Smells Like Business

On this episode Tom is shifting the focus to you! He will explore 7 questions that you have to ask yourself if you are seriously considering joining the cannabis industry in Europe. Running a cannabis business, while exciting, really isn’t for everyone. If you believe that you have a future in cannabis, we encourage you to give this episode a listen and to really think about the questions being asked. Are they making you feel uncomfortable and uneasy? Or are they making you feel excised and confident? Whatever conclusion you end up with, this short episode is a great way to check if working with cannabis really is the right choice for you. 

The 7 Questions:

1. Do I really understand the cannabis plant and all the things it can do?
2. Do I have my finger on the cannabis pulse?
3. Am I comfortable with change?
4. What is the legal situation in my country?
5. Am I ready to be a cannabis advocate?
6. Can I think outside the box?
7. Do I have a business plan?

Links:

https://www.smellslikebusiness.com/contact

On this episode Tom is having a chat with Noah Tucker. Noah is a chef from New York  who has been calling Amsterdam his home for more than a decade now. Noah and his business and culinary partner, Anthony Joseph, founded High Cuisine with the purpose of creating and curating a fine dining experience using cannabis and other natural psychoactive herbs and ingredients such as truffles, mushrooms and kratom. They have since gone on to create their own TV show. They have released their first cookbook (with more to come), and have collaborated with world-renowned cocktail makers to create a mocktail recipe book using psychoactive ingredients.

Noah also explains what it’s like to cook with cannabis and other natural psychoactive ingredients, and kindly shares some incredible tips on how to cook with cannabis at home.

Other topics discussed:

•  Using food as a medium to take psychedelics.
• The importance of finding a good business partner.
• What is decarboxylation?
• Why you should decarboxylate your cannabis before cooking with it.
• Creating an entourage effect with different foods and psychoactive ingredients.
• The responsibility that goes into curating such an experience.
• What do different natural drugs taste like?
• How do you incorporate natural drugs into fine dining?
• How High Cuisine got their documentary series onto Videoland.
• The importance of using the best quality sourced ingredients.

Links:

High Cuisine - https://www.highcuisine.com/

Instagram - @highcuisineworld

Youtube Trailer - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5AUxXqzC5k

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/highcuisineworld/

*If you can't open the links through your podcast app, visit our Smells Like Business website!

On this episode Tom is having a chat with Davina Kaonohi. Davina is the CEO and Co-Founder of Element Apothec, a recently launched wellness skin and body care brand using CBD (and other minor cannabinoids) along with other natural ingredients. We discuss the different ways in which the company is creating brand awareness in an ever increasingly crowded and competitive CBD market. We also discuss the importance of building trust with your customers, and how being a transparent company can help you achieve this. Davina shares how Element Apothec is creating products with organic ingredients and sustainable practices, and how the CBD industry as a whole needs to develop.

Other topics discussed:

• Collaboration with TagOne to achieve transparency
• Is crowdfunding a useful tool to help launch a new brand
• What are CBG and CBN and what do they do?
• The family history tied to the remedies 
• Working with wholesalers and distributors vs. having your own e-commerce
• Working with Influencers and brand ambassadors
• What it’s like collaborating with Showfields, an artistic and theme oriented department store

Links:

www.elementapothec.com

Instagram - @elementapothec

Element Apothec LinkedIn 

Davina Kaonohi LinkedIn

TagOne

Similar Episodes:

#5 - How Starting a Business With a Clear Mission Can Lead to Success - with Craig Henderson from Extract Labs

#24 - How I Moved From Ireland to Canada to Kickstart My Cannabis Career - with Matthew O’Brien from Four PM

On this episode Tom is having a chat with Matthew O’Brien, the founder of Four PM. At the age of 19 Matthew decided to skip University education and move from Ireland to Canada, with just $500 in his pocket, to start his cannabis career. The risk paid off. Matthew worked his way up from a budtender at a dispensary to head of inventory for a whole chain of dispensaries. Matthew has since gone on to create Four PM, a daily newsletter designed for people who want to stay up to date on all the new developments within the cannabis industry. He shares his story with us and gives great tips for any European dreaming of moving to Canada or the US to start their cannabis career. He also shares some great insights into what he thinks will be the next big developments in the cannabis industry. 

