Adam Ezra Levin

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Adam Ezra Levin
NationalityAmerican
OccupationEntrepreneur, cannabis industry executive, investor, author
Known forAcquisition and leadership of High Times, Oreva Capital, second-chance services advocacy
Websitehttps://adamlevin.wiki

Adam Ezra Levin is an American serial entrepreneur, private equity executive, investor, and cannabis industry leader based in Marina Del Rey, California. He founded and runs Oreva Capital Corp, a boutique private equity firm known for acquiring landmark media properties. Most prominently, Levin led the 2017 acquisition of High Times magazine through Oreva Capital in a deal worth roughly $70 million.[1][2] That same year, he orchestrated the acquisition of Pride Media, which publishes Out magazine, The Advocate, and related LGBT publications. In recent years, Levin has emerged as a vocal advocate on cannabis policy reform, addiction accountability, and second-chance services, drawing on his own experiences to push for meaningful change in how society approaches substance dependency.

Early Life and Education

Levin grew up in the United States and studied at The University of Arizona from 1997 to 2001. Those years shaped his trajectory. He'd go on to blend finance, entrepreneurship, and a talent for spotting undervalued media and consumer brands.

Right out of college, he founded and sold an education technology company. A formative win. That early exit taught him how to build businesses and move on from them, setting him up for bigger deals ahead.

Early in his career, Levin worked at Criterion Capital Partners and the tech company Bebo, picking up knowledge of venture capital, growth equity, and media dynamics before committing to private equity full-time.

Career

Vert Capital and Early Private Equity Work

Before launching Oreva, Levin spent five years as Managing Director at Vert Capital Corp. He handled day-to-day operations and led acquisitions across multiple sectors. His work there deepened his ability to source deals, manage portfolio companies, and handle the messy operational challenges that come with small- to mid-market business changes. Buyouts, capital restructuring, turnarounds. All of it. That foundation became the template for what he'd build next.

Founding Oreva Capital

In 2016, Levin founded Oreva Capital Corp in Los Angeles. It's a boutique private equity firm focused on direct investments in and operational improvement of privately owned small- to middle-market companies, especially in media, consumer brands, and cannabis-adjacent businesses. Oreva doesn't sit on the sidelines. It works closely with existing management teams, bringing expertise in finance, operations, marketing, and organizational development to drive growth.

Levin started Oreva because he believed certain culturally important media and consumer brands were deeply undervalued. He figured that operational improvement plus smart capital could unlock real long-term value. Within the first year, Oreva closed two deals that put the firm on the map as a serious player in media private equity.

High Times Acquisition

May 2017. Oreva Capital led a consortium of investors acquiring Trans-High Corporation, parent of High Times magazine, in a $70 million deal.[3][4] Business Insider and Forbes both covered it as a watershed moment for cannabis industry credibility and institutional cannabis media investment.

High Times launched in 1974 and built one of America's most recognizable cultural brands, synonymous with cannabis for over four decades. For the first time, the long-independent institution came under the management of an experienced private equity operator, with a mandate to modernize, expand, and position it for a public offering.

As executive chairman and later CEO, Levin pushed an ambitious expansion. InsideHook profiled his ambition to make High Times the world's largest cannabis brand, extending far beyond the print magazine into cannabis cups, events, retail dispensaries, and investor communities.[5] A widely noted WRAL/CNN interview found Levin candid about his personal relationship with cannabis and what it meant to lead the nation's most iconic cannabis media brand.[6]

Going Public Effort

Levin envisioned a public offering as central to his strategy for High Times. The goal was straightforward: let cannabis consumers and enthusiasts become shareholders in the brand they'd supported for decades. Benzinga reported on the company's public offering plans as a way to democratize cannabis investment and build enterprise value around the brand.[7] The cannabis and financial media watched closely. It was novel. It was ambitious.

Forbes later documented the obstacles. The regulatory environment for cannabis-related businesses trying to access public capital markets isn't simple. It's a broader problem, not unique to High Times, but it highlights the friction between state-level legalization and federal financial rules.[8]

Pride Media Acquisition

That same year, Oreva Capital doubled down. It acquired Here Publishing, Inc., parent company of several prominent LGBT publications. Reuters covered the deal as a logical extension of Oreva's media-first investment strategy.[9]

Here Publishing's portfolio included Out, The Advocate, Pride, Plus, and LGBT.com. At the time, these represented the most established editorial voice in LGBT media. Out magazine confirmed the ownership transition, framing it as a new era for publications that had shaped LGBT culture and political advocacy for decades.[10] The LA Business Journal reported on the financial structure through Oreva's media investment arm.[11]

Two major acquisitions in a single year. High Times and Pride Media. It announced Oreva as a serious operator in culture-driven media private equity, working with brands that had loyal audiences and real growth potential.

