With more and more states legalizing medical and recreational marijuana consumption across the country, brands are rising up everywhere to provide products, security, and resources to cannabis connoisseurs everywhere.
In the Midwest, the cannabis boom is taking off at a rapid rate, with Chicago establishing itself as the Silicon Valley of pot and its neighboring Midwest cities following on its coattails.
Here are a few Midwest-based cannabis brands helping to redefine the stigma around marijuana from the middle of the map.
1. CrescoLabs
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Based in Chicago, the self-proclaimed Silicon Valley of cannabis, CrescoLabs is one of the top cultivators and curators of cannabis-based products in the country. Their product lines are extensive, including everything from your favorite flower to artisanal style edibles.
CrescoLabs owns 48 dispensaries, 21 production facilities, and even offers wholesale distribution. Their Social Equity & Education Development (SEED) program is equipping people across the world with the resources they need to run a business in the cannabis industry.
2. Luxury Leaf
St. Louis’ first independently and locally owned dispensary by a Black woman, Luxury Leaf is a high-end boutique style shop that offers a luxury atmosphere and peaceful vibe to its clientele every time they shop.
They have all of your dispensary faves including flowers, edibles, vaporizers, and non-THC CBD products.
3. Holmes Organics
Created in 2018 by Cory Holmes, Holmes Organics prides itself on providing USDA-certified organic CBD products to its customers. Although the brand currently houses CBD-only products, they are preparing to expand their product line to include some CBD and THC blend products soon. They are also a sleep aid gummy that is made up of CBD and melatonin.
Outside of product launches, Holmes Organics is venturing into the B2B space with their CBD Startup Academy, a program dedicated to helping others become six-figure CBD business owners.
Holmes Organics aims to help more minorities enter the CBD business and hopes to continue to expand as the cannabis industry evolves.
4. Nu'Sachi
Based in Nashville, NuSachi is another top producer of hemp products with a tasty beverage, gourmet gummies, and whipped body butter. Dedicated to producing the highest quality hemp products, NuSachi is creating the future of the global hemp supply chain and relies on ‘proving the power of the plant’ to stand out from the competition.
The brand prides itself on being transparent with its customers and also produces organic CBD flowers.
5. Leaf Trade
Another Chicago-based company, Leaf Trade is a cannabis and CBD wholesale company designed to give business owners the tools they need to stay on top of the competition in a highly regulated industry.
Leaf Trade’s technology regulates cannabis ordering and fulfillment unlike any other company and is founded on the principles of sustainability and equity.
6. Canna Education Collective
Founded by Melanie Randels in St. Louis, MO, the Canna Education Collective is a resource center that aims to remove the marginalization and exclusion of minorities from the cannabis industry.
At the collective, community members can secure medical cards and legal grower licenses, while also taking advantage of products from minority-owned businesses across the city in the center’s retail space.
The resource center also has one of the only live grow rooms in the Midwest where members can learn hands-on how to cultivate marijuana plants.
7. REspring
Whereas traditional lenders shy away from cannabis realty projects, a Cleveland company is springing into action. REspring is a company dedicated to providing debt financing for new constructions housing cannabis production and cultivation centers.
Founded by Brent Zimmerman and Matt Jenkins, two former high-level hedge fund investors in New York, REspring is taking cannabis into real estate spaces that before they were kept out of.
8. St. Louis Cannabis Club
With medical marijuana becoming legal in Missouri in 2018, the Black-owned St. Louis Cannabis Club has been providing safe and fun outlets for cannabis users to socialize and consume.
A member-driven organization, the club provides education, wellness, and entertainment-based events where social consumption is safe and welcomed. Their COLA Lounge, the place ‘where buds meet’, provided a safe co-working and entertainment space for canna lovers to consume and work.
9. Cannasure Insurance Services
Insurance designed to protect and grow the cannabis industry, Cannasure Insurance Services was founded to help fight the stigma of not insuring marijuana business owners.
After over a decade of business, Cannasure is still working to mitigate the challenges faced by legal cannabis and hemp businesses.
