Seed to CEO

Karla Avila and Jacob Johnson started Flowerdaze Farm in California’s famed Emerald Triangle with a focus on farming cannabis sustainably with as small of a carbon footprint as possible. Today, their small farm produces 200-300 pounds of craft cannabis annually, selling for up to $1,500 per pound. But thanks to their regenerative farming techniques, their costs are extraordinarily low.

In this episode of Seed to CEO, Karla and Jacob share:

• How to be both a regenerative and profitable farm.
• How to reduce nutrient and other input costs by using inputs already available on the farm.
• How to market regeneratively grown cannabis and get top dollar for it.

Who are Karla Avila and Jacob Johnson?

Karla and Jacob have spoken and written extensively about the regenerative farming techniques they use at Flowerdaze, including in the August 2021 issue of MJBizMagazine and their own book, “The Flowerdaze Farm Regenerative Guide to Cannabis.” Jacob and Karla have led professional careers in classical music, and they still enjoy artistic collaborations on the farm and while h hosting farm-to-table workshops, retreats and musical events throughout the Emerald Triangle.

Albert Gutierrez launched MedPharm in 2017 with visions of building a scientifically focused company to help patients and consumers by providing hard evidence about marijuana’s medical benefits. Today, MedPharm has a diverse line of wellness cannabis products, patents, partnerships and a DEA license to cultivate cannabis for research. In this episode of Seed to CEO, Albert talks with MJBiz CEO Chris Walsh about how MedPharm accomplished all this and where the Denver-based company plans to go next.

Albert shares:

• How MedPharm’s science focus connects with its cultivation and product development.
• The steps the company had to take to build facilities that comply with Good Manufacturing and Good Agricultural practices.
• Why the DEA licenses are so important to the company’s strategy.
• Where the company is focusing its latest research efforts.

Who is Albert Gutierrez?

An erstwhile software engineer, Albert Gutierrez entered the cannabis industry in 2015 as chief of staff for Denver-based Medicine Men Technologies before breaking off to found MedPharm Holdings in 2017. His goal was to create a cultivation and manufacturing business in Colorado’s legal markets that helps fund science and medical research around cannabis.

Oaksterdam University in Oakland, California, is a pioneer in cannabis education whose legacy is being the blueprint for many cannabis study programs started by other academic institutions. Since its founding, Oaksterdam  has faced federal raids, a fire at its main campus and a global pandemic. Dale Sky Jones, executive chancellor, president and CEO of Oaksterdam, calls such  tough times “fertilizer for innovation.” In this episode of Seed to CEO, Dale talks about how she navigated the “poopy times” to build the respected institution of today.

Dale shares:

• How she overcame Oaksterdam’s earliest financial and organizational challenges to eventually expand the university.
• How the four-agency federal raid changed how the institution operated.
• Why policy reform is a critical aspect of Oaksterdam’s mission.
• How the educational needs of the industry have changed and what the future looks like.

Who is Dale Sky Jones?

Dale Sky Jones has been the executive chancellor of Oaksterdam University, the first university-level institution to offer a complete cannabis curriculum, since 2007. She took on the additional roles of president and CEO after a raid sidelined its founder in 2012. In addition to spearheading the growth of Oaksterdam, Dale is a wife and mother of three children.

When Dr. Priyanka Sharma’s father’s chemical engineering company in Illinois kept getting phone calls asking if it performed industrial hemp extraction, she flew to Colorado to learn more about the ascendant CBD industry. They were floored by how many consumers said they used CBD and other cannabinoids for wellness and saw a huge opportunity. In this episode of Seed to CEO, Priyanka talks with MJBiz CEO Chris Walsh about how Kazmira – the company she and her husband founded and now serve as co-CEOs for - became one of the CBD industry’s leading extraction firms.

She shares:

• How to leverage scientific expertise to create advantage-winning innovations.
• How their involvement in every aspect of the company’s creation helped them understand and operate it better.
• Tips to steer a cannabis company through confusion wrought by a lack of clarity on federal regulations.

Who is Priyanka Sharma?

Priyanka and her husband co-founded Watkins, Colorado-based Kazmira, a large-scale manufacturer of cannabinoids from industrial hemp, in 2017. Before launching Kazmira, Priyanka earned a doctorate in chemical engineering from the University of Illinois Chicago and has published extensively about molecular modeling and its application in industrial biotechnology. That scientific prowess has led to several extraction innovations that have helped make Kazmira a leader in the cannabis space.

