CBD OIL

The task of preserving privacy for any records platform, especially a cannabis registry, cannot simply be relegated to ones and zeros lurking in some forgotten codebase. This past year taught us many lessons, especially related to the trauma unleashed by vulnerabilities in government domains. We learned time and again that a registrant’s privacy must be the first order of business for the architects of registries.

But the first order of business isn’t the last order of business. That intention and effort to secure privacy must then be communicated and reinforced through real-world reality checks.

Lapses in data security and rising distrust for government institutions block the efficacy of well-intentioned and vital registries. Those states launching new registries in 2021 are at a precarious crossroads as public trust erodes.

As I write this, we’ve just learned illicit operators hacked a third-party service provider for the Washington State Auditor’s office. The attack compromised the personal data of 1.4 million users seeking unemployment benefits. Security hacks are a cautionary tale, whose impact is felt too often.

But many in the government sector are staring at a once-in-a-generation challenge to launch new registries – those related to cannabis – with privacy top-of-mind from the initial Request For Bid.“The question isn’t when these privacy-first registries will be implemented, it’s a question of whether they’ll be implemented proactively ahead of hacks or after the damage is done.”

Here’s how:

Table Stakes for New Cannabis Registries

These suggestions are just the beginning, and I see them as the minimum buy-in to begin the architecture of a new cannabis registry. They include:

• End-to-end data encryption while in transit and within the system while the data is at rest.
• A solution that is a cloud-native web application which is managed as a service for maximum uptime and strong security posture.
• Registries should also leverage algorithms and machine learning to ensure accurate data entry by analyzing incorrect or duplicate data before it is saved within the system.

Beyond HIPAA

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requires privacy and security measures to protect Personal Health Information (PHI). Debate exists on whether compliance is a requirement for all entities transacting in the medicinal cannabis space. While some state registries are exempt from HIPAA, others choose to provide HIPAA compliance not just for the optics, but the known benefit to users’ privacy and confidence. New cannabis registries should commit to HIPAA-compliance to set a trusted new privacy standard for medical patient credentials and legal authorization for the use of cannabis for medical purposes.

That’s just the start. Registries should also ensure SOC2 Type II certification, which safeguards security, site availability, confidentiality and privacy through independent third-party auditors.

Connect with Confidence

Registries function as a hub of information in an often-confusing cannabis space. The California Bureau of Cannabis Control displays more than 25 links wired into its top navigation bar alone. Each link sends the curious to new resources. Registries must establish themselves as credible resources, especially when directing users to third-party sites.

One example is for cannabis registries to provide secure access to healthcare professionals who are verified by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA). These healthcare professionals are licensed to distribute controlled substances including cannabis. Each third-party link should offer the same high-level of scrutiny to enshrine confidence and credibility in the registry.

Next-Generation ID Cards

A cannabis registry card should not just be a document, but a toolset that attests to the identity and the authority of the carrier represented. An illicit counterfeiting market seeks to exploit registry card vulnerabilities. Next generation ID cards present the best defense against counterfeiting and illegal use with robust security measures. That starts with assuring that any credential is mobile ID compatible with iOS Wallet and GooglePay for mobile identification.

ID cards should also include:

The automated modification of the document bearer’s photograph to ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) standards. This critical modification makes the photograph easier to use for ID verification; it also facilitates the detection of photograph substitution.

A two-dimensional barcode compiles information contained in a one-dimensional barcode. It also delivers confirmation of other data shown on the card or in the system such as license authorization and limitations. Adding additional material to the physical document such as holograms, UV image, micro-printing or laser perforations offers another level of protection against illicit use or counterfeiting.

While cannabis registries are the beginning, they’re not the end. Driving efficacy for government registries needed for COVID19 track-and-tracing, cannabis plant track-and-tracing and vaccine distribution require the same attention to privacy, security and ultimate useability. A sea change is required – not just for the sake of those who use the registries but also for those who must implement, deploy and maintain those registries. The question isn’t when these privacy-first registries will be implemented, it’s a question of whether they’ll be implemented proactively ahead of hacks or after the damage is done. I believe the government sector leaders exploring new cannabis registries offer the wisdom and foresight to choose the proactive approach.

