Kristin Rogers co-founded Levia and built the Massachusetts cannabis beverage category from scratch. She sold to a multi-state operator, watched the innovation stall, and spent three years getting the brand back. The change of control finalized this month. She breaks down the acquisition mechanics, why nobody got rich, and how she is now building hemp DTC while fighting for multi-serving cannabis drinks in Massachusetts.🛒 Good Feels THC beverages: getgoodfeels.com00:01:04 Introduction: Kristin Rogers and Levia00:01:59 The Origin of Levia Tinctures00:07:05 From Substance Abuse Therapy to Cannabis CEO00:16:21 Pitching the Kowloon Partnership00:23:14 Selling Levia to an MSO00:29:03 The Reality of Corporate Overhead00:31:45 Starting the Buyback Conversation00:40:17 Hemp Direct to Consumer Strategy00:47:23 Petitioning for Multi-Serving Drinks00:54:10 The Future of Cannabis Beverage RegulationGuest: Kristin RogersLinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/kristin-rogersLevia: https://levia.buzz🎧 Full Episodes: highfunctioning.show🔔 Subscribe: tr.ee/highfunctioningsubscribe🎙 Spotify: tr.ee/highfunctioningspotify🍎 Apple Podcasts: tr.ee/highfunctioningapple#CannabisIndustry #CannabisBusinessStrategy #HempBeverages #CannabisPodcast #MSOAcquisition21+ where legal. Nothing for sale.

Emily Tuttle, Director of Business Development at Cannabis Creative Group, joins Jason Reposa to break down the "3-Funnel System" driving revenue for top dispensaries.

In this tactical episode, we cover:

- SEO Strategy: Why you must optimize before your website goes live.

- Paid Media: Real benchmarks for Google Ads ROAS and programmatic spend.

- CRM Retention: Using Alpine IQ and Springbig to segment customers and stop wasting text credits.

- Compliance: How to get unbanned on Meta and build a social media playbook.

- The Influencer Trap: Why trackable ROI beats "clout" every time.

Whether you are a dispensary owner or a brand founder, this episode provides a roadmap for where your next marketing dollar should go.

Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

3:20 Marketing Plans

10:48 Stealing Competitor Traffic

15:13 Media Budgets

22:26 The 3-Funnel System

26:33 Meta Compliance

39:05 Influencer Traps

55:51 Website IP Ownership

Emily Tuttle, Director of Business Development at Cannabis Creative Group, joins Jason Reposa to break down the "3-Funnel System" driving revenue for top dispensaries.

In this tactical episode, we cover:

- SEO Strategy: Why you must optimize before your website goes live.

- Paid Media: Real benchmarks for Google Ads ROAS and programmatic spend.

- CRM Retention: Using Alpine IQ and Springbig to segment customers and stop wasting text credits.

- Compliance: How to get unbanned on Meta and build a social media playbook.

- The Influencer Trap: Why trackable ROI beats "clout" every time.

Whether you are a dispensary owner or a brand founder, this episode provides a roadmap for where your next marketing dollar should go.

Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

3:20 Marketing Plans

10:48 Stealing Competitor Traffic

15:13 Media Budgets

22:26 The 3-Funnel System

26:33 Meta Compliance

39:05 Influencer Traps

55:51 Website IP Ownership

Emily Tuttle, Director of Business Development at Cannabis Creative Group, joins Jason Reposa to break down the "3-Funnel System" driving revenue for top dispensaries.

In this tactical episode, we cover:

- SEO Strategy: Why you must optimize before your website goes live.

- Paid Media: Real benchmarks for Google Ads ROAS and programmatic spend.

- CRM Retention: Using Alpine IQ and Springbig to segment customers and stop wasting text credits.

- Compliance: How to get unbanned on Meta and build a social media playbook.

- The Influencer Trap: Why trackable ROI beats "clout" every time.

