Welcome friends, it’s Catherine Sidman, @Sidco_Cat and this is my podcast. As a cannabis industry professional for the last decade, I have unique access to the experts, entrepreneurs and enthusiasts who make this industry great! Join me and my guests as we dive into the people, processes and products that make up this wild ecosystem of cannabis, psychedelics and emerging medicines.
This episode features conversations I had on the floor of the CBD Expo in Indianapolis, Indiana in December of 2021. I love the CBD Expo. Mace media is so nimble. The CBD Expo was one of the first in the space right after the farm bill passed. Over the subsequent seasons, the CBD Expo really embraced the synthesized cannabinoid market and gave them a platform to build their brands and network. These shows have the highest-level networking that I have enjoyed at any conference, and I have been to all of them. I asked Celeste Miranda, CEO of Mace Media and boss lady of the CBD Expo, why we were going to Indianapolis for a cannabis conference. She just smiled at me and said “Meet me in the Midwest if you want to see this market.” She was right. I am learning so much about this aspect of our industry that serves people without access to cannabinoids. The brands and culture that are forming around CBD and synthesized cannabinoids in Indiana, Tennessee, The Carolinas, Texas and Kentucky rival any cannabis culture you will find in California and Washington. They are working with what they have access to and they are creating markets that will be durable and active, eventually normalizing cannabis and leading to decriminalization and regulation. These conversations were fun and interesting and dovetailed together in a couple of ways I hope you’ll appreciate.