 

By a vote of 70-30, the U.S. Senate today confirmed Merrick Garland to be U.S. attorney general. While, prior to his confirmation, the new attorney general had not been outspoken about cannabis, federal prosecution of marijuana-related crimes, or the federal-state divide over the legality of cannabis, Attorney General Garland did offer the state-legal cannabis industry in the U.S. reason for optimism during his recent confirmation hearings.

Most notably, responding to a question from Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) concerning potentially reissuing the Cole Memorandum, then-Judge Garland, testified that he did not think it was a “useful use” of limited federal resources to prosecute most cannabis-related conduct:

“This is a question of the prioritization of our resources and prosecutorial discretion. It does not seem to me a useful use of limited resources that we have, to be pursuing prosecutions in states that have legalized and that are regulating the use of marijuana, either medically or otherwise. I don’t think that’s a useful use.

“I do think we need to be sure there are no end-runs around the state laws that criminal enterprises are doing.  So that kind of enforcement should be continued. But I don’t think it’s a good use of our resources, where states have already authorized. That only confuses people, obviously, within the state.”

The Cole Memorandum was prepared in 2013 by then-Deputy U.S. Attorney General James M. Cole. It offered “Guidance Regarding Marijuana Enforcement,” identified several federal “enforcement priorities,” and provided that the federal government generally would refrain from prosecuting marijuana-related offenses unless they implicated one of those enforcement priorities.

Notably, in a Feb. 22, 2021 article, “AG Nominee Garland Supports Pot Prosecution Pullback,” Law360 observed: “Judge Garland was careful not to say he would reinstate the memo specifically, saying he didn’t have all its tenets in mind at that very moment.  But he has read it and is familiar with it, he said.”

Thereafter, in his “Responses to Questions for the Record,” then-Judge Garland offered further insight into his thinking about cannabis:

Responding to questions from Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), the nominee repeated:

• “The Department of Justice has not historically devoted resources to prosecuting individuals for simple possession of marijuana.  As I suggested at my hearing, I do not think it the best use of the Department’s limited resources to pursue prosecutions of those who are complying with the laws in states that have legalized and are effectively regulating marijuana.  I do think we need to be sure, for example, that there are no end runs around the state laws by criminal enterprises, and that access is prohibited to minors.”
• “As I testified at my hearing, it is important to focus our attention on violent crimes and other crimes that greatly endanger our society, and prosecutions for simple marijuana possession are not an effective use of limited resources.  As I testified, we have seen disparate treatment in these prosecutions that has had a harmful impact on people and communities of color, including stymied employment opportunities and social and economic instability.”

The just-confirmed attorney general also responded similarly to a question posed by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas):

As I testified at my hearing, it is important to focus our attention on violent crimes and other crimes that greatly endanger in our society. Large-scale illicit drug trafficking should be distinguished from simple marijuana possession and should be vigorously investigated and prosecuted.”

Beyond these few statements, however, Attorney General Garland, who had previously been nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court, reportedly has not made many public statements about cannabis. According to Marijuana Moment, before his recent testimony, the Attorney General’s “views on marijuana policy have been largely unclear to date.” And, addressing his recent testimony, Law360 observed in its February 22 report: “Judge Garland’s comments were his first on the Cole Memo.”

While Attorney General Garland still has not committed to supporting legalization, or even decriminalization, of cannabis at the federal level (or even to just reissuing the Cole Memorandum), his recent statements – which do seem similar in certain respects to ones made by former U.S. Attorney General William P. Barr during his confirmation hearings – stand in stark contrast to the approach of one of his recent predecessors, Jefferson B. Sessions III.  Appointed by President Donald J. Trump, Sessions, who had served previously as a U.S. Senator, rescinded the Cole Memorandum in 2018, replacing it with his own directive.  Attorney General Sessions was a notorious anti-cannabis crusader. In fact, according to a 2017 report in Politico Magazine, “[t]he longtime Alabama senator … had once joked that he considered the [Ku Klux] Klan to be OK guys until he found out they smoked pot. Only [advocates for marijuana law reform] weren’t quite sure he was kidding.” 

