How did Discover CBD and their ACTIVE brand get so big, so fast?

Cannabis.net got to sit down with Discover CBD and discuss how they conqurered the e-commerce, brick-and-mortar, and franchising all in one model. Plus, how did their ACTIVE brand get so big so fast, as a go to brand for many consumers who want the highest quality CBD products?

1. How did you first get interested in CBD?

The interest in the health benefits of CBD came early on as the founders of the company are all based in Colorado and were witnesses to the influx of so-called “marijuana refugees” in the immediate aftermath of marijuana legalization. Families began moving to Colorado and other legal states in hopes of finding treatments for their children with severe medical issues,specifically severe seizure disorders, as a way to improve the quality of their lives. In those early days medical marijuana products that contained low amounts of THC and high amounts of CBD were the dominant treatment choices. Due to the strict regulations and potential stigmas surrounding the medical marijuana industry the idea of creating products derived from hemp, containing higher amounts of CBD naturally, began to take shape. This would lead to a full innovative push to create products that are suitable for anyone who is looking for an alternative way to enhance their own wellness journey. 

2. When did you think about a business idea for CBD and cannabis and how did you friends and family react?

Discover CBD was launched in 2015 and began as a collaboration between a husband and wife team that has since grown to include a robust e-commerce store, 5 corporate brick-and-mortar locations in Colorado and New York, as well as several franchise locations across the nation. The company took an innovative approach not only to the creation of B2C opportunities but by ensuring that its products would be sold under the name Active CBD Oil it opened the door to B2B opportunities that continue to drive profits. This forward thinking allowed the company to stay true to its original mission; delivering the highest quality CBD products to help everyone discover the benefits of CBD for themselves in a safe, affordable, and discreet manner. Active CBD Oil products can be found in stores across the nation.

3. What advice would you give yourself now if you could go back 5 years and tell your past self something?

Stay focused on the long-term goal even when the short-term wins are huge. In the early days of the company I knew where I wanted to take the business and I continued to reinvest in projects that supported those long-term goals. It would have been easy even then to push for profits for profits sake and to build my personal success ahead of the company. Instead, we continued to experience measured growth and eventually funded the construction of an ISO-7 cleanroom for our manufacturing facility. As a company, we took appropriate risks to grow but we also balanced our needs against the cost of those risks to ensure that we were growing at a pace that supports sustaining the business. In hindsight this approach seems like common sense, however, it can be easy to lose sight of the long-term goals when the money starts coming in. 

4. What has been the biggest challenges in growing your idea into a company?

One of the biggest challenges for anyone who is looking to get into the industry is the gray legal area that surrounds the entire process. The 2018 Farm Bill went a long way to help ease fears for business owners across the entire industry, however, without clear guidelines from the FDA it is still a very difficult space to navigate. Many states have taken it upon themselves to decide how they will regulate the industry in the absence of federal guidance which makes it more difficult to navigate. We have learned many lessons through the process of trial and error. Not many business owners have the ability to bounce back from setbacks, such as losing a credit card processor, and the lack of a clear roadmap forward for business owners (including hemp farmers) is crippling many aspects of the industry. 

5. Do you think we will see full Federal legalization in 2021 or 2022?

It is hard to say when full legalization of marijuana could happen. As more states approve marijuana, whether it be medical or recreational or both, it seems like federal legalization is both closer and further away. There is the appearance that the federal government is content to allow states to develop their own marijuana industry regulations in ways that appear to be backed by the majority of voters. There are also more calls for the federal government to take a different approach to rectifying the wrongs that ended with the incarceration of many people for marijuana offenses. Any federal legislation would likely need to take into account what the states are already doing as well as balance the calls for social justice within the marijuana community. 

As far as hemp goes there is bipartisan legislation at the federal level that was introduced just this year as a way to try to get some clarification on regulation. We support any measures that will level the playing field in the hemp industry and allow companies that are interested in creating a quality product to do so in a clear and direct way. This is how consumers will be protected from those who are just looking to take advantage of the popularity of cannabinoids. It also allows companies that are doing things the correct way to take advantage of opportunities that other businesses in different industries take for granted, like being able to advertise consistently or maintaining a bank account. 

6. You have an impressive CBD store featuring different brands, how do you pick out the vendors

We manufacture the majority of our own stock under the house brand Active CBD Oil. This allows us to keep a close watch on the integrity of our products. Innovation is a core component of our corporate culture. As a team we enjoy developing new products that balance customer needs/wants, industry trends, and our own unique understanding of cannabinoids. In other words, we work to develop products that consumers will find useful as well as products that will produce the desired results. It takes more than simply being a trendy product to get our attention and creativity.

7. What advice would you give someone looking to get started in CBD or cannabis today?

The best advice I can give anyone who is starting any business is to make sure that you are ready for the financial responsibility of establishing yourself. There are a lot of steps to starting a successful business and those steps become more complex when dealing with the uncertainty and inconsistencies of the cannabis industry. It is very important to do the research up front to ensure that you understand all of the applicable laws in your state as well as your municipality. One way to start without having to be completely alone in the process is to look at franchise opportunities. We have a franchise program that has helped open several Discover CBD stores across the nation. Our program includes step by step guidance to help keep new business owners on track as they work toward opening day. No matter how you decide to open, keep in mind you won’t likely turn a profit in the first year. If the financial burden seems too daunting you can always explore other avenues; for instance we also have a vending machine program.

8. What is the best way for people to contact you with a question? Email, social media?

We have so many ways to reach out to us that it is actually more difficult not to contact us! You can email us at info@discovercbd, message us directly on Facebook or Instagram, live chat on our website, call one of our store locations or toll free 1-888-875-HEMP. We also have several forms on our website for wholesale, dropship, franchising, vending and other B2B programs. 

9. Do you have any special coupon codes for Cannabis.net readers?

We do have a special discount code for your readers: CBDNOW. This code is good for 15% off a purchase at discovercbd.com. 

10. If someone is ordering CBD for the very first time, what advice can you give them?

The best advice for anyone who is looking to buy CBD for the first time is to educate yourself before you purchase. There are a lot of different ways to use CBD and knowing what it is that you want to achieve will go a long way to helping you find the right kind of product. CBD is often described as the absence of a feeling which can lead some people to believe that it is not working for them. The key is to find a product that works to address the issues you are experiencing in a way that makes you comfortable and then stick with it! Our customers often reach out to us to ask questions long after they have taken the products home and that is just fine. Another important thing to understand are lab reports. Years ago many CBD companies did not send their products for third-party lab testing. Now, nearly every company claims to send their product for testing, but when you look at the lab reports it is common to discover that only the CBD used to make the products was tested and the results can be several years old. We have always batch tested our finished products before putting them on store shelves to test for potency among other things. This way you know exactly what is in the specific product that you are holding in your hand.      

Great, thank you for the time and knowledge!

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