Former NBA ballers Al Harrington and Allen Iverson are linking up for a new business venture. Viola, co-founded by Harrington and the only Black-owned multinational cannabis operator, entered into a multi-year partnership with The Answer that spans cannabis, product, and merchandise with Viola to create an industry-leading, scalable collaboration across product lines and markets.
The Virginia bred baller’s new deal with Viola is the first talent partnership for the purpose-driven cannabis brand. The Answer and Harrington will build among Harrington’s business initiatives and will start with a Viola strain dropping this fall.
“I’ve had a lot of people approach me with business opportunities, but this one with Al was different,” Iverson told Forbes. “After seeing how devoted he is to this business, and him educating me on how beneficial the plant is, it just felt right. I’m excited to be a part of it, together, we’re about to change the game.”
The partnership will feature a variety of cannabis and non-cannabis products, including The Iverson Collection, a series of strains that will launch across the markets in which Viola operates. The first strain will launch in California this October exclusively at Elevate and Jade Room. In addition to the Viola partnership, Iverson is also partnering with Harrington on his wellness CBD brand rePlay.
“In the same way Allen impacted the culture, we’re going to continue to impact the cannabis industry. We’re going to keep pushing boundaries. I’m honored to have Allen on board. We want to continue to inspire others and encourage people of color to participate in the cannabis space,” Harrington further commented to Forbes.
Check out Iverson and Harrington announcing their partnership below.
