The Women in CannaBusiness Podcast

In Episode 50, Season 6 Episode 6 of the Women in Cannabusiness Podcast, Olivia sits down with Wendy Baker, Founder and CEO of Love Gem Inc., DBA Space Gem, an award-winning cannabis edibles company rooted in Humboldt County while at Hall of Flowers Ventura 2026. Wendy shares how she began building Space Gem in 2013 and why she chose to focus on premium solventless edibles made with ice water hash...

How do you build a career that spans nearly every corner of the cannabis industry? In this episode of Women in CannaBusiness, Olivia Castaldy sits down with Maha Haq, cannabis journalist, educator, researcher, and industry advocate, to explore the career that has taken her from budtender to one of the industry's most respected educational voices. With experience across retail, testing labs, consul...

In this episode of the Women in Cannabusiness Podcast, Olivia sits down with Shelbie Vasquez, Sales and Marketing professional at Beyond Legends Distribution, to discuss building a career fueled by passion, authentic relationships, and community. Shelbie shares her journey from starting as a Brand Ambassador with Yummi Karma in 2018 to representing a growing portfolio of cannabis brands through Be...

What does it take to build a lasting career in cultivation while staying true to the plant, the science, and the culture? In this episode of Women in CannaBusiness, Olivia sits down with Sue Carlton (@rancheramami), cultivator, educator, and advocate whose journey spans Oregon's early medical market, large-scale cultivation, genetics preservation, and building a family-run farm in Central Valley C...

Live from Hall of Flowers Ventura with Angie Macaraeg, VP of Sales & Marketing at Encore Labs Recorded onsite at the Hall of Flowers Pre-Show Mixer hosted by Beard Bros Pharms in Ventura, California, this episode features a conversation with Angie Macaraeg, Vice President of Sales & Marketing at Encore Labs . Since entering the cannabis industry in 2018, Angie has worked her way from custo...

In the premiere episode of Season 6 of The Women in CannaBusiness Podcast, host Olivia Castaldy sits down with Annie Fleshman, Vice President of Marketing and founding marketer at Flowhub, live from Hall of Flowers Ventura. Since joining Flowhub in 2018, Annie has helped transform the company into one of the most trusted cannabis retail technology platforms in the United States. In this conversati...

To close out our Season 5: Heavy Hitters, we’re joined by one of the most legendary pioneers in the history of the plant, Mila Jansen, also known as The Hash Queen. From the early days of cannabis culture in Amsterdam… to traveling the world with her children and spending over a decade living in India… to inventing one of the most influential tools in hash making, the Pollinator… Mila’s story is o...

In this episode of Women in CannaBusiness, we sit down with Rachelle Gordon, Managing Editor of GreenState, to explore the deeply personal experiences that shaped her path into cannabis journalism and advocacy. A driving force behind Rachelle’s work is her passion for the medical potential of cannabis, especially for neurological conditions and seizure disorders. After watching her father struggle...

In this episode of The Women in CannaBusiness Podcast, we sit down with Tamara Anderson, founder of Culinary & Cannabis, an interactive cannabis event production company redefining how people experience plant medicine through food, wellness, and education. With a unique background as both a registered nurse and pastry chef, Tamara shares how her personal journey, including her son’s experience...

In this powerful episode of Women in CannaBusiness, we sit down with Nikki Lawley,patient advocate, speaker, and founder of Nikki and the Plant, to explore her deeply personal journey from healthcare provider to patient, and ultimately, to one of the most impactful voices in the industry. After a life-altering injury in 2016, Nikki went from being a pediatric nurse to navigating a broken medical s...

In Season 5, Episode 4 of Women in CannaBusiness, we’re joined by Sara Payan, award-winning educator, strategist, and one of the most influential voices in the cannabis industry today. With over a decade of experience and more than 20,000 hours guiding consumers, Sara has built a reputation for advancing education, shaping policy, and normalizing plant medicine through storytelling and advocacy. S...

Jane West is one of the most recognizable names in the cannabis industry, and for good reason. In this episode of Women in CannaBusiness, host Olivia Castaldy sits down with trailblazing entrepreneur, advocate, and founder Jane West to discuss her journey from working in international relations and event planning to becoming one of the most influential women in cannabis. After appearing on CNBC du...

What does it actually mean to become a Sister? In this episode of Women in CannaBusiness, we go far beyond headlines and habits with Sister Kate, Founder of Sisters of the Valley. This is an unfiltered look inside the Order, how it began, how it operates, and what it takes to build a spiritual, women-led cannabis movement in a world that often resists both. Sister Kate shares the full origin story...

