Innovating Cannabis Podcast

I got to sit down with two female founders I have admired from afar at the MJUnpacked show in NYC - Laura Eisman and Allison Krongard of Her Highness. Her Highness is well on its way to becoming one of the first nationally recognized cannabis brands and they shared their road to success, the challenges, and what lies ahead. Listen in to meet the ladies of weed. https://www.herhighness.com/ https:/...

Today we record the podcast from the floor of the MJ Unpacked show in NYC, where I met two brothers born in Bangladesh but grew up in NYC and left for Oregon 7 years ago to start their own craft cannabis company called Grasse. I interviewed one of the brothers, Munib, and we talked about how they built their company and plans to expand into the NY market. What struck me most about Munib was his ab...

Today we are on the floor of the MJUnpacked show in NYC with Jeffrey Hoffman. He is a NY lawyer, and I'm pretty sure he is the most qualified expert on the rules and regulations surrounding cannabis legalization in NY. Jeffrey's legal practice focuses on clients in the cannabis industry and he has a particular interest in social equity license applicants. He also assists those convicted of cannabi...

Meet Kieve Huffman, co-founder of Engager Brands. Kieve started his career in the music industry. And as cannabis was legalizing in California, he recognized the opportunity to combine his connections and talents in music to start a business in the emerging cannabis industry. Learn how his team decides on a viable niche audience to target and the multi-layered approach they take to build a brand a...

It took NJ lawyer Sarah Trent almost three years to acquire a provisional dispensary license in NJ. But, she is finally about to open her doors to Valley Wellness Medical Dispensary this Fall. She also built an educational platform called NJ Cannabis Certified that partners with five NJ community colleges to provide a workforce development program for the cannabis industry. Marijuana education is...

Today we meet Ken Tays, the CEO of Green Leaf Marketers, a cannabis print-marketing company. We talk about old-school marketing tactics, specifically direct mail, and how it can help to build brand awareness and drive sales when many traditional marketing tactics are not available to the cannabis industry. Ken brings 12 years of experience as a bank regulator and employs compliance personnel to he...

If you're in the cannabis industry, you most likely have heard of George Jage. He is a leader in the trade show industry, took MJ Biz Con from a 20 table cannabis event, and elevated it to the highly regarded show it is today. George recently introduced his latest iteration of trade show experiences and announced a new event called MJ Unpacked, which debuted last October in Las Vegas. The next sho...

Eric is a partner at Parlatore Law Group and very knowledgeable in many areas of the cannabis industry. He advises entrepreneurs looking to enter the industry, tells us what's holding up legalization at the federal level, and how the Rohrabacher-Farr Amendment prohibits the U.S. Justice Department from interfering in the state-level medical cannabis industry to name a few. Let's meet Eric to get h...

Today our guest is Eli Ben Haroosh, CEO of StickLabs, an Israeli company looking for a joint venture capital partnership to enter the US marketplace. Imagine THC condensed into a toothpick that can be inserted into a blunt to increase THC and terpene levels. StickIt is selling the CBD version in 16 countries across Europe. Listen to Eli's plans to bring Stickit to the global marketplace, including...

Today we meet Jay Czarkowski, CEO of Denver-based Canna Advisors. Since 2013, Canna Advisors has guided entrepreneurs and startups entering the cannabis industry and cannabis companies looking to grow and expand their existing business. Jay sees the North East as the next hotbed for innovation in the cannabis industry and recently set up a 2nd office in the Empire State Building. They are kicking...

Because the cannabis industry is so new, little consumer data is available that can be used for digital advertising. And programmatic advertising is expensive to use if you don't have the data to back it up. Today we will meet the team behind NXTeck. They claim to have the largest cannabis consumer database available in partnership with New Frontier Data. NXTeck just released a way to track when s...

Today our guest is Nikki Lawley, a traumatic brain injury survivor who found a mobile app that helped her self-medicate with Cannabis and ultimately stop using prescription drugs. The App is Strainprint, a free medical cannabis journal available to patients across Canada and the US. Strainprint has evolved to become the largest real-world-evidence study and now gathers data across Canada, the Unit...

Today our guest is Breck Speed, a longtime CEO in the beverage industry who has also been involved in the PET bottle manufacturing business. He shares the steps it takes to launch a cannabis beverage successfully and the challenges facing the industry. Breck answers questions about choosing the right extraction technology to produce good flavor, bioavailability, and fast onset. He addresses the lo...