Before it became one of the biggest multistate operators in the United States, 4Front Ventures was a consulting firm, 4Front Advisors. But change in the cannabis industry coupled with frustration over collecting fees led Kris Krane and his colleagues to change direction. In this episode of Seed to CEO, Kris talks with MJBiz CEO Chris Walsh about the ups and downs of the decision – and what’s next as he steps away from 4Front’s day-to-day operations.

Kris shares:

• How his team plugged the knowledge gaps in the shift from consulting firm to a vertically integrated operator.
• Tips on how to successfully scale a plant-touching business across diverse markets.
• How to know when it’s time to exit your business.

Who is Kris Krane?

Industry veteran Kris Krane recently stepped down from his executive role at 4Front Ventures, which he co-founded in February 2011. Today the company is one of the most influential MSOs in the nation with more than 500 employees. Kris’ cannabis roots are in advocacy, including as executive director of Students for Sensible Drug Policy. He’s still in cannabis today as an independent consultant and CEO at Kranewreck Enterprises. He is also a principal owner and president of Anderson Leonard Pharmaceuticals, a licensed cultivator, producer and exporter in North Macedonia. 

In the early days of legal cannabis, when rules and markets were still being figured out, siblings Emily and Morgan Paxhia saw a tremendous investment opportunity – if they could navigate the incredible risks that come with an emerging sector. In this episode of Seed to CEO, the Paxhia siblings share their journey from idea to successful investment firm and where they think the road ahead is leading.

They talk about:

• What it takes to launch a cannabis investment firm.
• The elements that are critical for attracting investors in a quickly changing industry.
• What concerns - and excites - them about the future of cannabis.

Who are Emily and Morgan Paxhia?

Sailing together when they were younger helped Emily and Morgan Paxhia develop the analytical and problem-solving prowess that has made Poseidon Asset Management a success. The pair bring a passionate but disciplined approach to their investment philosophy, with the goal of helping to grow the industry in a smart and sustainable way for businesses of all sizes.

In this episode of Seed to CEO, Ayr Wellness’ Jonathan Sandelman floats tips and insights for building a national MSO. Jonathan talks with MJBiz CEO Chris Walsh about his ambitious goal - being the largest-scale producer of high-quality flower - and how he plans to achieve it.

Jonathan shares his insights on:

• Where he sees the best and biggest opportunities for the industry.
• How Ayr has managed to become cash-flow positive in less than three years while many other firms are still struggling.
• His strategy for making successful acquisitions.

Who is Jonathan Sandelman?

Jonathan is the chair and CEO of Ayr Wellness, a vertically integrated MSO operating in eight states. A mathematician at his core, Sandelman started his 30-year financial career managing derivatives and arbitrage at Salomon Brothers and then Bank of America Securities, where he served as president. He later founded and led his own multibillion-dollar asset management firm, Sandelman Partners. In addition to his current role at Ayr, Jonathan manages his privately held family office, Mercer Park.

In this episode of Seed to CEO, Edward Dow, CEO of Massachusetts-based Solar Therapeutics, talks with MJBiz CEO Chris Walsh about how he built his “island microgrid” to support his cannabis company’s sustainability strategy - from unexpected expenses and pitfalls to the creation of a scalable, repeatable model for new markets.

Ed shares:

• The real costs of building his vision for a fully off-grid facility and how that compared to staying on the traditional grid.
• His unconventional path to raising capital to start the company.
• Critical lessons learned along the way that will make repeating his model even more efficient.

Who is Edward Dow?

Ed Dow left a job with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution tagging whales and driving underwater vehicles to break into Massachusetts’ highly regulated cannabis industry. His first attempt at securing a medical license ultimately failed, but it helped Ed impress investors who enthusiastically bought into his next - and current - endeavor. Today, Ed’s operations model could be the future of cannabis cultivation.

In this episode of Seed to CEO, Vladimir Bautista, the co-founder and managing member of Happy Munkey, a New York City cannabis event company, talks with MJBiz CEO Chris Walsh about his plans to parlay 20-plus years of legacy cannabis experience into a legal multistate marijuana hospitality business.