Other topics discussed:

• What is the role of a bud-tender?
• Will the cannabis prohibition end any time soon? 
• How to climb the corporate ladder in the cannabis industry, and do it quickly?
• The differences between small cannabis businesses and cannabis corporations.
• What is Four PM?
• Will we use cannabinoids other than CBD and THC?
• The role of bio-synthetics in the future of the cannabis industry.
• Is the Sativa and Indica model of categorising cannabis outdated?
• How can cannabis brands educate their consumers?
• What lessons on legalising cannabis can Europe learn from Canada?
• How could Ireland benefit from legalising cannabis?
• What can you do today to enter the cannabis industry?

Links:

Four PM
Four PM on LinkedIn
Matthew’s Linkedin
Dr. Ethan Russo

*If you can't open the links through your podcast app, visit our Smells Like Business website!

On this episode Tom is having a chat with Maren Krings. Maren is a documentary photographer focusing on the social and environmental impact of the climate crisis. She has spent the last 5 years travelling the world photographing and documenting over 200 different Hemp projects and interviewing multiple experts on the topic of Hemp and its potential sustainable applications. Maren talks about how she discovered Hemp and what she learnt from her travels. She is also in the process of compiling all these projects into a book, and shares her creative process and journey into creating the book.

Maren’s approach towards life and art is very close to our hearts here at Smells Like Business. We hope that you feel the same way.

Other topics discussed:

• How did Hemp find Maren
• Why did Maren decide to start this project?
• How to talk about the environmental crisis to make sure people listen
• Is Hemp the answer to many of the ecological issues we face?
• What is “Hemp Plastic,” and why should it be rebranded?
• What is Hemp paper and where to find it?
• What projects has she photographed?
• What is the legal status of Hemp in Mongolia and how are its citizens trying to change it?
• The importance of Hemp advocacy.
• The creative process of turning your experiences into a book.
• Who is a story doctor or a professional storyteller?
• What will Maren’s book be about?
• How to find purpose in your work.

Links:

Maren Krings Website
Maren’s Instagram - @maren_krings_photography
Maren’s Story Doctor Paulien Bakker

*If you can't open the links through your podcast app, visit our Smells Like Business website!

On this episode Tom is having a chat with Shayda Torabi. Shayda is a true marketer and shares her wealth of knowledge and experience on how to best navigate around the difficulties of advertising in the cannabis and CBD industries. As most standard practices of advertising are not allowed, it is essential to understand how you can actually promote your cannabis business or CBD brand. Shayda gladly shares her marketing tips and tricks and gives examples of how to get creative with your marketing and think outside the box.

Shayda also runs a female and family owned CBD business along with her sisters called RESTART CBD out of Austin, Texas.

Other topics discussed:

• Which social media platforms are best for promoting cannabis and CBD brands
• What is Clubhouse?
• How to find your target group
• How to work with influencers
• The importance of storytelling
• How sustainable practices can help your brand
• The difficulties of e-commerce
• What Europe can learn from the US in regards to cannabis and CBD advertising
• How to get into public speaking
• The importance of strong content with good SEO 

Links:

Shayda Torabi

RESTART CBD

Instagram - @theshaydatorabi

To Be Blunt Podcast

Smells Like Business Episode with Joe Oliver from LDN CBD - #14. How I Opened the First CBD Store in the UK

*If you can't open the links through your podcast app, visit our Smells Like Business website!

On this episode Tom is having a chat with you! Tom gives a 10 point summary of some of the important things that happened in 2020, when it comes to cannabis and CBD in Europe. He discusses what steps have been made towards the legalization of cannabis in Europe, as well as the general trends related to CBD. It is a pleasure to say that, even if a lot of us have struggled during these crazy corona times, cannabis actually had a pretty good year in 2020! Let’s keep our fingers crossed for an amazing 2021!

Other topics discussed:

•  Coffeeshops in the time of a pandemic
• Medical Cannabis Pilot Programs
• Recreational Cannabis Pilot Programs
• Impact of Covid-19 on CBD sales
• The race to be the first country to legalize
• EU Novel Food Regulation and its impact on the CBD business in 2021
• United Nations and WHO rescheduling the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs

Links:

 Smells Like Business Linkedin Page
Intagram @smellslikebusiness
Smells Like Business Website

On this episode Tom is having a chat with Brett Puffenbarger, the Director of Digital Marketing and Sales Integration at Vanguard Scientific.