Today we explore why hotels are the perfect fit for a cannabis smoking lounge. We will meet Chris Chiari, the owner of Denver's 420 Hotel, and learn how he plans to monetize the lounge as an amenity to the hotel, how it will operate, and his vision to expand the concept across the country. Let's meet Chris. https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-chiari-9b755188/ https://www.pattersoninn.com/ The Innova...

Today we meet Dawn Gordon. She owns a Five Star cannabis-friendly Bed & Breakfast located on her hemp farm in Maryland, called Fingerboard Farms. She's beating all odds facing hemp farmers across the country with her innovative ventures. She participated in a hemp research program at a local university, developed a line of CBD products, launched an eCommerce platform, started and adopt a hemp...

Today our guest is Jarell Wall, CEO of Gentleman Quinns, home to the High-Class Big Ass Blunt. Jarell and his partner, master bluntador, Austin Pflumm, are building a luxury brand in Colorado. They met as budtenders together in 2015 and saw a hole in the market for high-quality blunts. They convinced the dispensary owner to let them test a product using their unique hand-rolled blunts with no trim...

Today we meet Lisa Burke and Paris Caldwell. They are the Director of Retail and Operations for Redi, a Massachusetts dispensary located outside of Boston, and others in the works. We had a chat about all that goes into operating a dispensary, from the challenges, marketing tactics, brands, tech stack, store design and layout, and their future plans. It was interesting to peek into their day-to-da...

Elana Frankel is a former editor for Martha Stewart Living, and now she is inspired to step into the cannabis industry and build her own house of brands. She started a magazine called Women and Weed, which sold in Whole Foods, CVS, and Barnes & Noble before turning it into a book that is sold through Simon & Schuster. Elana's introduction to the cannabis industry started when she discovere...

Meet Kaelan Castetter. He is vice president of the New York Cannabis Growers and Processors Association and founder of the Castetter Cannabis Group. A boutique firm specializing in government relations and lobbying advocacy for cannabis entrepreneurs. He helps them understand the legislation, forecast regulations, and develop a business plan around it. He's got his finger on the pulse in the NY ca...

Michael Rivera is the owner of Better Days Delivery service based in Denver, Colorado. He is a legacy entrepreneur who was arrested and jailed at the age of 19 for possession of marijuana. But, now he is using his past knowledge to start a legal delivery service and geeking out on the industry, as he likes to say. https://www.betterdaysdelivery.com/ https://www.instagram.com/betterdaysdeliveryco/...

Meet TILT's new Marketing Director, Amy Larson. Amy shares her approach to marketing the numerous brands and partnerships in the TILT portfolio. We also talk about their collaboration with the Shinnecock Indian Nation in NY and how it may set the standards for working with other Indian Nations as part of their social equity initiatives. The Innovating Cannabis podcast is produced and hosted by Pam...

Today our guest is Philip Wolf. High Times has dubbed him the "Pioneer of the cannabis hospitality space." He is also a Rolling Stone Culture Council member. And the CEO and founder of Cultivating Spirits, it's a unique cannabis and food pairing private event experience. These are just a few things Philip is doing -did I mention Cannabis Wedding Expos? http://cultivatingspirits.com/canna...

Today, our guest is Craig Petersmark, owner of The United Green, a top cannabis staffing agency serving the cannabis industry, including cultivation Facilities, Transport, Extraction, Testing Labs, Manufacturing, and Provisioning Centers. I was very enlightened to learn about all the nuances and support a niche staffing agency provides. Let's meet Craig. He has been in the staffing industry for ov...

Meet Daniel Sharkey and Trei McMullen. They are partners in a security company called SYOTOS where they consult with entrepreneurs and MSOs to write their security plans for their cannabis license applications. They also provide security plans and staffing for onsite cultivation facilities, dispensaries, and transportation. But, most importantly, they are veterans, and they hire veterans for secur...

Sheri Tarr is the Founder of '68Partners, a New York-based consulting firm that works exclusively with life sciences companies, cannabis brands, and license applicants to commercialize safe products and build sustainable businesses. A recovering lawyer, Sheri has been on the front lines of commercializing FDA-compliant brands for decades. Before transitioning into cannabis, Sheri worked for the ph...