Regardless, the U.S. cannabis industry is optimistic that it now has an ally – or, at least, no longer an opponent – in the U.S. Department of Justice. For example, after his confirmation hearings, High Times reported that, although then-Judge General’s recent comments were “not exactly a ringing endorsement of cannabis policy reform, Justin Strekal, the political director for the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), said in a statement from the organization that [then-Judge] Garland’s comments ‘indicate that he has no intention of curbing the progress being made in the regulation and consumer access of cannabis and for that, we can breathe a momentary sigh of relief.’”

According to Strekal: “There is much work left to do, but for the first time in over 4 years, supporters of ending federal marijuana criminalization no longer have an active opponent leading the Department of Justice.”

Any change in U.S. public policy concerning cannabis likely would have wide-ranging effects, impacting court decisions, contract enforcement, and even, for example, the insurance market. For example, in 2016 – citing the Cole Memorandum and then-developing federal public policy – the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado, in The Green Earth Wellness Center v. Atain Specialty Ins. Co., 163 F. Supp. 3d 821 (D. Colo. 2016), required a commercial insurer to cover a marijuana-related loss(es). Determining generally that enforcement of the parties’ contractual agreement would not violate public policy, that court explained that, even then, there was a “difference between the federal government’s de jure and de facto public policies regarding state-regulated marijuana.”

As such, if and when the Cole Memorandum (or some similar directive) is reissued, cannabis use is legalized or decriminalized federally, or the DOJ even just signals a friendlier approach to cannabis at the federal level, courts – especially federal courts – undoubtedly will take notice, likely resulting in more cannabis-friendly judicial decisions as well. 

As such, starting today, the cannabis industry would be well served to keep careful track of any signals – formal policies or even just off-the-cuff statements – concerning cannabis that are offered by the new Attorney General and/or his DOJ.

Michael H. Sampson, Esq. is co-Chair of Leech Tishman Fuscaldo & Lampl LLC’s (“Leech Tishman”) Cannabis practice group, which is available to help with any or all cannabis-related legal issues.  Mr. Sampson and Leech Tishman will continue to monitor developments in cannabis-related public policy, Attorney General Garland’s public statements concerning cannabis, any further developments at the DOJ affecting the cannabis industry, and their collective effect on judicial decisions.  Mr. Sampson, who has a national cannabis-related legal practice, can be reached at msampson@leechtishman.com or at 412.261.1600.

 

On March 23, 2021, Cannabis Industry Journal is hosting our annual Cannabis Cultivation Virtual Conference. From Noon to 5 pm EST, you’ll get access to nine veterans of the cultivation market discussing a variety of topics related to the ins and outs of growing cannabis and hemp.

Hear from subject matter experts who will share their perspectives on growing organically, facility design and planning, hemp farming and integrated pest management.

Back in December during the Cannabis Quality Virtual Conference, the Cultivation Technology episode featured a session titled A Panel Discussion: Integrated Lifecycle of Designing a Cultivation Operation. Due to a large amount of interest and attendee questions that the panel did not have time to address, we are reprising this panel discussion and bringing it back on March 23.

Speakers for that panel discussion include: Gretchen Schimelpfenig, PE, Technical Director of Resource Innovation; Brandy Keen, Co-Founder & Sr. Technical Advisor at Surna, Inc; Adam Chalasinski, Applications Engineer at Rough Brothers/Nexus Greenhouse Systems/Tetra; David Vaillencourt, Founder & CEO of The GMP Collective, and Kyle Lisabeth, Vice President of Horticulture at Silver Bullet Water.

Other talks from the Cannabis Cultivation Virtual Conference on March 23 include:

• Why CBD Companies Should Go Organic
  • Brad Kelley, COO of Socati
• The Beginner’s Guide to Integrated Pest Management
  • David Perkins, Founder of Floresco Consulting
• Starting from Scratch: Launching a Hemp Farm in Georgia
  • Reginald “Reggie” Reese, Founder & CEO of The Green Toad Hemp Farm
  • Dwayne Hirsch, President & Chief of Business Development at The Green Toad Hemp Farm

You can check out the agenda in its entirety and register here. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask speakers questions during the live Q&A session that follows each session. Registration is complimentary. For sponsorship opportunities, contact RJ Palermo at Rj@innovativepublishing.net

Fire & Flower, a network of 79 retail dispensaries in Canada and the developer of the Hifyre technology platform, has signed a licensing agreement with American Acres that will bring the brand to the U.S.