Season 5 kicks off with a true heavy hitter in the cannabis industry. In this episode, Olivia Alexander (now Olivia Sawyer), Founder and CEO of Kush Queen, shares how she went from budtender in Los Angeles to building one of the most recognizable cannabis wellness brands in the country. What started in a garage evolved into a multi-million-dollar company serving over 100,000 customers and pioneeri...

In this episode of The Women in CannaBusiness Podcast, host Olivia Castaldy sits down with Sharon Cohen, a seasoned CPA, CFO, and business leader whose unexpected path into the cannabis industry became a career-defining chapter. With decades of financial experience across tech and emerging markets, Sharon now applies her expertise to building operational integrity, compliance, and strategic growth...

In this episode of The Women in CannaBusiness Podcast, we sit down with Ericka Padilla-Toro, also known as The Ganja Goddess, founder of GG’s Garden, a cannabis lifestyle and education brand rooted in empowerment, accessibility, and community. Ericka shares her powerful journey into the legal cannabis industry, from her early experiences with the legacy market to building a platform centered on up...

In this episode of The Women in CannaBusiness Podcast, host Olivia Castaldy sits down with Caitlin — better known as CannaCait, a pediatric registered dietitian with nearly 20 years of experience and the creator of Mom-n-Pot. After decades of guiding families through evidence-based nutrition, Caitlin entered the cannabis industry to support parents seeking stress relief, balance, and wellness with...

In this episode of The Women in CannaBusiness Podcast, host Olivia Castaldy sits down with Danielle Wildstein, Founder & CEO of Blue Oak Dispensary in New Jersey, a pioneering woman in cannabis with over two decades of experience in leadership, operations, and human performance. Danielle shares her journey from a successful career in the pharmaceutical industry to building a community-centered...

In this episode of The Women in CannaBusiness Podcast, host Olivia Castaldy sits down with Ali Bianco, Founder & CEO of Pinks Products, New York’s first canna-couture brand merging high fashion with premium cannabis. Ali shares how her connection to cannabis began as a source of calm and creativity during her teenage years and evolved into a purpose-driven, luxury brand redefining what feminin...

In this inspiring episode of The Women in CannaBusiness Podcast, host Olivia Castaldy sits down with Liliana (Lili) Hollandt, founder and owner of Lady L Cannabis, a woman-led dispensary on Jersey City’s West Side. An immigrant from Bulgaria and long-time Jersey City resident, Lili brings over 20 years of advertising, project management, and retail experience to New Jersey’s legal market. Her stor...

In this moving episode of The Women in CannaBusiness Podcast, we sit down with Heather Steinberg, Patient Care Specialist at Jewish Sauce Boss, to talk about resilience, healing, and the power of cannabis to transform lives. With over 15 years in healthcare and a lifelong passion for helping others, Heather shares her powerful journey — from navigating chronic pain and multiple surgeries to discov...

In this episode of The Women in CannaBusiness Podcast, host Olivia Castaldy sits down with Parisa Mansouri-Rad, better known as Marijuana Momma, the visionary co-founder of Blunt Brunch, a national event series and women’s empowerment platform changing the way women connect, collaborate, and lead in cannabis. Parisa shares her inspiring journey from motherhood and advocacy to entrepreneurship and...

We’re kicking off Season 4 of The Women in CannaBusiness Podcast with Adelia Fakhri, Chief Marketing Officer of EventHi and Co-Founder of Blunt Brunch; two trailblazing platforms redefining connection, collaboration, and celebration in the cannabis industry. With over a decade of experience across corporate, consumer electronics, and cannabis sectors, Adelia brings creative strategy and operationa...

For the Season 3 finale of Women in CannaBusiness, we’re closing with an inspiring conversation with Nicole Kennebeck (@nicnugget) — a veteran who’s been shaping cannabis for over 15 years. Nicole started her career in the early medical days, where she learned firsthand what it meant to operate in an emerging, often uncertain market. From those beginnings, she’s grown into a trusted leader who has...

What happens when a journalist with a nose for truth meets a cannabis industry full of complex regulations, stories, and stigma? You get Stella Morrison—award-winning journalist turned content marketing expert—who now leads the charge in shaping ethical, strategic, and effective cannabis marketing. In this episode, Stella shares how her early days in local journalism laid the groundwork for her no...