Cocktail Whisperer
By Warren Bobrow
When it comes to cannabis, it’s the highly regulated and rigorous testing that sets the legal market apart from its underground counterpart. Testing provides consumers with accurate THC and cannabinoid concentration levels, as well as confirms the absence of pesticides, heavy metals and dangerous cutting agents.
Eight Cannabis Leaders Discuss Emerging Trends in the Industry
I have the great honor of trying out many products and visiting many dispensaries and cultivation sites, and can spot emerging trends, but wanted to see what some of the leaders in the industry are thinking, as well. So, I asked industry consultant Andrew DeAngelo, Peak Extracts’ Katie Stem, WAFBA’s Morris Beegle, Aster Farms’ Sam Ludwig, and Weed+Grub’s Mike Glazer & Mary Jane Gibson, AlpinStash’s Danny Murr-Sloat, and performer Laganja Estranja to share their insights with me.
Here’s what they had to say…
Now, this is a part of the cannabis business that I’m intrigued to know more about…I have a very personal reason why the work of respected counsel Jeffrey Welsh resonates with me. I grew up in an extremely conservative part of New Jersey where time stands still since cannabis prohibition took hold in the 1940s. There, cannabis is vilified instead of celebrated. Stigmas abound in this divided county— where cannabis arrests are more common than jay-walking tickets. That’s why I wish there were more individuals like Mr. Welsh in the world. The engagement of individuals like him will push the removal of certain stigmas, allowing for greater transparency in cannabis and entertainment. That’s what inspired me to interview him.
Warren Bobrow=WB: Why Cannabis? What brought you to the plant? How long have you worked around this healing plant?
WB: Please tell me about your company? What brought you to the cannabis business? What did you do originally?
Tuesday is GIVING TUESDAY and this day represents a great opportunity to support a very worthy cause, the Sweetleaf Collective. Sweetleaf Joe (above) has been raising funds for this essential organization since 1996. #GivingTuesday is a good way to help the Sweetleaf Collective reach their goals. The Sweetleaf Collective brings plant-based medicine directly to the people who need it most, regardless of their ability to pay. That pursuit is beyond honorable.
Warren Bobrow-WB: Please tell me about your company? What brought you to the cannabis business? What did you do originally?
There are seminal moments when companies have the opportunity to separate themselves from the pack. This occurs when a company takes a bold stand, drawing a line in the sand and making it clear to the rest of the universe that they stand for something, something greater than themselves, something greater than the sum of their parts. Normally those moments are recognized through financial gains or innovative ingenuity, but in this particular case, it is through social responsibility during a global pandemic. That’s why when I heard that the international cannabis brand Binske was donating meals to the Feeding America COVID-19 Relief Fund, I wanted to learn more, so I contacted Alex Pasternack whom I interviewed last year for an article in Forbes. What I have learned is truly impressive. From April-July, the Binske brand is donating 5 meals for every Binske product purchased across the country.
Based in San Jose, CA, Airfield Supply Company — a vertically-integrated cannabis dispensary that champions the notion that “High Is A Place” — recently celebrated its 10th anniversary. Ten years is a very long time in legit California cannabis, so this marker piqued my interest. Established to serve the medical market as the South Bay Healing Center in 2010 and rebranded for the recreational market in 2015, Airfield Supply Co. has grown into one of the highest-volume, single-site recreational cannabis dispensaries in the United States, serving more than 1,500 consumers daily — a full 300 of whom each day enter for the first time. I caught up with Airfield Supply Co.’s founder and CEO Marc Matulich to learn what makes Airfield so special.