Blunt Business

Unrivaled Brands CEO Frank Knuettel today on Blunt Business with Jorge Hermida only on Cannabis Radio. Our next guest has decades of experience in working with and advising public and private companies on financial management and controls, M&A, capital markets transactions, and operating and financial restructurings. Bob Hoban in Forbes recently wrote: There are indicators, not the least of which was the House’s passage of the MORE ACT, that senior members of the Biden administration, like Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, are moving toward federal cannabis legalization. This is building a wave of momentum for U.S. cannabis investment and goes hand in hand with the trend of industry consolidation we’ve seen in recent months. With this growing enthusiasm and confidence, increasing mergers and acquisition activity, and investors looking for companies to fund, one must ask the question – how does one evaluate cannabis investments? So we talk about the opportunities that Unrivaled Brands is focusing on an

FlowerHire with CEO David Belsky today on Blunt Business with Jorge Hermida only on Cannabis Radio. Our next guest runs a leading staffing and talent strategy firm serving the regulated cannabis industry. It has filled over 300 positions in 10 states since its inception in 2017. To bring listeners up to speed, David built his career in executive search over the course of 16 years. During that time, he spent 13 years with the same company, focusing on tech. Since our chat last June, he launched the FlowerHire X application platform. David told Benzinga he created FlowerHire X, to help job seekers understand what type of job in cannabis is relevant for them and help companies hire the right type of folks in the right type of job to unlock the potential of their workforce and reduce turnover. We talk about this new platform and the solutions he hopes this will provide.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Nirvana Group with CEO Arshad Lasi today on Blunt Business only on Cannabis Radio. Our next guest runs one of the most prominent and well-known cannabis companies in Oklahoma, which boasts a sprawling 30-acre cultivation facility, 3,000 square foot production center, wholesale distribution company, multiple house brands, and an ever-expanding roster of medical dispensaries. Delays in implementing Oklahoma’s “seed-to-sale” tracking system for medical marijuana have sowed confusion for businesses in the fast-growing cannabis industry as law enforcement authorities step up their enforcement efforts for illicit marijuana products. Oklahoma voters approved medical marijuana in 2018 under State Question 788. Most states with legal medical or recreational cannabis markets have some type of tracking system to verify that products are grown, processed, transported, and sold under the law.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Pure Craft CBD with CEO Jason Navarrete today on Blunt Business only on Cannabis Radio. Our next guest is a serial entrepreneur, real estate investor, and adjunct professor, who recently sold his cannabis growing company for $250 Million and is now launching a CBD company with nanotechnology that he has developed with MIT engineers. seed to sale approach and hybrid business model is said to be a precursor to the evolution of the cannabis industry in the coming decades. “We only partner with farmers that understand the importance of genetics and science in regard to cultivating premium hemp biomass. Our products are made following the strictest guidelines and quality control measures, allowing us to call them a pharmaceutical grade."Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Flourish Software with Colton Griffin and Pam Pho today on Blunt Business only on Cannabis Radio. Flourish started with a trip to California in 2017. The creators of Flourish met a team of experienced cultivators who were impressed with their supply chain and enterprise software background. They discovered that while cannabis was set to explode, the industry lacked sophisticated systems to support this growth. At that time, we were working on supply chain analytics and process improvement projects for traditional logistics operations and saw strong parallels between the Flourish background and the industry’s needs. As passionate supporters of legalization, they saw their opportunity to support the most exciting industry in the market and created Flourish.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Emjay with CEO Chris Vaughn today on Blunt Business only on Cannabis Radio. Our next guest is a serial entrepreneur and leader in the tech, lifestyle, and Bev-alcohol industries, who has redefined how the Bev-alcohol industry connects with consumers online. He has consulted the likes of AB-InBev, Pernod Ricard, Universal Music Group, Tesco, Diageo, Bevmo, and 7-Eleven. Emjay is a vertically integrated cannabis retail and delivery company that, thanks to a merger with Saucey last October, has existing access to 22 U.S. markets for alcohol deliveries and a robust on-demand cannabis delivery service throughout Southern California. Warren Bobrow at Forbes explained Emjay as “helping destigmatize cannabis distribution by disrupting the traditional supply chain in cannabis delivery.” Chris told Forbes: “Just seven years ago the largest alcohol companies in the world had almost no involvement in online shopping or last-mile delivery. We built one of the largest Bev-alcohol marketplaces in the country, and through th

