Press
ROLLING STONE – September 2017
Weed Warriors: Meet Six Women Shaping the Cannabis Industry
Among the many benefits of marijuana legalization – from an influx of tax revenue to a reduced prison population – the emerging $7 billion market is providing new opportunities, with fewer barriers, for enterprising women. As a product, cannabis “crosses genders, ethnicities, economic backgrounds and political views,” says Sally Nichols, a leading pot investor. “To me, that was a game-changer.” Here are six women advancing the cause of America’s most intoxicating cash crop. Read more
FORBES – August 2, 2017
Survey: Nearly Half Of People Who Use Cannabidiol Products Stop Taking Traditional Medicines
The largest survey on cannabidiol or CBD usage to date found that women were more likely than men to use CBD and once they started using it, were likely to drop their traditional medicine. A new survey from Brightfield Group and HelloMD covered 2,400 of HelloMD’s community of 150,000 members and did a deep dive into the usage of CBD products and their effectiveness. HelloMD is an online community that brings together doctors and cannabis patients. Read more
VOGUE – May 25, 2017
How Cannabis Is Fueling a New Fitness Movement
Recreational marijuana use has now been legal in California for six months and counting. On the surface, you’d never know that anything has changed. Since the passing of Prop. 64 in November, there have not been red-eyed, burnout bohemians strewn across the lawns of Griffith Park, nor masses of wasted youth in irreversible states of hysteria. Instead, on a hot Saturday afternoon in May, a group of lithe twenty-somethings clad in the kind of spandex that doesn’t leave much room for snacking gathered on a rooftop in the shadow of the Hollywood hills to practice yoga, and get high.
“Let’s all take a puff,” said Equinox yoga instructor Derek Beres to the students at the beginning of class. In unison, they inhaled from vape pens by Bloom Farms, a San Francisco–based medical marijuana company that also sells pre-rolled joints, and settled into mountain pose. Read more
Los Angeles Times – March 22, 2017
California cannabis companies are hiring. Interest is high at this job fair.
There were firm handshakes.Intense eye contact. And the sincere repetition of first names.Over the weekend, in a bare-walled art gallery on Highland Avenue, well-scrubbed job seekers came, resumes in hand, to connect with prospective employers.But this was a job fair with a twist: All the employers are in the cannabis business. And almost without exception, their companies are growing explosively. Read more
Marijuana Business Magazine – February 1st, 2017
Doing Well by Doing Good
Michael Ray is convinced it makes good business sense to give back to society. “Corporate social responsibility is an essential part of capitalism moving forward,” said Ray, the executive director of Bloom Farms, a California not-for-profit company that makes CO2-extracted cannabis oils and vape pens. Bloom Farms is a leader in this area, having donated more than a quarter of a million meals to state food banks. Donating and volunteering, Ray noted, builds a powerful company culture that inspires teams. It can also attract socially conscious consumers, reduce turnover and encourage employees to share positive news about your company.
Bloomberg – January 26, 2017
This Ex-Banker Wants to Swap Your Chamomile for Cannabis
Visit a dispensary in one of the 28 states that legally sell marijuana and you’re likely to find products with monikers like God’s Green Crack, Super Lemon Haze or Skywalker. That’s all about to change as a new breed of ganjapreneurs swoop into the fledgling industry. In a classic consumer-marketing move, they’re getting rid of stoner slang and replacing it with supermarket-friendly names that purport to help customers live better. Read more
Cool Hunting – January 19, 2017
Gift Guide: Get Well Soon. Some of our favorite products that promote wellness.
For those in the middle of a dry January or anybody struggling with their two-week-old resolution to take better care of themselves, it can be hard to remain motivated. Like some of us at CH HQ, a reward or simply changing up your routine can help you stay on track. Of course, being healthy is mostly a no-brainer—eating fresh high-quality produce, drinking plenty of water, exercising and getting enough sleep are essential—but there is always more we can do. With that in mind, we have gathered some of our favorite products that will jazz up your wellness routine and maybe get you extra motivated—especially if you’re in the middle of a dreary winter. Read more
Inc Magazine – December 29, 2016
2016 Was Cannabis Industry’s Watershed Moment
Men’s Journal – December 16, 2016
15 Gift Ideas for Weed Enthusiasts
Marijuana is going mainstream with 2016 proving to be a progressive year for legalization efforts. The gift market, though, is still wrought with a lot of kitschy and stereotypical stoner trinkets that just suck. Skip over the obnoxious weed-emblazoned socks and the tie-dye carrying pouches. These gifts are suited for the more discerning marijuana lover while bearing in mind that today’s pot enthusiasts are diverse in nature. Read more
Business News Daily – November 28, 2016
4 Cannabis Entrepreneurs Leading the Industry’s Evolution
The legal cannabis industry is rapidly expanding, so much so that some researchers expect cannabis will be legal — either medicinally or recreationally — in every state by 2021. Market analysts for cannabis industry research organization GreenWave Advisors anticipate that in four years 22 states will have medicinal programs and 29 states (plus D.C.) will fully legalize cannabis, leading to a projected $30 billion in sales revenue nationwide. Read more
Mashable – November 25, 2016
21 holiday gift ideas for the marijuana lover in your life
The 2016 election brought legal recreational cannabis to four more states, continuing a trend of ending a decades long prohibition on the sticky icky. With legalization comes normalization, and more than ever people are feeling more comfortable with admitting that they like the green.
So, now that the holidaze are upon us, consider treating the lovable stoner in your life with one of the following gifts. Or just give them cash so they can go buy some weed.
