How is it already August?! July was certainly a busy month and this summer has been flying by. Our Founder, Jennifer Culpepper, racked up the frequent flyer miles the last few weeks, spending some time on the west coast soaking up the sun with cannabis and CBD industry professionals.
The trip began in Arizona, where Jenn and her founding I+I partners, Chanda Macias and Selam Kelati, spent a few days in Arizona meeting with several national retailers to introduce the I+I brand. It was an amazing opportunity to meet with some of the biggest stores and distributors in the U.S. We received overwhelmingly positive feedback on the products and our packaging design, and we are proud to have I+I hit store shelves soon. We'll be sure to announce which retailers will be carrying our CBD-infused Face Serum, Bath Teas, and Dry Body Oil, so keep up with us on Instagram and Facebook. You can also visit the I+I site to buy our products directly online!
Next stop was San Jose, California, where Jenn spoke on the on the panel, "How to Develop Hemp Products That Appeal to Mainstream Consumers" at the NCIA Business Summit and Expo. She joined a group of talented women entrepreneurs, Chanda Macias (CEO of National Holistic Healing Center), Fleesie A. Hubbard (Founder of FiveTen Wellness), Marvina Thomas (CEO & Founder of 420 Skincare), and Jessica Velazquez (Managing Partner & Founder of Indiva Advisors) on the panel. It's one of the best cannabis business conferences and we were happy to share some tips to our fellow entrepreneurs.
We've been all across the U.S, so what next? Brand Joint is going international! In the past two weeks, we kicked off Brand Discovery and the naming process for a hemp cultivator in South America. Creating a brand name is one the most exciting and challenging aspects of the branding process, and it's been quite the experience trying to brush up on our Spanish.
On the home front, we've given our lifestyle brand, Crabcakes & Cannabis a facelift with a brand new website! We thought it was time for a change and we're so happy with the result. It's bright and bold, easy to navigate, and features a new blog where we introduce our lovable mascot, Buddy C. Weed. We also introduced new items to the store — our Crab Emblem tees available in three colors. We also are teaming up with Maryland dispensaries for our Crab Emblem collaboration tees. Check out Mana's below! Are you a Maryland dispensary interested in having your own branded tee? Fill out this form and we'll get back to you soon.
What's summer without a little out-of-office fun? The Brand Joint team works hard and plays hard, and a few of us have some short vacations coming up in the next several weeks. Deanna, our Office Manager is on her way to Rhode Island to volunteer at Camp Celiac, Jenn will spend some much needed rest and relaxation at the beach, and Nicole, our Brand Strategist is off to the White Mountains for a family backpacking trip. A few days away from the office helps our team draw inspiration, refocus, and reenergize during the busy summer months.
