On March 15, the cannabis brand owned by Seth Rogen, Houseplant, announced its plans to mentor local cannabis businesses. The brand recently sent out a wave of emails to subscribers advertising the opportunity. “Social responsibility is at the core of Houseplant’s mission, which is why we’re always looking for new ways to give back to the cannabis community,” the email stated. “Last year this led to the creation of a pilot program we called In-House where we provided resources and guidance to cannabis entrepreneurs from underinvested-in communities.”
On the website, the brand explains more about the goal of this program. “Houseplant’s ‘In-House’ program is a mentorship program focused on helping individuals disproportionately impacted by the War on Drugs receive a fair and equal chance to succeed in the cannabis industry,” the application reads. “The free, six-month-long program allows burgeoning cannabis entrepreneurs (from both ancillary and plant-touching companies) intimate access to the Houseplant team, as well as the company’s extensive network of advisors and industry leaders.”
The program is described as a part time commitment, with an estimated 5-10 hours per month. Among basic contact information about an individual’s cannabis business, it asks if the candidate has a social equity license in California, and if not, asks about past experiences: “Do you consider yourself (or other founding members of your team) to have been negatively impacted by the criminalization of cannabis?”
The application is brief, and the only difficulty might be trying to sum up the question “What is the biggest challenge your company is facing right now?” in only 150 words. The application window is open until May 1, 2022.
Houseplant has already begun this program with mentee Moises Estrada of Itty Bitties, who shares that he was pleased with the mentor experience. “[The mentors] made themselves extremely accessible,” he says. “I know about cultivating, but I needed help with running a business, and [In-House] gave me a ton of insight,” he said, according to the Houseplant email.
Houseplant, founded by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, launched in March 2019 in Canada through a partnership with Canopy Growth. Two years later, the partnership ended, and Houseplant later launched its line of products in California in March 2021.
Seth Rogen has been involved in other advocacy and support missions, such as the Cannabis in Common campaign that launched in November 2021. Alongside Sarah Silverman, he appeared in a video explaining the current state of cannabis in the U.S. and the importance of contacting state representatives to achieve federal legalization. “Despite what you may have heard, Americans can actually agree on something. And that something is weed,” Rogen said. “…You know who cannot agree on anything though? Politicians. So despite the fact that 69 percent of us want cannabis legal, less than half of Senators have come out in favor. In fact, some won’t even say where they stand on the issue at all.” He concluded his statement by calling cannabis consumers of the country to act now. “Legalizing cannabis for good is long past due, but if we make enough noise, we can make it happen.”
Both Rogen and Goldberg will be working together on an announced NBC Project, according to IMDB. The duo are executive producers on numerous other projects, such as The Boys spinoff and Darkwing Duck. Additionally, Rogen and his wife Lauren Miller Rogen recently received the “Public Leadership in Neurology Award” for their support for families impacted by dementia and Alzheimer’s disease—an honor previously also awarded to public figures such as Michael J. Fox, Julie Andrews, Emilia Clarke, and many more. The Rogens have also raised more than $15 million for the cause through their nonprofit organization, Hilarity for Charity.
Nicole Potter via (https://hightimes.com/news/houseplant-launches-mentorship-program-for-cannabis-entrepreneurs/)
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