The Cannabist – November 16, 2016
Cannabis philanthropy helps heal Drug War wounds
While most Americans in the 1980s learned about AIDS on television news years after it erupted into a legitimate epidemic, Matthew Huron saw the virus on the faces of his friends and family while growing up in San Francisco’s vibrant Castro neighborhood.
“A lot of those men there were very sick and dying, and that included my father and his partner and all of their friends,” Huron said. “Every week my dad was going to another funeral, and it was just a really challenging time.”
Uncrate – November 11, 2016
Bloom Farms Highlighter Cannabis Vapor Pen
Enjoy all the benefits of cannabis with none of the smoke with the Bloom Farms Highlighter Cannabis Vapor Pen. This self-contained, portable system uses a USB-rechargeable battery-powered heating element to warm all-natural, 50% THC cannabis oil, releasing smooth hits of vapor that’s far more healthy — and more potent — than just puffing on a blunt. Available in Sativa, Indica, Hybrid, and strain-specific Single Origin varieties, it arrives in well-designed, 100% recyclable packaging. Bloom Farms is also a 1-for-1 company that donates a healthy meal to a local food bank for every product sold. Read more
Gear Diary – October 16, 2016
PAX Era: The On-Demand Slim Extract Vaporizer Ready for Medical Use
If you live in the state of California, and if you have a prescription for medical marijuana, there is a new product that you should pay attention to — the PAX Era Extract Vaporizer. when used with Bloom Farms extract pods, this on-demand vaporizer makes administering your prescription as simple as taking a puff.I was sent a Pax Era and a properly marked Bloom Farms (yet non-Cannabis containing) pod so I could see how the vaporizer works. I’ll have to admit that it was a little surprising to open the package and find this: Read more
Civilized. – October 14, 2016
San Francisco Job Fair Highlights Huge Growth Opportunities In Cannabis Industry
The first time Michael Ray hosted a cannabis industry job fair, roughly five employers and 150 job seekers showed up. It was the summer of 2014, and the executive director of Bloom Farms – a medical cannabis company based in San Francisco – organized the event, in part, to recruit a “talented, passionate team” for his own purposes.
It immediately became clear that this would not be a one-time thing.
“It was a huge success. Each one of the employers hired multiple people and… what happened next was ten people emailed me and asked when we were going to do this again,” Ray told Civilized. Read mor
Business Insider – October 13, 2016
The ‘Apple of vaping’ made an e-cigarette for marijuana — here’s what it’s like
This summer, Pax Labs reinvented the e-cigarette with its best-selling device Juul.
The San Francisco-based startup dubbed the “Apple of vaping” is back with a device that aims to bring the same simplicity to marijuana smokers that the Juul delivered for tobacco smokers.
The Pax Era is a vape pen that works by heating up a liquid form of marijuana concentrate contained in tiny, Keurig-cup-like canisters. Users need only inhale to activate the device.
I recently tested the Pax Era. Here’s how it holds up. Read more
Cool Hunting – September 22, 2016
PAX Lab’s Two Next-Generation Vapes
Anyone familiar with PAX’s previous range of vaporizers understands the impact they’ve had on the smoking community. Thus far, they’ve coupled a tech-forward vaporization experience with an elegant design-driven product. We’ve been fans forever, despite the fact that we’ve only used their products for unintended reasons. Today’s release of PAX Lab’s two new devices finally addresses head on that their customers like to use PAX vaporizers to smoke marijuana. Read more
MG Magazine – July 8, 2016
Bloom Farms’ Michael Ray: Growing It Forward
A commitment to quality and corporate social responsibility defines Bloom Farms and its motivated founder, Michael Ray.
As the march toward nationwide legalization gains momentum, cannabis companies of all types and sizes are getting serious about developing brands that will resonate with people for years to come. Many companies focus their marketing narrative on products and services, often with an emphasis on health benefits, but others have taken a decidedly different route into the popular consciousness by establishing trust based on social responsibility and public service. Read more
Business Insider – June 26, 2016
This $50 vape pen is as good as vaporizers that are 5 times as expensive
The first time you take a long, blissful draw on a Highlighter vape pen, you may cough so violently you think you’ll hack up a lung. This pencil-thin device packs a bigger punch than its sleek design suggests.
The Highlighter vape pen is a pot user’s dream. It’s portable, stylish, cost-effective, and easy to use. As the vaping industry quickly heats up (one in 10 Americans vape these days), the Highlighter could be the device that’s been missing from the legal marijuana industry. Read more
the dieline – May 22, 2016
The Dieline Awards 2016 Outstanding Achievements: Highlighter by Bloom Farms
As the cannabis vaporizer pen market explodes across the country at a rapid pace, a wide array of package designs appear, many of which reflect fast turn-around production and cluttered, confusing design. Bloom Farm approached Pavement with a desire to stand out in the marketplace with a sophisticated and instantly recognizable brand image that would become the high standard for the category. Read more
The Huffington Post – February 24, 2016
More Than Just Revenue: The Social Capital Benefits of Legal Cannabis
It looked like a line for a concert, young folks shifting their weight as they patiently waited outside of the New Parish, a popular music venue in Oakland. The appearance of the crowd led one to believe that an alternative rock band or other anti-establishment act was poised to appear. Tattoos were in full force, piercings adorned ears, noses and less common body parts, and hair colors evoked rainbows. But this wasn’t a rock show, this was a work event, if your work happens to be in the cannabis industry. Read more