Horsham-based Alliance Holdings, one of the only woman-led private equity firms in the region, is shifting its investments from the manufacturing world to cannabis, alcohol, and adult-focused software products, writes Michelle Caffrey for the Philadelphia Business Journal.

Barbie Spear, Alliance CEO who took the helm of the firm in 2019, refers to the trifecta as “vice industries.”

But despite the name and the risk factors involved, some of Spear’s biggest bets so far – those in the cannabis industry – have already started to show major returns.

For example, the $1.5 million invested by Alliance in Jushi, the cannabis company that is publicly traded on the Canadian Securities Exchange, is now worth about $15 million.

Spear sees the firm’s cannabis deals as long-term holds because she believes we are currently in the early stages of what will become a massive marijuana market in the country.

“This is the beginning of the legal market,” she said. “If you’re in on the bottom floor, you’re going to see tremendous growth.”

Alliance is 100 percent owned by employees of its portfolio companies through a stock ownership plan, or ESOP.

Read more about Alliance Holdings at the Philadelphia Business Journal by clicking here.