Long Beach, California, United States, September 2025 – Glass House Brands Inc. has appointed Irene Villanueva as Vice President of Human Resources. In her new role, Irene will focus on cultivating a people-first culture, supporting teams, strengthening leadership, and aligning HR practices with Glass House’s values of sustainability, community impact, and respect for people and the planet.
Irene joins Glass House Brands after more than five years at Liberated Brands, where she led HR strategy as Vice President of Human Resources. She oversaw people operations across corporate, distribution, and 100+ retail locations in 19 states, guiding the organization through rapid growth, acquisitions, and brand integrations. She launched award-nominated leadership programs, built a high-performing HR team, and successfully elevated HR from a transactional function to a transformative force within the business.
Prior to that, she served as Vice President of Human Resources at UFC GYM, leading the people strategy for a workforce of over 1,800 employees nationwide. There, she transformed HR systems, strengthened engagement, and positioned UFC GYM as an employer of choice in the fitness industry. Earlier in her tenure, she was Director of Human Resources – People Operations, building scalable HR frameworks to support the company’s national expansion.
Her career also includes senior roles at VOLCOM as Director of HR, ASICS America Corporation as Senior Manager of Talent Acquisition and L&D, and Deckers Brands as Senior Manager, HR Business Partner for Sanuk Footwear. Irene also held leadership positions across LSPACE, C&C Companies, SWELL, and eMachines, where she built foundational HR systems, supported cultural transformations, and developed HR practices during critical growth phases. She began her HR career at CompUSA, where she supported HR operations across multiple regional stores for nearly a decade.
With over 25 years of HR leadership experience, Irene brings a proven record of driving cultural change, organizational leadership, employee engagement, and scalable people strategies across lifestyle, retail, fitness, technology, and now cannabis sectors.
About Glass House Brands Inc.
Glass House Brands Inc. is one of the fastest-growing, vertically integrated cannabis and hemp companies in the U.S., with a strong foothold in the California market. The company’s portfolio includes Glass House Farms, PLUS Products, Allswell, Reeform, and Mama Sue Wellness, delivering sustainable, high-quality cannabis products across categories. Guided by its founding values, Glass House combines greenhouse cultivation, advanced manufacturing, brand-building, and retail with a mission rooted in respect for people, communities, and the planet.
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