The strategic agreement offers a path forward for Fire & Flower in California, Arizona and Nevada (and beyond) by getting the brand in front of U.S. consumers and providing American Acres with a digital-forward data platform. The first Fire & Flower-branded store will open in Palm Springs, Calif., in the first half of this year.

“For us, the us is this amazing opportunity because we’ve already honed our craft in a really competitive environment,” CEO Trevor Fencott said. Competition is the backbone of the industry, and Fencott is eager to get into that game in more open environments—rather than the limited license markets elsewhere in the U.S. With consumer engagement and data in the foreground, he said there’s an opportunity to go deep with tech and compete on the retail side of the cannabis industry.

It wasn’t too long ago, in late 2017 when Fire & Flower got started, that product selection in Canada was practically nil: “We have dry cannabis or cannabis oil. What do you want?” was how Fencott recalled the early days of Canadian dispensary relationships, even into the adult-use legalization era.

Product selection in the U.S., he says, is more varied and innovative, generally, which allows a data-forward company like Fire & Flower to hone its craft even more.

He sees data as a pillar of cannabis retail, something necessary in this vast and burgeoning industry, particularly as product innovation drives new categories and new consumer demands. Specifically, Fencott points to businesses like Warby Parker and b8ta, “digital-native” companies that are competing in innovative ways around the likes of retail behemoth Amazon.

“These retailers really did a great job figuring out how to fight with the big gorilla,” Fencott said, gesturing toward Amazon. “And we just copied the playbook, which was to use technology to engage your customers super deeply and have that deep engagement drive higher basket size and lifetime value of customers. Then the other thing they did that was really different is they view their vendor partners as customers.”

The data inputs go both ways: As a company like Fire & Flower is tracking consumer sales trends and preferences, so too is it engaging its vendors and wholesalers as consumers of the brand. Fencott said that this is an important perspective on the relationship with sellers, one that provides a helpful feedback loop for just that sort of product innovation that was missing under the early years of Canadian market regulations.

And still, behind the data, the brick-and-mortar store is vital. Fencott that the businesses would do well to view their store as media.

The dispensary is a place consumer engagement happens, where new products can be advertised and explained. That physical location is key to understanding how consumers are interacting with this emerging industry.

The American Acres move follows a 2020 deal between Fire & Flower and Couche-Tard, a Canadian convenience store operator known in the States for its Circle K brand. As part of the deal, Fire & Flower opened two retail stores adjacent to Circle K locations in Alberta. Fencott says the agreement is a good example of a “spoke” coming off Fire & Flower’s retail “hub,” part of a broader corporate strategy to reimagine the cannabis landscape.

“That’s a massive retailer repurposing some of their existing real estate into something that is hyper productive from a revenue standpoint,” he says. (Last year, Couche-Tard pulled in $54 billion in revenue.) It also provides an opportunity for Fire & Flower to flex its data-driven inventory management muscles, with only 600 square feet in those retail locations to provide the focused suite of SKUs that the company knows will move fast.

It might be a bit of foreshadowing for the cannabis industry as federal reform hovers vaguely in the conversation out of Washington, D.C. How will the retail landscape change once federal legalization takes shape?

It’s not easy to answer that question right now, but Fencott said he’s planning to be in position for the opportunity when it arises. To that end, the American Acres licensing deal sets up further acquisition possibilities down the road.

“We can give you this Fire & Flower operating model. We can give you this tech platform that we know is making our stores more valuable up here,” Fencott said. “That’s a tremendously valuable advantage for a group like them, and, again, we have this existing relationship.”

On the flip side of the deal, Fire & Flower is getting a discounted path to acquisition in the U.S.—in more mature markets that have a mostly vibrant sense of competition among private businesses. It’s a synergistic relationship, Fencott said, one that allows both Fire & Flower and American Acres to see a clear roadmap to the future.