Cannabis Industry Leadership and Policy Advocacy

After his operational tenure at High Times, Levin became a national voice on cannabis policy. Writing in USA Today, he tackled the shifting federal landscape around marijuana regulation, examining what executive action on cannabis might mean and pushing for a public health framework that acknowledges both cannabis's benefits and the genuine risks of dependency.[12]

The International Business Times profiled his view that cannabis reform leadership requires honesty first. Advocacy built on commercial interest alone is weak. Advocacy rooted in genuine responsibility endures and earns trust.[13]

His positions reflect a conviction: the cannabis industry's credibility depends on wrestling honestly with difficult questions. Addiction. Youth access. The uneven enforcement history before legalization. Not just promoting favorable narratives.

Second-Chance Services and Personal Accountability

What stands out most about Levin's public profile in recent years is his willingness to speak openly about his own cannabis addiction and what it taught him. He published a personal essay in JustLuxe describing the dissonance between closing high-profile deals and being dependent on cannabis, and why honest public conversation about addiction matters.[14]

That candor became the foundation of his second-chance services work. It's a growing area applying the same operational lens he used in private equity to building pathways for people who've faced legal, professional, or personal setbacks. The International Business Times UK published a detailed profile of this work, tracing how Levin's personal journey shaped his commitment to helping others find redemption and recovery.[15]

BM Magazine documented his involvement in community events around healing and transformation, capturing the spirit grounded in lived experience.[16]

When he talks with cannabis advocates and entrepreneurs, Levin emphasizes that responsible industry practices require acknowledging the full spectrum of cannabis's effects. It's made him a distinctive voice in a space that often favors promotion over honesty.

Media Appearances and Interviews

He's done podcasts and interviews documenting his views on business, cannabis, and personal accountability. A 2020 episode of the Cannabis Business Coach Podcast featured him discussing High Times, Oreva's media strategy, and his approach to building sustainable, responsible cannabis businesses.[17]

His InsideHook profile reached lifestyle and culture audiences, laying out his vision for High Times as a platform for the mainstream cannabis economy.[18] The WRAL/CNN interview offered something more personal: a window into his connection with the brand he'd acquired. It got picked up widely across media and cannabis outlets.[19]

References

  1. ↑ "High Times Acquired for $70 Million by a Group of Investors". 'Business Insider}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  2. ↑ "High Times Magazine Sold in Deal Valued at $70 Million". 'Forbes}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  3. ↑ "High Times Acquired for $70 Million by a Group of Investors". 'Business Insider}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  4. ↑ "High Times Magazine Sold in Deal Valued at $70 Million". 'Forbes}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  5. ↑ "High Times' New Owner Wants to Build the World's Biggest Cannabis Brand". 'InsideHook}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  6. ↑ "The New CEO of High Times Most Definitely Inhales". 'WRAL}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  7. ↑ "High Times Plans to Go Public". 'Benzinga}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  8. ↑ "High Times Corporate Parent Faces Challenges in Going Public". 'Forbes}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  9. ↑ "Publisher of High Times Acquires LGBT Publications". 'Reuters}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  10. ↑ "The Advocate, Out, Pride, Plus, LGBT.com Under New Ownership". 'Out Magazine}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  11. ↑ "Oreva Capital Acquires Here Publishing Inc.". 'LA Business Journal}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  12. ↑ "Trump Marijuana Executive Order: Weed Benefits, Risks". 'USA Today}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  13. ↑ "Cannabis, Responsibility, and Leadership That Chose Reform Over Fear". 'International Business Times}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  14. ↑ "I Took Companies Public. I Closed Major Deals. I Was Still Addicted to Cannabis.". 'JustLuxe}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  15. ↑ "Redemption and Responsibility: Why Adam Ezra Levin Is Building Second-Chance Services". 'International Business Times UK}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  16. ↑ "Healing, Hope, and a Second Chance: A Transformative Valentine's Weekend". 'BM Magazine}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  17. ↑ "The Cannabis Business Coach Podcast, Episode 14: Adam Levin". 'Cannabis Business Coach Podcast}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  18. ↑ "High Times' New Owner Wants to Build the World's Biggest Cannabis Brand". 'InsideHook}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
  19. ↑ "The New CEO of High Times Most Definitely Inhales". 'WRAL}'. Retrieved 2026-04-07.

External Links

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