Bautista shares:

• How he built an international following for his brand even before being licensed in his home state.
• Why he sees consumption lounges and events as a critical piece of creating an equitable industry.
• Where he plans to take his brand and his following now that cannabis is legal in New York.

Who is Vladimir Bautista?

Vladimir Bautista cofounded Happy Munkey, a marijuana hospitality business in New York City described as the “nexus between corporate cannabis and culture cannabis.” Indeed, Happy Munkey has been smashing marijuana stigmas since launching in 2017 with what came to be seven-days-a-week parties where professionals could consume cannabis “in a safe space.” Bautista now aims to leverage his cannabis culture cred in the legal market.

Nancy Whiteman, CEO of Colorado-based Wana Brands, has been called the “Martha Stewart of Edibles” by Entrepreneur magazine, but her path to becoming the “Queen of Legal Weed” (Inc. Magazine) hasn’t always been easy. In this episode of Seed to CEO, Nancy talks with MJBiz CEO Chris Walsh about how she helped grow Wana Brands from a bootstrapped grassroots cannabis food manufacturer into an edibles empire across North America.

She shares:

• How partnerships with other cannabis companies play a key role in Wana’s expansion strategy.
• How expectations, such as consistency, have evolved alongside the sector.
• How the company has adapted to the constant, rapid changes within the legal cannabis industry.

Who is Nancy Whiteman?

Before founding Wana Brands in 2010, Nancy was a principal with The Whiteman Group, a sales and marketing consultancy, and held a range of senior-level marketing and business-development positions. The shift into cannabis edibles resulted from a casual conversation with an acquaintance, even though Nancy had no experience in the industry or in food manufacturing. But the company she built and the products it creates is now one of the most recognized edibles brands in the U.S. and Canada.

In this episode of Seed to CEO, Nicholas Vita, the CEO of Columbia Care, shares with MJBiz CEO Chris Walsh how he started in the cannabis industry with a mom-and-pop dispensary in Washington DC and now heads one of the biggest cannabis companies in the United States, present in 18 states and abroad.

He’ll share:

• The importance of learning from the mistakes made along the way.
• How the company picked and won new markets.
• How he helped build a company that would attract investor capital to grow even further.

Who is Nicholas Vita?

Nick spent six years as vice president at Goldman Sachs and another 10 investing in the health care sector before even considering the cannabis industry. A friend mentioned the potential to him at a party, and his interest was piqued. He left finance and opened his first dispensary in Washington DC in 2013 and quickly expanded to Arizona, Massachusetts and other states. 

For many celebrities, being involved in cannabis means lending their names and personalities to another business for marketing purposes. Not so for Jim Belushi. Instead Jim purchased 93 acres of land in southern Oregon to start his own grow, where he’s involved at every step of the process.

In this episode, Jim speaks with MJBiz CEO Chris Walsh about:

• Why his focus is on the “magic” of cannabis and not just the money (even though he does try to break even).
• His reasons for transitioning from an outdoor grow to greenhouses and how he’s going about that process.
• Some of the costliest mistakes he’s made since founding Belushi’s Farm – and how he plans to avoid similar problems moving forward.

Who is Jim Belushi?

Jim Belushi is best known as an actor and comedian, but nowadays he spends at least half his time at Belushi’s Farm, his cannabis cultivation site in southern Oregon. While he’s still involved in many entertainment ventures, from The Blues Brothers to a comedy troupe, attending to his “ladies” in Oregon is one of his primary focuses.

When Oklahoma flung open the doors to its medical cannabis industry, Denise Mink thought it would be a good opportunity to “semi-retire” by opening a dispensary with her husband. But things didn’t go quite as planned. In this episode, Denise reveals to MJBiz CEO Chris Walsh some of the lessons she learned while trying to get Med Pharm off the ground.

Denise shares:

• How her lack of experience led to costly inventory mistakes.
• How she and her husband dealt with pushback from the community, including from the local police force.
• Which marketing vehicles have proven to be the best investment for Med Pharm.

Who is Denise Mink?

Denise Mink was the most successful agent at the real estate company where she was employed, but she was also super stressed and ready for a change. So when Oklahoma launched its MMJ market, she jumped - even though she had no experience in the industry other than visiting a few dispensaries in Colorado. But a willingness to surround oneself with cannabis veterans plus her persistence and business savvy helped make Med Pharm, located outside Tulsa, a success.

At a time when much of the cannabis industry is focused on elevating THC levels to new heights, East Fork Cultivars has taken a different tack. In this episode of Seed to CEO, East Fork CEO Mason Walker talks with MJBiz CEO Chris Walsh about the mission behind the strategy and what he sees as the future of cannabis.

Mason shares:

• Why he believes low-THC cannabis will be a big part of the industry’s future.
• Insights on the potential benefits of sun-grown cannabis at all levels of the industry.
• How to diversify meaningfully and mindfully.

Who is Mason Walker?

Mason spent a decade in the world of journalism, where he had a front-row seat to the birth and growth of Oregon’s legal cannabis industry. He made the leap into cultivation when two friends invited him to help grow the company from a cannabis garden to a full-scale production farm. Today, he’s taken it a step further, diversifying into consumer packaged goods and retail as well.

In this episode of Seed to CEO, MJBiz CEO Chris Walsh talks with Sozo Companies' Kristi Kelly about why community involvement is a key piece of her business' success strategy. Kristi shares tips on how marijuana executives can create and execute these strategies and how community involvement gains currency with customers and neighbors.

Who is Kristi Kelly?

Kristi Kelly is a cannabis industry pioneer currently blazing trails as the chief strategy and government affairs officer at Sozo Companies, a vertically integrated marijuana and hemp-derived CBD business in Michigan. Before Sozo, Kristi shaped Colorado’s cannabis landscape as the founder of a license holding company and later as the executive director of the Marijuana Industry Group, which she turned into a national force advocating for cannabis businesses

In this episode of Seed to CEO, MJBiz CEO Chris Walsh taps into the brain of Tuatara Capital's Al Foreman to gain insights on what cannabis investors are really looking for in investment targets. Al shares what he's learned about the cannabis industry over the last seven years and where he sees the best opportunities ahead. He also provides direction for cannabis entrepreneurs looking to get a piece of the investment pie.  

Who is Al Foreman?

Al has more than 20 years of professional experience in private equity, corporate finance and financial technology, experience gained at mainstream Wall Street firms before setting his sights on the high-growth cannabis industry. Tuatara Capital now boasts nearly $400 million under management, making it one of the largest cannabis investment firms in the world. 

In this episode of Seed to CEO, Chris Ball shares his experience with transitioning from a very lucrative illicit market operator to a very successful legal licensee. He talks about how he leveraged his legacy experience and network, what types of know-how he needed to hire to complement his legacy experience and how he brought his illegal operation up to legal norms and the challenges of financing the project. Now that Ball is thriving in Southern California, he’s looking to expand.

Who is Chris Ball?

Chris Ball made more money in the illicit market than he did as a professional football player, but when Los Angeles opened a social equity cannabis business licensing program for people with marijuana-related felonies like himself, he decided in to apply for and in 2018 won a social equity license for Ball Family Farms.

In this episode of Seed to CEO, James Lathrop talks about opening Cannabis City, Seattle’s first recreational marijuana retailer, in 2014. By winning Seattle’s first license, Lathrop enjoyed a major first-mover advantage, but a brutal location, inventory management troubles & soul-sapping regulations all bedeviled Cannabis City. But they couldn’t kill it - and now Lathrop has plans to expand.

Who is James Lathrop?

Lathrop is a U.S. Army veteran and a doctor of nursing practice who spent 20-plus years as a nurse practitioner before jumping into marijuana. 

In this episode of Seed to CEO, Margot Micallef shares how she launched Gaby as primarily a product company only to have a tough time getting those products onto dispensary shelves. Micallef’s solution was to pivot toward building the biggest retail store brand in California through acquisitions and openings. Her goal: to have 100 stores in the next three to five years, and Micallef explains how she plans to get there.

Who is Margot Micallef?

Margot Micallef is the CEO of Gaby, a multi-vertical, retail focused cannabis company based in California. She started Gaby in 2016 as a health food and distribution company but entered the cannabis industry in 2018 with the introduction of THC and CBD infused foods. The company successfully raised capital, expanded and, more recently, made dramatic pivots in response to dramatic times. Today Gaby is poised for success in the post-pandemic world.