When did you first start in the Legal Cannabis Industry and why?

My engagement started back in 2017, and it was a decision that was driven by a clear line of sight into our burgeoning sector and an incredible opportunity to both build wealth and wellness in our community.

From licensing to procurement, to ancillary businesses and advocacy, it was clear that ethnic minorities (such as African Americans, Hispanics, and Native Americans in particular) had a historical turnaround story and experience through legalization that could be realized and even monetized.

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When did you first start in the Legal Cannabis Industry and why? 

I came into the legal cannabis industry when I was 21, I am turning 30 this december. I was a recovering pharmaceutical addict, I had a fellow colleague in college who convinced me to get clean, start working for her friends, and do yoga every day. She changed my life, happiness forever. When I was diagnosed with chronic endometriosis, PCOS, and type 2 diabetes I found myself contemplating on what is the best route to being healthy. I was completely against the idea of taking any kind of medication, but found peace within utilizing cannabis….

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When did you first start in the Legal Cannabis Industry and why? 

In late 2020 and early 2021, I visited 50 non-MSO recreation and medical dispensaries in five states on the east and west coast.  I wanted to learn more about dispensaries and best practices across the industry, my trip opened my eyes to a different reality. Forty nine of the dispensaries were owned by white males and one was owned by a white female, not one owner looked like me or shared a similar background, first generation Latino who grew up in public housing…

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When did you first start in the Legal Cannabis Industry and why? 

 My partner and I jumped in Spring/Summer 2018.  I had been studying crypto and cannabis for almost a year, trying to evaluate where I could build an investment solution to share with my personal and professional network.  Ultimately, cannabis is a cashflow business and that made sense to me from an investment perspective.  I could understand it and hopefully translate the opportunity to a larger mainstream audience.

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Can you give me a little background about yourself?

Jose J. Hidalgo is the founder and CEO of Flora & Forge, an Industrial manufacturer and distributor of Cannabis and Hemp ingredients, as well as finished products. Flora & Forge’s main manufacturing facility is in Orlando, FL and recently launched a lab in San Francisco, CA.

Prior to Flora and Forge, Jose founded and was the Chairman & CEO of Cansortium Inc. / FLUENT, a vertically integrated publicly traded  medical cannabis company (CSE: TIUM-U.CN, OTC: CNTMF).

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Can you give a little background about yourself?

I stumbled into the industry after my last corporate position. It was a really good stopping point for me to reflect and figure out what the next move was in terms of my career. At that point, I had 13 years of experience in public accounting, corporate tax, and helping multinational companies do tax planning. […]

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What is your role at Beacon North Company in the legal cannabis industry? How did you achieve this role?

I am currently Chief Executive Officer at Beacon North Consulting, LLC. My professional background was initially in Fortune 500 management consulting. I previously worked as a project manager focusing on implementations across different types of large organizations, where I really began to appreciate the value of an organized business strategy. […]

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What is your role at Cookies?  How long have you been in this role?

I’ve served on the Cookies Social Impact team for the past five months and my work is focused specifically on spotlighting LatinX voices in the cannabis community and beyond.  

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Can you give me a little background about yourself?

I am originally from Austin, Texas and I graduated from the University of Texas – Austin in 2013. During my time at the university, I became pretty interested in cannabis, both from using it and also learning about it. At that time the industry was very young, it was just getting started here in Colorado. My thought was that this could be something interesting to research and talk about, potentially creating a business plan for. In one of my entrepreneurship classes, I actually wrote a business plan for a dispensary. […]

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Can you walk me a bit through Heavenly Herbs?

Heavenly Herbs is a holistic cultivation company focused on home cultivation. Right now, the business aspect of it is education – teaching people about the plant: how to grow it – but also the resourcefulness of it […]

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What is your role at Cresco Labs? How did you achieve this role?

VP of Product Development. I achieved this role by proving myself as the resident subject matter expert on all things concentrates, vapes and medicinals. […]

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What is your role at Cresco Labs in the legal cannabis industry? How did you achieve this role?

My current role is in Community Integration and serving as the Regional Director for Illinois. But like most professionals, I support outside my area and manage projects where we have a presence in the Midwest and on the East Coast. Community Integration and a slightly more intentional type of corporate social responsibility (CSR). […]

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