It’s also indicative of broader market trends, where cash- and stock-heavy acquisition deals may no longer be the only game in town. Capital markets are welling up again in 2021, and investors are taking stock of legislative winds out of Washington. Cash is available, generally speaking, to those businesses that want and need it.

From Fencott’s vantage point, however, the brand-building power of consumer data is nudging its way into the conversation—quickly.

 

Fire & Flower, a network of 79 retail dispensaries in Canada and the developer of the Hifyre technology platform, has signed a licensing agreement with American Acres that will bring the brand to the U.S.

The strategic agreement offers a path forward for Fire & Flower in California, Arizona and Nevada (and beyond) by getting the brand in front of U.S. consumers and providing American Acres with a digital-forward data platform. The first Fire & Flower-branded store will open in Palm Springs, Calif., in the first half of this year.

“For us, the us is this amazing opportunity because we’ve already honed our craft in a really competitive environment,” CEO Trevor Fencott said. Competition is the backbone of the industry, and Fencott is eager to get into that game in more open environments—rather than the limited license markets elsewhere in the U.S. With consumer engagement and data in the foreground, he said there’s an opportunity to go deep with tech and compete on the retail side of the cannabis industry.

It wasn’t too long ago, in late 2017 when Fire & Flower got started, that product selection in Canada was practically nil: “We have dry cannabis or cannabis oil. What do you want?” was how Fencott recalled the early days of Canadian dispensary relationships, even into the adult-use legalization era.

Product selection in the U.S., he says, is more varied and innovative, generally, which allows a data-forward company like Fire & Flower to hone its craft even more.

He sees data as a pillar of cannabis retail, something necessary in this vast and burgeoning industry, particularly as product innovation drives new categories and new consumer demands. Specifically, Fencott points to businesses like Warby Parker and b8ta, “digital-native” companies that are competing in innovative ways around the likes of retail behemoth Amazon.

“These retailers really did a great job figuring out how to fight with the big gorilla,” Fencott said, gesturing toward Amazon. “And we just copied the playbook, which was to use technology to engage your customers super deeply and have that deep engagement drive higher basket size and lifetime value of customers. Then the other thing they did that was really different is they view their vendor partners as customers.”

The data inputs go both ways: As a company like Fire & Flower is tracking consumer sales trends and preferences, so too is it engaging its vendors and wholesalers as consumers of the brand. Fencott said that this is an important perspective on the relationship with sellers, one that provides a helpful feedback loop for just that sort of product innovation that was missing under the early years of Canadian market regulations.

And still, behind the data, the brick-and-mortar store is vital. Fencott that the businesses would do well to view their store as media.

The dispensary is a place consumer engagement happens, where new products can be advertised and explained. That physical location is key to understanding how consumers are interacting with this emerging industry.

The American Acres move follows a 2020 deal between Fire & Flower and Couche-Tard, a Canadian convenience store operator known in the States for its Circle K brand. As part of the deal, Fire & Flower opened two retail stores adjacent to Circle K locations in Alberta. Fencott says the agreement is a good example of a “spoke” coming off Fire & Flower’s retail “hub,” part of a broader corporate strategy to reimagine the cannabis landscape.

“That’s a massive retailer repurposing some of their existing real estate into something that is hyper productive from a revenue standpoint,” he says. (Last year, Couche-Tard pulled in $54 billion in revenue.) It also provides an opportunity for Fire & Flower to flex its data-driven inventory management muscles, with only 600 square feet in those retail locations to provide the focused suite of SKUs that the company knows will move fast.

It might be a bit of foreshadowing for the cannabis industry as federal reform hovers vaguely in the conversation out of Washington, D.C. How will the retail landscape change once federal legalization takes shape?

It’s not easy to answer that question right now, but Fencott said he’s planning to be in position for the opportunity when it arises. To that end, the American Acres licensing deal sets up further acquisition possibilities down the road.

“We can give you this Fire & Flower operating model. We can give you this tech platform that we know is making our stores more valuable up here,” Fencott said. “That’s a tremendously valuable advantage for a group like them, and, again, we have this existing relationship.”

