🌿 America's first billion dollar weed brand

June 15, 2022

Happy Weed Wednesday. Thanks for subscribing to the newsletter that makes you smarter about weed in 4 minutes and 20 seconds or less. Here’s what we got for you this week: 

  • Billion dollar brand: Cookies is in a league of its own

  • Business highlights: California tax revenue dips, High Times on the hook for $5 million in unpaid rent, Cannabis might be the South's new cash crop

  • War and weed: Ukraine looking to expedite medical legalization

  • Pot Politics: Thailand is the first Asian country to decriminalize weed, Wisconsin issuing large number of weed pardons, EPA reminds employees of strict weed rules

Best of social media

Love the ambition but this guy just isn't quite ready for the big leagues.

America's first billion dollar weed brand

giphy.com/gifs/CookiesSF

Humble beginnings

If you ever worked at Wendy's or any other fast food place, you have something in common with Gilbert Milam Jr., better known as the rapper Berner. Before being cofounder and CEO of Cookies, Berner worked at Wendy's for two weeks when he was 15 years old. After getting his first pay check, Berner said he bought some weed and "started flipping it." At this point he officially traded his fast food job for a weed job, which has turned into a billion dollar business. So yeah, pretty good career decision.

Rise of an empire

Cookies was founded in 2010 by Berner and his cofounder Jai "Jigga" Chang. What Steve Jobs and Jony Ive were to Apple and the tech industry, Berner and Jai are to Cookies and the weed industry.

Jai (Jony Ive of weed) is the Head of Genetics at Cookies and mastermind behind some of the most famous weed strains in the world, including Girl Scout Cookies, Cherry Pie, Gelato and London Pound Cake. As Berner puts it, "we really care about the bud" and that is definitely evident in these high quality, exotic strains. But creating high quality products is only part of the job, the other part is branding and selling it. That is where Berner (Steve Jobs of weed) comes into play. 

Berner's vision for the brand and his street cred are two of the ultimate differentiators for Cookies. When you think about weed there are a few names that come to mind, including Snoop Dogg, Wiz Khalifa and Berner. Through his music and many business ventures, Berner has been a consistent figure in the weed industry for over two decades, building a brand that is recognizable around the world. This consistency and branding has helped Cookies expand beyond just weed products. in 2021, the Cookies clothing brand alone reportedly did over $50 million in sales.

The next hundred years

As weed legalization expands across the world, Cookies plans to expand with it. This focus on the bigger picture contributed to Berner turning down a $800 million dollar offer from a publicly traded Canadian company. As he puts it, "Cookies is a legacy, hundred year brand." 

Although they may not be around for another hundred years, Berner and Jai have put Cookies in a position to be successful for at least the next century. Not bad for a guy that started with a job at Wendy's.

Business highlights

Speeding up cannabis legalization in Ukraine

Sergei Supinsky/AFP via Getty Images

Sergei Supinsky/AFP via Getty Images

One step closer to medical cannabis legalization

Cannabis legalization may be one potential silver lining from the ongoing war in Ukraine. The country's cabinet approved a bill that would legalize medical cannabis. The bill is now heading to Ukraine's parliament where it will need to get at least 226 votes, according to the Kyiv Post. Although a similar bill was unsuccessful last year, there is believed to be more support this time around.

The connection between war and legalization

The ongoing war is a key reason Viktor Liashko, Ukraine's Minister of Health, believes the bill has a better chance of passing this year. According to a Facebook post by Liashko, "We understand the negative consequences of war on the state of mental health... and we understand that there is no time to wait."

Liashko went on to write that the bill will regulate "the circulation of cannabis plants for medical, industrial purposes, scientific and scientific-technical activities to create the conditions for expanding the access of patients to the necessary treatment of cancer and post-traumatic stress disorder resulting from war."

The people of Ukraine have spoken

According to a national poll from 2020, The Kyiv Post reports that 65% of respondents supported the legalization of medical cannabis. Only 29% of respondents were in opposition. 

Hopefully the people of Ukraine will soon have cannabis as a medical option to help deal with the outcomes of war. More importantly, hopefully no more lives are lost and the war comes to a peaceful end.

Pot politics

Item of the week

With summer right around the corner, seltzer season is officially kicking off. If you're tired of all the basic alcohol seltzers, you should give the Cycling Frog hemp-based THC+CBD seltzer a try. Not only does it taste great, it also gives you a perfect high that will help you get through any family gathering. Even the 4th of July party that ends with your uncles getting in a fight. 

Use the code seltzer25 at checkout to get 25% off your order. 

Quick hits

Meme of the Week

Hotbox goals | @geniuspothead

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