Hub International Senior Vice President Jim Clements based in Tucson, Arizona and Jay Virdi, HUB Chief Sales Officer of Cannabis Insurance and Risk Services today on Blunt Business only on Cannabis Radio. Our next guests represent the fifth largest privately held, a full-service global insurance brokerage in the world. They provide risk management, insurance, employee benefits, retirement, and wealth management products and services. They provide risk management, insurance, employee benefits, retirement, and wealth management products and services. They are one of the first insurance brokerages to develop a specialty in cannabis. A bipartisan group of U.S. Senators—Rand Paul (R-KY), Robert Menendez (D-NJ), and Jeffrey Merkley (R-KY)—recently introduced the Clarifying Law Around Insurance of Marijuana Act (CLAIM Act). The proposed legislation is intended to encourage insurance for members of the cannabis industry operating in compliance with state and local law. The CLAIM Act would prohibit federal agencies fr

ABSTRAX with Max Koby and Kevin Koby today on Blunt Business only on Cannabis Radio. Our next guests founded a leading manufacturer of award-winning, naturally derived terpene blends that are procured from plants found all around the world.. They are producing some groundbreaking advancements in the cannabis and terpene industry. ABSTRAX has officially become the First Terpene Distributor on Weedmaps' WM Exchange, the Wholesale Cannabis Platform from WM Business. Part of the WM Business product suite, WM Exchange is a platform that streamlines discovery between licensed buyers and sellers. Now, retailers and brands on Weedmaps will have access to ABSTRAX's wide variety of terpenes.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

ONE Cannabis Group with Andrew Bowden, CEO of Item 9 Labs, and Mike Weinberger, Chief Franchise Officer of Unity Rd. today on Blunt Business only on Cannabis Radio. ONE Cannabis Group, the parent company to the cannabis dispensary franchise Unity Rd., recently announced that it had been acquired by Item 9 Labs Corp. The newly formed entity becomes the first vertically integrated cannabis franchisor in the United States. The combined business will escalate lead flow for Unity Rd. franchise development and mitigate challenges new and existing dispensary owners face. Unity Rd. offers the safest route for entrepreneurs looking to enter an industry that boasts unrivaled potential, helping franchise partners confidently enter the complex cannabis space. We talk about their Local Alliance Program a little bit later on, but first Andrew takes us through the overall menu of services they provide for aspiring and established entrepreneurs.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https:/

Drop Delivery with CEO Vanessa Gabriel today on Blunt Business only on Cannabis Radio. Our guest is a self-described serial entrepreneur who runs the cannabis industry’s only all-in-one delivery technology solution for delivery companies and retailers. Drop provides a complete suite of software for Cannabis delivery services. Their software provides your company its own branded e-commerce app, customizable rewards and loyalty program, SMS texting to communicate with your customers, smart deals to increase revenue, compliance integration with METRC for state regulations, last-mile delivery logistics to track your drivers and deliveries, and the ultimate dashboard to manage everything from inventory to your staff.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

AphriHelios Global, LLC with CEO Darin Hickman today on Blunt Business only on Cannabis Radio. Our next guest runs a new startup company that seeks to become a pan-African vertically integrated cannabis company that not only leverages Africa’s prime position as a low-cost producer of quality cannabis-related products but also brings African (continental and diaspora) brands to the global market. AphriHelios Global is a full-value-chain focused, Southern Africa producer, processor, and distributor headquartered in Bethesda, MD with active offices in Cape Town, South Africa, and Maseru, Lesotho. The team has a combined 60 years of corporate finance, agribusiness, and project management industry expertise.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Eybna with Matthew Mograbi Director of US Operations today on Blunt Business only on Cannabis Radio. Our next guest joins us representing a pioneering technology company and terpene manufacturer with two locations in California and in Israel, is expanding its U.S. footprint with the opening of new production and R&D facilities as well as strategic partnerships with leading companies across the consumer packaged goods supply chain. With Vertosa Labs, for product innovation and expanding access to the experiential and therapeutic potential of cannabis-based ingredients.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Bespoke Financial with CEO & Co-Founder George Mancheril today on Blunt Business only on Cannabis Radio. Our next guest runs the first licensed commercial lender in the United States focused on the legal cannabis industry, offering short-term lending options to fuel business growth. Bespoke Financial is a VC-backed financial solutions provider that offers custom-tailored funding within the niche business environments of the cannabis industry. They provide immediate access to liquidity for the enhanced cash flow that is so important for growth. Notably, in October of 2019, the venture capital firm co-founded by Snoop Dogg, Casa Verde Capital, led Bespoke Financial’s $7 million funding round. Talk to me about the level of capital and investment that is available out there that a firm like yours is able to bring in. Considered a fintech company, Bespoke offers cannabis cultivators, distributors, brands, and more access to short-term loans via invoice and inventory financing.Advertising Inquiries: https://red