On the flip side of the deal, Fire & Flower is getting a discounted path to acquisition in the U.S.—in more mature markets that have a mostly vibrant sense of competition among private businesses. It’s a synergistic relationship, Fencott said, one that allows both Fire & Flower and American Acres to see a clear roadmap to the future.

It’s also indicative of broader market trends, where cash- and stock-heavy acquisition deals may no longer be the only game in town. Capital markets are welling up again in 2021, and investors are taking stock of legislative winds out of Washington. Cash is available, generally speaking, to those businesses that want and need it.

From Fencott’s vantage point, however, the brand-building power of consumer data is nudging its way into the conversation—quickly.

 

Today is International Women’s Day—an opportunity to celebrate women have chosen to challenge the status quo, helping break down barriers for themselves and others. It’s also a moment where we look toward the future with hope for all the more we can achieve for women around the world by working together.

Each year on March 8, we honor this tradition by highlighting the women of Cannabis Conference, an impressive roster of women shattering glass ceilings, making space for themselves and other notable women in the burgeoning cannabis industry.  

This listing is just a start. As we continue to announce speakers for Cannabis Conference (Aug. 24-26, 2021, at the Paris Las Vegas Hotel & Casino), there will be plenty more women innovators, leaders, entrepreneurs and trailblazers to highlight—so keep an eye on CannabisConference.com for continued updates to our speaker roster.

 

Bennett

Theresa Bennett

Editor, Hemp Grower

Theresa Bennett is editor of Hemp Grower. She joined HG and Cannabis Business Times as associate editor in November 2019 after working for GIE Media’s Recycling Group of magazines. Prior to her time with GIE, Bennett was the K-12 education reporter for the Akron Beacon Journal. Bennett is also a freelance writer whose work has appeared in Modern Farmer and newspapers across the country.

 

 

Boyajian

Salpy Boyajian

Executive Vice President / Board Chairman, Flower One

Salpy Boyajian joined Flower One in October of 2018 following the acquisition of NLV Organics (NLVO), a renowned consumer brand and luxury cultivator she co-founded in 2014. Boyajian now serves as the company’s Executive Vice President and Board Chairman, having previously held the title of Chief Operating Officer. Before entering the cannabis space, she served as the Mental Health Director for several leading non-profits in Los Angeles, ultimately founding her own non-profit organization before relocating to Nevada.

 

Goldsberry

Debby Goldsberry
Executive Director, Magnolia Wellness, FLOR
Co-Founder, Berkeley Patients Group collective 

Debby Goldsberry is executive director at Magnolia Wellness, an award-winning dispensary in Oakland, Calif., and the managing director of the Berkeley Community Care Center dispensary at Amoeba Music. She co-founded the Berkeley Patients Group (BPG) medical cannabis collective in 1999, directing its growth for more than 11 years. In 2017, Goldsberry published her first book, “Idiot’s Guide: Starting and Running a Marijuana Business.”

 

Kowalski

Emily Kowalski
Vice President of Cultivation, LeafLine Labs

Emily Kowalski is the Vice President of Cultivation at LeafLine Labs, LLC, one of two medical cannabis companies serving the patients of Minnesota. She utilizes her 10-plus years of experience in propagation, greenhouse production, and outdoor nursery production to cultivate consistent, healthy cannabis in LeafLine’s state-of-the-art indoor facility. Kowalski never settles for status quo and digs deep into data to drive quality and efficiency within her operation.

 

 

Neiden Tomaselli

Cassie Neiden Tomaselli

Conference Programming Director, Cannabis Conference

Contributing Editor, Cannabis Business Times, Cannabis Dispensary and Hemp Grower

Cassie Neiden Tomaselli is a media professional with 10+ years’ experience generating print, web, video and podcast content for both trade and consumer markets. She now serves as Conference Programming Director for Cannabis Conference, where she works with the event’s Advisory Board and editorial teams from Cannabis Business Times, Cannabis Dispensary and Hemp Grower to craft high-quality education for industry events. Previously, Neiden Tomaselli served as Director of Marketing & Communications for Firelands Scientific, an Ohio-based medical cannabis company.

 

 

Ratliff

Alisia Ratliff, PMP
Chief Executive Officer & Founder, Victus Capital Ventures, LLC

Alisia Ratliff, the CEO of Victus Capital Ventures and licensed project management professional, is a technical conference speaker, esteemed author, and ambitious entrepreneur. Possessing over 14 years of leadership experience expanding over several industries—Ratliff effectively manages technical and executive teams cross-departmentally while simultaneously overseeing all business operations, including supply chain, manufacturing, laboratory operations and product formulation. Ratliff helps her clients avoid repeating failed business models and implement sustainable business strategies no matter the ever-changing regulatory environment.

 

Ruscitto

Andriana Ruscitto

Assistant Editor, Cannabis Business Times, Cannabis Dispensary, Hemp Grower

Andriana Ruscitto was hired as an associate editor for Cannabis Business Times, Cannabis Dispensary and Hemp Grower in January 2021. Before joining GIE, Ruscitto attended Kent State University, where she worked in the university communications and marketing department, writing stories for the Kent State Today.

 

 

Schiller

Melissa Schiller

Senior Digital Editor, Cannabis Business Times & Cannabis Dispensary

Melissa Schiller joined the Cannabis Business Times team as an Assistant Digital Editor in June 2017 and now serves as Senior Digital Editor. Previously, she worked as an Audience Development Associate for GIE Media’s Ornamental Group of publications, where she managed the circulation for Cannabis Business Times, Garden Center, Nursery Management, and Greenhouse Management. She has also worked as a contributing writer and editorial assistant for a community newspaper and as a freelance writer for Northeast Ohio Media Group and Modern Tire Dealer.

 

Shreeve

Anna Shreeve
President, Urban Paragon, Inc., Targeted Intent, Inc., and The Bakeréé

Anna Shreeve is President of Urban Paragon, Inc., Targeted Intent, Inc., and The Bakeréé. Shreeve entered the medical cannabis industry seven years ago with her son, and she and her team opened The Baker, a division of Cookie Fam Genetics, a collaboration with legendary breeder “Jigga.” Shreeve’s group holds two recreational producer/processor licenses in Washington, and a recreational retail/processor license in Oregon.

 

 

 

Simakis

Michelle Simakis

Editor, Cannabis Business Times

Michelle Simakis is editor of Cannabis Business Times. She joined GIE Media in 2012 and most recently served as editor of Garden Center magazine, the leading trade publication covering the independent garden retail market. Under her direction, Garden Center expanded its Top 100 Independent Garden Centers List by devoting an entire issue to telling the stories of the leaders and companies ranked on the list. She also helped to launch the Garden Center Executive Summit, the educational conference for key-decision makers in the industry, and recently developed a the only daily e-newsletter in the market.

 

Skodzinski

Noelle Skodzinski

Editorial Director, Cannabis Business Times, Cannabis Dispensary, Hemp Grower, Cannabis Conference

Noelle Skodzinski has 25+ years of publishing experience. She co-founded Cannabis Business Times with previous owner Tim Hermes in 2014. She has been named among the Top 50 Most Influential Women in Cannabis. Previously, she held numerous editorial leadership roles, including serving as editorial director of the Publishing Group at North American Publishing Co., where she oversaw two national business magazines, all digital content products, as well as the annual Publishing Business Conference and related events. In 2018 and 2020, Skodzinski was named one of the “Top Women in Media” by Folio.  

 

 

Wiseman

Hope Wiseman
Owner, Mary & Main Dispensary

Born and raised in Prince George’s County, Md., Hope Wiseman has always been passionate about serving her community. After spending a year at SunTrust as an Equity Institutional Sales Analyst, Wiseman decided to continue striving for excellence by pursuing her dreams of entrepreneurship. In Fall 2017, Wiseman became the youngest Black woman dispensary owner in the United States with the opening of Mary & Main dispensary in Prince George’s County, Maryland. She has been featured in Black Enterprise, Huffington Post, Blavity, and Cannabis Dispensary. Wiseman is also a speaker and consultant to those looking to enter the industry.