Plant Prophets

Improving cannabis business performance with Shanita Penny Founder/CEO of Budding Solutions. Our next guest is an internationally recognized management consultant with over a decade of experience in helping Fortune 500 companies solve complex issues and help in improving business performance. Shanita’s reputation as a strategic thinker and a results-oriented leader was cultivated in management and consulting roles with companies such as Pepsico, McCormick and Company and JDA Software. Shanita is a certified Project Management Professional and Lean Six Sigma Green Belt. Prior to founding Budding Solutions, she successfully led over $5 million in Enterprise Governance, Risk and Compliance software projects for a major telecommunications company. The Minority Cannabis Business Association (MCBA), is the first non-profit organization created specifically to progress the cannabis industry by increasing diversity through the creation of equal access and economic empowerment for cannabis businesses, their patients, and the communities most affected by the war on drugs. She is also a member of the New Jersey Cannabis Industry Association’s (NJCIA) Board of Trustees. NJCIA is a nonprofit trade association dedicated to advancing the legalization of cannabis by promoting sensible policy for the responsible development and growth of a legalized cannabis-based economy.

Integrated science in cannabis with R. Michael Smullen. Smullen is Co-Founder, CEO, and Chairman, for AltMed Enterprises. AME is a nationally recognized medical cannabis company with operations in Arizona and Florida. Michael spent 31 years in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries building and leading commercial operations for several companies including three start-ups. Before founding AltMed Enterprises in 2014, Michael, a Senior Executive at MedImmune, was responsible for building a world class commercial organization and successfully launching the first monoclonal antibody approved in the US for an infectious disease. The drug, Synagis, became the 9th most successful biotech product of all time.

CannabisMD: Cannabis Media Integration with Miraculo CEO and former Viacom and Condé Naste Executive Vice President Michael Klein. Michael is a seasoned expert in building and growing media companies, and his deep editorial and creative expertise will be invaluable as we focus on our mission to provide consumers the information they want in the most useful and engaging way possible. A veteran media executive with more than twenty years of experience including at Condé Nast Entertainment, Discovery Communications, and MTV, Klein will oversee all creative and business operations for the company, launched in April 2018 by co-founders and chairmen G. Scott Paterson and Rory Millikin.

High quality and consistent cannabis with Americann CEO Tim Keogh. Keogh offers a unique combination of firsthand experience in the cannabis industry, from licensing to operations in multiple states, and an extensive background in real estate development. Keogh is also the director of a vertically-integrated Registered Marijuana Dispensary that is currently cultivating, processing and dispensing cannabis in Massachusetts, a board member of the Responsible Regulations Alliance, and invited speaker at cannabis industry conferences.

Nature shaped cannabis and hemp with Scott Goldie, CEO of Goldenseed a Vertically and horizontally integrated California cannabis and hemp business. Scott oversees and manages Goldenseed's vertically and horizontally integrated cannabis and hemp businesses. Goldenseed's cannabis and hemp are shaped in nature, not in a warehouse. All of their plants are 100% naturally grown with exceptional flowers, clones, and extracts based on sustainable farming practices. Santa Cruz-based Goldenseed focuses on the cultivation, manufacturing, distribution, and sale of high-quality cannabis and hemp grown in California. Goldenseed focuses its efforts to minimize its environmental impact while maximizing your ability to enjoy nature. Their cannabis cultivation takes place on more than 20 acres of nursery land tucked into the hills of Monterey Bay in Santa Cruz County.

Cannabis product transparency with Paul Botto, Co-Founder, and President of Lucid Green. Lucid Green is driving cannabis product transparency for consumers and brands alike by providing access to a product’s complete supply chain information. The platform helps budtenders and consumers know how a product will make them feel, how safe it is and what others are saying about it. Lucid Green makes sure that brands are able to know where their product is, who’s using it and what their inventory levels are.

Best practices from leading cannabis retailers with Ryan G Smith, Leaflink's CEO and Co-Founder. Leaflink is now live in 22 territories across the United States and Canada. It has offices in Los Angeles, New York, and Toronto. cannabis retailers and brands use LeafLink to manage over $1B+ per year in wholesale orders. Leaflink just released a new Retail Cannabis Purchasing Guide for cannabis dispensaries with best practices from leading cannabis retailers to help them take control of their purchasing process. The processes retailers use to evaluate vendors can vary a lot.

The fastest growing edibles company in Colorado with Peter Barsoom Founder and CEO of Nuka Enterprises, makers of 1906 Edibles. Our next guest runs one of the fastest growing edibles companies in Colorado. He and his company were recognized by Entrepreneur as a Top 100 Leader in Cannabis. He also serves on the board of numerous leading cannabis industry associations including Marijuana Industry Group, Colorado Leads, and the New Jersey Cannabis Industry Association. Peter made his way up and down Wall Street for close to two decades in his job overseeing consumer banking. His résumé includes turns at Merrill Lynch, American Express, and Morgan Stanley. 1906 is named for the year Congress passed a law that required food and drug products containing "addictive" or "dangerous" substances, from alcohol to cannabis, be labeled as such tackles edibles' usability problem on three fronts: taste, effect, and delivery.

The first cannabis compliance technology company with Jessica Billingsley, CEO of Akerna (formerly MJ Freeway). Our next guest is CEO of the first cannabis compliance technology company to be traded on Nasdaq making her the first CEO from this market to bring a company to a major U.S. exchange. She has recognized for Fortune’s “Most Promising Women Entrepreneur Award,” is also recognized as one of Inc.’s “Female Founders 100,” and was chosen for Entrepreneur Magazine’s inaugural 100 Powerful Women list. Jessica Billingsley has served as MJ Freeway’s Chief Executive Officer since April 2018. She co-founded MJ Freeway in 2010 and served as President from 2010 to April 2018. Prior to MJ Freeway, Jessica was CEO and founder of Zoco, a technology services firm with clients across the United States.

Expand CBD products in the health, wellness, and beauty sectors with Nancy Duitch, CEO, and founder of Sera Labs, INC. Nancy has over 30 years’ experience as an entrepreneur and leader in the consumer products industry. She has founded and developed several diverse businesses, from start-up to public company level, involving beauty, health care, wellness, and education, and has executed state-of-the-art campaigns generating over $3 billion in revenue for some of the most well-loved brands. Sera Labs was created to expand CBD products in the health, wellness, and beauty sectors, and is structured to connect the brand with customers in a results-oriented and fully-integrated relationship.