Whether you are a dispensary owner or a brand founder, this episode provides a roadmap for where your next marketing dollar should go.

Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

3:20 Marketing Plans

10:48 Stealing Competitor Traffic

15:13 Media Budgets

22:26 The 3-Funnel System

26:33 Meta Compliance

39:05 Influencer Traps

55:51 Website IP Ownership

Hennessy Shaw has spent 12 years in retail cannabis. She started as an executive assistant at Rhode Island's first medical dispensary and now runs sales and marketing at Bud's Goods & Provisions. In this episode she explains how Bud's built concept stores that move product, why a simple terpene ranking card changed how customers shop, and what wholesale looks like when you spent your whole career as a buyer. Jason and Hennessy talk reciprocals, pre-roll party packs, compliance stories, and what keeps good retail employees on the floor.21+ where legal. Nothing for sale.🎧 Full Episodes: highfunctioning.show🔔 Subscribe: tr.ee/highfunctioningsubscribe🎙️ Spotify: tr.ee/highfunctioningspotify🍎 Apple: tr.ee/highfunctioningapple

A hidden clause in a federal funding bill could shut down hemp drinks by November, and most operators still do not fully understand how serious the threat is.
In this episode of High Functioning, Christopher Lackner, founder and president of the Hemp Beverage Alliance, breaks down how the ban threat emerged, why the alcohol system may be the clearest regulatory path, and what happens if the category gets forced into a federal wall.
Learn more:
Hemp Beverage Expo:
https://hempbeverageexpo.com/
Hemp Beverage Alliance:
https://www.hempbeveragealliance.org/
Framingham Summit:
http://www.bit.ly/framinghamsummit
21+ where legal. Nothing for sale.
🎧 Full Episodes: highfunctioning.show
🔔 Subscribe: tr.ee/highfunctioningsubscribe
🎙️ Listen on Spotify: tr.ee/highfunctioningspotify
🍎 Apple Podcasts: tr.ee/highfunctioningapple

Brandon Pollack is the co-founder and CEO of Theory Wellness a cannabis company he built from a single medical dispensary in Bridgewater, MA in 2015 to 15 locations across five states, with 350 employees and zero outside equity investors. Two years ago, he sold the company to its own workers through an ESOP a move that eliminated federal taxes entirely and locked in value for every person on his team.

In this episode, Jason and Brandon get into the mechanics of how Theory actually works: why they stayed bootstrapped when everyone else was raising, how they watched overleveraged operators collapse in real time, why indoor cultivation is a dangerous bet right now, and what the hemp ban in November actually means for licensed operators.

Brandon also breaks down the ESOP structure in plain language how employees earn equity, why cannabis companies specifically should consider it, and what it costs to maintain. Plus: the Massachusetts ballot question that could repeal adult use entirely, and why the industry needs to show up for the "No" campaign with real money.

To help fight the state hemp ban, join the Committee to Protect Cannabis Regulation and RSVP for the upcoming Framingham Summit here: http://www.bit.ly/framinghamsummit21+ where legal. Nothing for sale.🎧 Full Episodes: highfunctioning.show🔔 Subscribe: tr.ee/highfunctioningsubscribe🎙️ Spotify: tr.ee/highfunctioningspotify🍎 Apple: tr.ee/highfunctioningapple

