Each day for the month of March, we are highlighting women entrepreneurs in the cannabis industry who are continuing to inspire, educate and make a stance for cannabis.
The objective is to express love and gratitude towards women’s’ contribution to our lives and society. It honors the power and struggles of women who have broken all barriers and reached the pinnacle of success in every sphere of life. Today, women across the globe actively participate in politics, education, social work, corporate, sports, IT, research & development, innovation, and diverse fields, and have left their footprints.
We also reflect on the work that remains and remember the many women whose voices go unheard and who continue to be excluded from realizing their full potential.
Together We’ll Make History
In part three, DCN will be highlighting 8 women entrepreneurs for the #togetherwellmakehistory spotlight.
To kick off part three, we are honored to introduce you to….
Lindsey Renner
Renner is a Wailaki, a tribe that is originally from Humboldt County. Renner is also a veteran, wife, mother and is the CEO of Native Humboldt Farms. She has been cultivating sun-grown cannabis for 11 years and was able to obtain her outdoor cultivation license as well as a type six Cannabis manufacturing license in California.
Why is this plant important for you on your journey as a woman entrepreneur?
“I first fell in love with Cannabis when I realized that it reciprocated energy. Every single ounce of attention and energy I put into my plants, I see it in the final product. Cannabis gives you exactly what you put in, and that’s something that you don’t easily find in the corporate world of cannabis, or in the world in general.”
Www.nativehumboldtfarms.com
Deidra Bagdasarian
Deidra Bagdasarian has been a leader in the cannabis industry since 2009. She is the cannabis chef and co-founder of Bliss Edibles & Extracts. She is a dynamic and powerful speaker with a vast knowledge of cannabis. She is the founder of Glowing Goddess Getaway: a women’s movement to use cannabis to connect in meaningful and inspiring ways. She is working on her first book and will always continue to do what she can to normalize cannabis for everyone as a therapeutic tool.
Why is this plant important for you on your journey as a woman entrepreneur?
“Everyday cannabis serves as a tool to elevate my experiences so that I have more to give to all of those around me. And entrepreneurship is service at its core, therefore cannabis elevates me personally and enhances my career.”
www.blissedibles.com/ www.glowinggoddessgetaway.com
Jackie Sponseller
Jackie Sponseller is an Epileptic Cannabis activist, Entrepreneur and Video Journalist with ventures in six countries. Her passion for cannabis is derived from her personal battle with epilepsy and being able to successfully treat her seizures with marijuana and without pharmaceuticals.
Why is this plant important for you on your journey as a woman entrepreneur?
“Cannabis is important to my journey as a woman entrepreneur because it not only is the core of each of my ventures but the primary ingredient of my daily medical regimen to treat my epilepsy. I live with a condition that could potentially be fatal and the key to preventing an episode is cannabis oil and flower. It’s provided not only life but a reason for living.”
www.Kayabellahemp.com
Debra Borchardt
Debra Borchardt is the Co-founder and CEO of the cannabis financial news website Green Market Report. She began her career in the securities industry where she was a Vice President at Bear Stearns holding three securities licenses. She left Wall Street to earn her Masters Degree in Business and Economic Reporting from New York University. At that point, she embarked on a career as a financial journalist and spent eight years at TheStreet.com working daily with Jim Cramer before striking out on her own. She is the Co-founder of the cannabis women’s networking group Industry Power Women and sits on the board of Axiswire & House of Saka Infused Wines.
Why is this plant important for you on your journey as a woman entrepreneur?
“The cannabis industry has given women more opportunity than any other industry.”
www.greenmarketreport.com
Alison Gordon
Alison is a veteran of the Canadian cannabis industry, bringing unique experience and relationships to her role as co-Chief Executive Officer of 48North. A skilled marketer, she is celebrated for her ability to shift public opinion and consumer behavior and has been named one of Canada’s Top 10 Marketers by Marketing magazine.
As co-founder of Rethink Breast Cancer, Alison is credited with growing a new generation of young breast cancer supporters, compelled by her groundbreaking communication and pharmaceutical expertise in the healthcare realm. Today, Alison is applying her skills to 48North’s business plan in this new era of the cannabis industry. In 2018 she was appointed to the Board of Directors for the Cannabis Canada Council.
Can you share you elevator pitch for 48North?
