Taliera was founded in 2006 by industry leader and serial entrepreneur J. Smoke Wallin to create, advise, incubate, acquire, and grow new and existing brands and businesses by combining core brand building expertise, relationships and capabilities with leading edge technologies and innovative business approaches.
The Taliera team has extensive strategic and operational experience through both consulting engagements and in active management across the beverage, CPG, distribution, hospitality and technology industries. Our core advisory practice includes: 1. Company and brand strategy from inception to launch to growth & turn around; 2. Distribution strategy from export or import to wholesale to retail to consumer; 3. Executive search and recruitment; 4. Applying new technologies and business models to existing industries.
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J Smoke Wallin - Chairman & Founder
Smoke is a highly accomplished CEO, entrepreneur, M&A leader, board member, and humanitarian with leadership across the consumer products, beverage, cannabis, hospitality, health & wellness, distribution, and technology industries. Smoke is a Co-Founder & Director of DignityMoves. created to end unsheltered street homelessness in our communities by building Interim Supportive Housing with rapid, cost-effective, scalable solutions. He is chairman of the $100 million Fast Forward Fund by DignityMoves.
Smoke serves as Managing Director & Partner at STS Capital, a global boutique investment bank focused on M&A. He serves as Chair of Taliera, a company he founded in 2006 to incubate, celebrate and advise iconic beverage brands. Smoke serves on the boards of publicly traded cannabis firms, Adastra and Vencanna (CSE: XTRX.CN and VENI.CN).
He has led >$1.7 billion in M&A, deals and financings, publicly and privately. He served as Chair/Co-Founder of Vertical Wellness a health & wellness company. Smoke helped build National Wine & Spirits (merged into ~$14B RNDC) into one of the largest distributors of beer, wine, and spirits in the US and served as Chair/Pres. of the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America (WSWA).
He has been an active leader in YPO Young President Organization and is the Chair for YPO’s Pacific One chapter from 2022-2024. American Freedom Fund, Advisory Board Member and served as Junior Achievement of Indiana, Chairman of the Board and of the foundation. He served for over a decade on Vanderbilt University Business School Board Member and as its President. He regularly contributes to CNBC’s Fast Money, Closing Bell, and Nightly Business Report, Fox Business’s Varney & Co., and CNN and numerous print publications & podcasts.
Smoke earned an MBA at Vanderbilt and a BS in Agricultural Economics at Cornell, wrestled and Sigma Nu. He is an Eagle Scout & father of two Eagle Scout sons and two amazing daughters, all four college graduates. He lives with his singer/songwriter wife Anitra in Ventura, CA.
Smoke is inspired to continue to elevate his own consciousness and a life of selfless service to God, Love and the wellbeing of Earth and all of humanity.