What does it really take to survive as an independent cannabis farm in Massachusetts? In this episode of High Functioning, host Jason Reposa sits down with Lisa Mauriello and Boey Bertold, the husband-and-wife team behind Paper Crane Cannabis. They run an organic, sun-grown Tier 6 farm in Hubbardston, assachusetts. Lisa and Boey share the unvarnished truth about building their business. Boey details his time in the legacy market and surviving a 2006 DEA bust, while Lisa explains the ongoing hurdles of dealing with hostile host town agreements. They break down the mechanics of outdoor cultivation, how they breed genetics specifically for the sun, and how they navigated the 2025 industry crash that forced dozens of companies to close. Finally, they outline their vision for the future, including on-site farm stands and eco-tourism.🕒 Chapters:00:00 - Episode Intro & Meeting Paper Crane Cannabis01:25 - Running a Business as a Married Couple04:22 - Dealing with Host Town Agreements06:53 - Breeding Genetics for Outdoor Farms12:25 - The Reality of Weather and Sun-Grown Cultivation16:12 - Expanding into Greenhouse Production18:35 - The Legacy Era: Surviving a 2006 DEA Bust24:19 - Beating the Case and Naming Paper Crane31:12 - Joining the First Social Equity Cohort38:41 - Building the Farm and Facing Local Opposition52:00 - Grassroots Marketing and Educating Consumers01:03:05 - Creating Farm Stands and Eco-Tourism01:07:04 - Surviving the 2025 Cannabis Industry Crash21+ where legal. Nothing for sale.🎧 Full Episodes: highfunctioning.show🔔 Subscribe: tr.ee/highfunctioningsubscribe🎙️ Spotify: tr.ee/highfunctioningspotify🍎 Apple: tr.ee/highfunctioningapple

What does it really take to survive as an independent cannabis farm in Massachusetts? In this episode of High Functioning, host Jason Reposa sits down with Lisa Mauriello and Boey Bertold, the husband-and-wife team behind Paper Crane Cannabis. They run an organic, sun-grown Tier 6 farm in Hubbardston, Massachusetts. Lisa and Boey share the unvarnished truth about building their business. Boey details his time in the legacy market and surviving a 2006 DEA bust, while Lisa explains the ongoing hurdles of dealing with hostile host town agreements. They break down the mechanics of outdoor cultivation, how they breed genetics specifically for the sun, and how they navigated the 2025 industry crash that forced dozens of companies to close. Finally, they outline their vision for the future, including on-site farm stands and eco-tourism.🕒 Chapters:00:00 - Episode Intro & Meeting Paper Crane Cannabis01:25 - Running a Business as a Married Couple04:22 - Dealing with Host Town Agreements06:53 - Breeding Genetics for Outdoor Farms12:25 - The Reality of Weather and Sun-Grown Cultivation16:12 - Expanding into Greenhouse Production18:35 - The Legacy Era: Surviving a 2006 DEA Bust24:19 - Beating the Case and Naming Paper Crane31:12 - Joining the First Social Equity Cohort38:41 - Building the Farm and Facing Local Opposition52:00 - Grassroots Marketing and Educating Consumers01:03:05 - Creating Farm Stands and Eco-Tourism01:07:04 - Surviving the 2025 Cannabis Industry Crash21+ where legal. Nothing for sale.🎧 Full Episodes: highfunctioning.show🔔 Subscribe: tr.ee/highfunctioningsubscribe🎙️ Spotify: tr.ee/highfunctioningspotify🍎 Apple: tr.ee/highfunctioningapple

How do you successfully juggle three different companies at the same time? In this episode of the High Functioning podcast, host Jason Reposa sits down with Samantha (Sam) Kanter, a powerhouse entrepreneur who runs Sam Canter Events alongside two distinct cannabis brands.Sam pulls back the curtain on what it takes to manage an event agency for over 13 years while pivoting to build businesses in the fast-paced, highly regulated cannabis space. From her unique productivity workflows (sometimes you just need Bravo in the background!) to the real-time challenges of sourcing the right manufacturing partners, Sam shares the raw, unfiltered reality of life as a multi-business founder. Whether you're an aspiring entrepreneur, an event planner, or operating in the cannabis industry, this episode is packed with actionable insights on scaling, delegating, and maintaining your sanity.

21+ where legal. Nothing for sale.🎧 Full Episodes: highfunctioning.show🔔 Subscribe: tr.ee/highfunctioningsubscribe🎙️ Spotify: tr.ee/highfunctioningspotify🍎 Apple: tr.ee/highfunctioningapple