Global Cannabis Applications Corp with CEO Brad Moore today on Blunt Business only on Cannabis Radio. Our next guest runs a publicly traded company and global leader in designing, developing, SaaS licensing, and acquiring innovative data technologies for the medical cannabis industry. Brad's team recently launched a Uniswap Marketing Token, which adds Ether Cryptocurrency as an Alternative Asset to the Balance Sheet. The Uniswap-inclusion marketing initiative is to commit to marketing spend of 1% of its quarterly sales revenue buying GCAC tokens on Uniswap every 3 months.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Morning Dough with CEO Itay Paz today on Cannabis Radio. Our next guest is an entrepreneur, an international speaker, and a world expert in digital marketing and affiliate marketing helping entrepreneurs & business owners worldwide to grow their businesses using the power of the internet. When we met our guest he was hosting an affiliate conference in Israel called Affilicon. Israel has a very active cannabis market and a lot of research is being conducted. We talk about his entry into incorporating cannabis into the digital marketing ecosystem. In June 2019, you hosted a session on Digital Marketing and Cannabis at the DMIExpo Digital & Affiliate Conference which he held in Israel.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Rosinbomb with CEO Fred Angelopoulos and Rosinbomb President and Founder Ryan Mayer today on Blunt Business only on Cannabis Radio. In the modern age of weed, few things are as exciting as making your own dabs, and my next guests have a product line that gives the ever-growing concentrate community the opportunity to do just that. The Rosinbomb Rocket is widely acclaimed as the best personal, solventless rosin press in the world. As part of this innovative initiative to merge creative design and function, Thus you partnered with Tommy to release the first-ever Tommy Chong-inspired presses. Forbes.com called the Rocket ‘Revolutionary Technology That Creates Perfect THC/CBD Rosin Every time’ and Tech expert website Engadget named the Rocket ‘The Panini Press Of Weed.’ They started the company when he was developing some innovative tech for juice presses, saw the need for affordable and easy-to-use rosin presses in the Cannabis/CBD markets for customers looking for high-potency extracts. He told Warren Bobrow at

Dr. Dina: Coughy Talk, Cannabis Confidential And More today on Blunt Business only on Cannabis Radi0. Once Snoop Dogg lays a nickname on you, it sticks for life – just ask “Dr. Dina,” his longtime friend, confidante, and business associate. Dr. Dina is not a board-certified M.D., nor did she go to medical school. Rather, Dr. Dina received her nickname from Snoop for being one of the pioneers of the movement in Southern California to provide safe access to medical cannabis in accordance with state law.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Kimberly Leonard, the Senior Health Care Policy Reporter at Insider, joins us today on Blunt Business only on Cannabis Radio. Our next guest is the senior healthcare reporter for Insider's DC bureau, focused on policy and politics, and she joins us to talk about her recent reporting surrounding legalization and what our elected officials are doing to decriminalize cannabis, legalize cannabis, or both.Kimberly (and Jeremy Berke, one of our previous guests and cohort at Insider) recently reported that Democratic leaders want to federally legalize cannabis, but six Democratic senators on Capitol Hill told Insider they had reservations about doing so. We talk about the hesitation and the pressure that is leading to these reservations that she learned about. In December, the MORE ACT was passed in the House and I haven't felt it has been anything more than symbolic. The SAFE Banking Act is being reintroduced after passing the House in 2019. We dive into how the Senate Democrats leaning on the bills in fron

MJBizCon with Chris Walsh, CEO MJBizDaily, MJBizCon today on Blunt Business only on Cannabis Radio. Our next guest is the founding editor of Marijuana Business Daily during the company’s launch in 2011, becoming the first journalist in the United States to focus exclusively on covering the business of cannabis. Last year he was promoted to CEO where he the strategic vision of the company and its sister publication – Hemp Industry Daily – while educating mainstream industries about the marijuana and hemp sectors. Founded in 2011, MJBiz is the most trusted, independent publisher and event producer serving America’s cannabis industry entrepreneurs and investors. Cited by the Wall Street Journal, Fortune, Dow Jones, Harvard Business Review Blog, and a host of other media, our team of professional business journalists, researchers, and event producers are dedicated to bringing the cannabusiness community unbiased information and connections it needs to thrive. MJBizCon is scheduled to return this October in Las Ve

Tommy Chong joins Blunt Business to talk about his new collaboration with Rosinbomb on the new limited-edition Tommy Chong Rocket rosin press. The actor, musician, comedian, activist, and cultural icon also chimes in on the passage of adult-use cannabis legalization in New York state and how it could lead to nationwide legalization.Plus, Tommy also gives his take on the new collaborative lobbying efforts for cannabis (with the assist of Tobacco and Alcohol) and what effects if any it could have on the industry going forward, and how more influencers versus celebrities are making an impact on the marketing front. Finally, he reflects on new marketing efforts in celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Cheech and Chong.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy