Harvest Health and Recreation CEO Steve White sat down for the final #WeedWeek episode with Grace Pedota to discuss how his company created a cannabis retail experience that had never been seen before (1:45), the importance of opening employment opportunities for veterans, women, and minorities (5:00) and why the cannabis industry is populated by so many ex-lawyers (12:15). Listen to the entire episode to hear Steve’s insight into how the $850m acquisition Verano Holdings materialized.
#WeedWeek spills over into its second week! Arcadian Fund Founder and CEO Matt Nordgren sat down with Phillip Shum (ed. debut host!) to chat about his experience as a pro quarterback and his perspective on team building and investments (3:15), his funds’ criteria for cannabis investments (7:00), and defining the consumer opportunity in Cannabis (e.g. akin to the early days of Apple Computer) (15:00). Listen until the end of the pod to hear Matt’s thoughts on the use-case for cannabis for athletes, life-lessons learned as the star of “Most Eligible Dallas” and his seven-day challenge for all listeners and viewers!
Curaleaf CEO Joseph Lusardi recently sat down with Barrington Miller during #WeedWeek to discuss why vertical integration is integral to controlling the quality and consistency of their product (4:00), how Curaleaf’s biggest advantage might be in its boardroom (6:00), and how evolving legislation is helping America recover from the “war on drugs” (10:30). Listen to the entire podcast to hear why Joseph Lusardi defines himself as a “reluctant pioneer” of the cannabis industry and how the industry is evolving in “dog years”.
A #HashtagFinance first, Barrington Miller hosts a three-way conversation with Cresco Labs’ (CSE:CL) Charles Bachtell and Joe Caltabiano during #WeedWeek. Both gentlemen share the lessons they learned from a previous life in the mortgage industry (1:30), how they distinguish the differences between traditional and non-traditional cannabis consumers (3:45), and the thinking behind Cresco’s acquisition of Origin House (8:15). Listen until the end to lean about Charles’ appointment to the Cannabis Legalization Subcommittee of Illinois Governor-elect JB Pritzker’s transition team and the importance of social equity in state transitions from medical to recreational cannabis.
Industry “OG” and CEO of Dixie Brands, Chuck Smith, recently sat down with Barrington Miller as part of Public Entrepreneur’s #WeedWeek podcast series. In this discussion Chuck shares why Dixie decided to focus on infused products and stay away from farming and cultivation (3:15), how the early origins of the company in medical cannabis have been integral to their efforts to build a portfolio of recreational product offerings (7:30) and the recent launch of CBD products for dogs AND cats! Listen until the end to learn about Chuck’s pioneering work on the Cannabis Trade Federation, his thoughts on cannabis taxation (ed. more interesting than it sounds), and their “transformative” JV with Khiron Life Sciences in Latin America.