“48North is a values-based Licensed Producer focused on best-in-class health and wellness products, profitability, good governance, and diversity. As a vertically-integrated cannabis company, we strive to create innovative, authentic brands for next-generation cannabis.”
www.48nrth.com
Amber Senter
Amber E. Senter has nineteen years of marketing and project management experience. She is founder and CEO of Leisure Life, a licensed lifestyle and infused cannabis products company, and heads product development and marketing for the brand. She is also co-founder and Executive Director of Supernova Women. Formed in 2015, this women of color led organization is dedicated to empowering people of color to become self-sufficient cannabis industry shareholders.
Senter is a US Coast Guard Veteran and has held many leadership roles in the cannabis industry. As the former Chief Operations Officer (COO) of Magnolia Wellness, her primary responsibility was to create and implement procedures to improve sales and increase profitability. While at Magnolia, Senter obtained the only social onsite consumption license in Oakland and the East Bay for the dispensary. Her voice is trusted in the growing cannabis industry, as is her unsurpassed knowledge of the end medical and recreational user base. Senter is a sought after coach and mentor, and a role model for new marijuana business entrepreneurs.
Can you share your elevator pitch for SuperNovaWomen?
“Supernova Women is a women of color led organization is dedicated to empowering people of color to become self-sufficient cannabis industry shareholders through education, advocacy, and network building.”
supernovawomen.com
Cynthia Salarizadeh
Cynthia Salarizadeh is the Founder & CEO of AxisWire.com which includes the journalist and PR platform STAR Source Locator, Founder & CSO of the luxury cannabis brand House of Saka, as well as the Co-founder of the cannabis financial news site Green Market Report and the women’s network Industry Power Women. Salarizadeh sits on the Forbes Communication Council and is a contributing writer for Entrepreneur Media.
Why is this plant important for you on your journey as a woman entrepreneur?
“Cannabis is a plant that has been prohibited unnecessarily for almost a century. It is a plant that provides humanity more beneficial properties than any other plant known to man. The fact that it has remained prohibited by law based on the greedy self-interests of businessmen and politicians is unbelievable and unfair at best. The opportunity that now exists with the plant moving back into the world for use on every level, is one that should not be ignored. As a woman entrepreneur in this industry, the sky is the limit. Especially considering major institutional players are still mostly hesitant to enter the market.
This provided, and continues to provide, a more level playing field as far as a barrier of entry to female business ownership and leadership in the industry. So as far as my journey in cannabis business, the fact that the industry was a more welcoming environment for female entrepreneurs meant the world to everything I am able to do. And I am able to do it knowing that all of my effort, and the effort of all of the women and men around me, is helping the greater good. This is the most important positive attribute to working in cannabis. It is good for the world and feels good to be part of.”
www.axiswire.com, www.greenmarketreport.com, www.houseofsaka.com, www.industrypowerwomen.com
Tracy Ryan
Tracy Ryan is the CEO of CannaKids, a California based brand with a focus on supplying medical cannabis oil products to “Patients of All Ages”. With her sites now set on clinical research, Tracy and her team have partnered with the Technion Institute in Israel to study the effects of cannabis on cancer. Tracy has also partnered with the world’s leading cancer research scientist in the field of Natural Killer cells who is studying twelve of CannaKids patients with four more enrolling soon after a groundbreaking discovery was made by Tracy and her scientist.
Among these patients being studied is Tracy’s daughter Sophie who was the first patient to be enrolled. Her tumor is growing in humanized mouse models that will be utilized to work towards a cure for her brain tumor. As a cancer mom, advocate, cannapreneur and research pioneer, it is Tracy’s mission to uncover the mysteries behind this plant in hopes to formulate disease-specific cannabinoid formulations for patients of all ages.
Why is this plant important for you on your journey as a woman entrepreneur?
“Based on the existing research we have conducted I am now confident that further studies of this plant will lead us to incredible medical breakthroughs that will not only help my daughter and her battle with brain cancer but patients of all ages afflicted by many diseases. The tragedy of our daughter’s diagnosis and the pain that she has endured due to years of toxic treatments will not have been for anything. As her mother, I want to not only work towards a cure for her but give her a legacy she can carry on when she grows up to be the strong, powerful woman we are raising her to be.”
cannakids.org, savingsophie.org
Stay tuned for the next women entrepreneur spotlight.
Did you miss part one or two? We highlighted a total of 24 out of 31 inspiring, hardworking, women entrepreneurs. Want to learn more about these women?