Brett has been in the professional world of cannabis for more than 5 years, and tells us his story of how he managed to transfer himself and his skills into this industry. He also shares great tips on how to prepare in the best way possible to enter the cannabis market, and explains why it is important to educate yourself, and others, on all things cannabis. Having seen the cannabis industry grow rapidly in the US, while at the same time having seen his own cannabis career grow in parallel, Brett is able to highlight the pros and cons of the industry, and shine some light on what it’s like to work in it.

He also shares his insight on how the cannabis industry has grown and is still developing in the US, and what lessons Europe can learn from it.

As Brett states himself, he is “Bridging the gap from Bong to Boardroom”. That sums him up pretty nicely.

 Other topics discussed:

• How does advertising work in the cannabis industry?
• What are the pros and cons when it comes to vertical integration vs horizontal integration?
• Is extraction a science or an art-form?
• Is there more to the cannabis industry than just cultivation?
• What is the Green Rush and has it benefited the industry?
• What lessons can be learned from the gold rush and the dot-com bubble?
• Is doing a cannabis course useful in helping you enter the industry?
• How to use social media in your cannabis job search?
• How has the Green Rush affected the cannabis industry?

Links:

- Brett Puffenbarger Website

- Vanguard Scientific

- Suncoast NORML 

- Brett's Instragram

On this episode Tom is having a chat with Michael Henell, a Swedish hemp farmer with his own company and brand Magic Herb. On August 13th, 2020,  Michael’s farm got raided by the police and all his beloved plants were taken away. His story is not that uncommon and is one that many fear. Even with all the correct paperwork and legal permissions, the stigma over cannabis and the lack of understanding on the side of the Swedish police resulted in an unjustified raid on Michael’s hemp farm.

In this interview we learn what happened, how it happened, and what Michael is doing to fight the unjust actions taken against him. We also learn the things Michael believes he could have done better to protect himself from the raid, as well as some of the various legal proceedings that occur when such an event happens. If you are considering starting a hemp farm in Europe, this episode will tell you the price you might have to pay for being one of the pioneers in the industry. 

 Other topics discussed:

• How did Michael start Magic Herb?
• Is there a hemp community in Sweden?
• How common are raids like this?
• What is the attitude of the Swedish police towards hemp farmers?
• What impact do such situations have on family members?
• Is hemp farming worth it?
• What can you do to prepare yourself for a raid as a hemp farmer?

Links:*

- Magicherb Website

- Magic Herbs Facebook Page

- A Smells Like Business Episode with John Hedström from Hooly Hemp  #16 - Life of a European Hemp Farmer

*If you can't open the links through your podcast app, visit our Smells Like Business website!

On this episode Tom continues his chat with Jacek Kramarz from HemPoland. Jacek was a guest on episode 12, where he talked about the beginnings of HemPoland. Today, Jacek tells us the story behind one of the largest acquisitions to ever happen in the hemp industry, when The Green Organic Dutchman acquired HemPoland in 2018. Jacek, one of the HemPoland partners, tells us how it happened, why it happened, and what impact it had on the business. He also shares plenty of tips for those who are looking for an investor, as well as how the hemp and CBD industry should develop and move forward in Europe. This is an extraordinary peek into one of the largest acquisitions in the hemp industry to ever happen.

Other topics discussed:

• Why did HemPoland decide to look for a business partner?
• How did HemPoland find their investor?
• How to approach an acquisition process like a pro.
• What did the negotiations between HemPoland and The Green Organic Dutchman look like?
• Why did HemPoland agree for a 100% takeover?
• How does an acquisition change the company and it’s priorities?
• How to look for cannabis investors.
• Does it pay off to be honest with investors?
• What does Europe need to do to build a strong cannabis market?
• What is the role of regulations for the hemp industry in Europe?

Links:*

HemPoland

CannabiGold UK

CannabiGold Poland

The Green Organic Dutchman

Our Previous Episode with Jacek Kramarz

*If you can't open the links through your podcast app, visit our Smells Like Business website!