Rosenfeld said he's grateful to have someone to turn to with strategic, big picture questions, and who has a tremendous track record with e-commerce, technology, and fostering a healthy company culture.

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