With the greener seasons rolling in, we thought it was high time we showcased 13 cannabis industry influencers.

Lisa Campbell

@qnp

Over the years, Lisa Campbell became a true cannabis expert by working extensively in international drug policy with Canadian Students for Sensible Drug Policy. As the founder of the Women Grow Toronto chapter, Lisa is now founding a cannabis subsidiary for Lifford Wine & Spirits, helping cannabis companies navigate the emerging cannabis industry across Canada and beyond. Lifford Cannabis Solutions will work with cannabis companies to help their brands come to market across all ten provinces, leveraging Lifford’s national salesforce and longstanding relationships.

From wine to weed

We're still waiting to see who will take the lead as educators in this new market, but some in the wine industry say they are up to the task.

That means Manitoba could soon be home to not just wine reps but a number of cannabis reps.

"We have a lot of experience handling controlled substances and dealing with liquor boards across all 10 provinces," said Lisa Campbell, cannabis portfolio specialist for Lifford Cannabis Solutions, a subsidiary company of Toronto-based Lifford Wine and Spirits.

"Now that cannabis is being regulated similar to alcohol, there are a lot of parallels in terms of the supply chain and the services that producers will need getting to market."

Last October, Constellation Brands Inc.—an international producer and marketer of beer, wine and spirits, and a behemoth in the alcohol industry—signed a $191 million deal for a 9.9% stake in Canopy Growth Corp., Canada’s first publicly traded cannabis company. The unprecedented deal broke new ground and created new possibilities for both industries.

“That deal had a huge ripple effect,” says Lisa Campbell, co-creator of Green Market pop-up events, which are essentially farmers’ markets for craft cannabis producers, and well-attended despite being illegal. “All these alcohol companies are now getting into cannabis in a really big way,” Campbell says. “And all these cannabis companies are trying to get into the alcohol industry because they have massive coffers.”

Canada is creating a multi-billion dollar legal cannabis industry, thanks in large part to community organizers and activists like Lisa Campbell. The industry, which was once considered a wild west, is now being cozied up to by big banksand stock investors. While some old school cannabis patients are angry about the changes, noting that the social justice element are being lost. Companies are cheering for the growth and potential that can be brought to the table for patients. Campbell, sees both perspectives and recently put aside her own work in the industry to join the team at Lifford Wine & Spirits to head up their Cannabis portfolio.

Known for her role in Toronto, Campbell has helped several independent cannabis companies come to the forefront. She’s hoping that she can use that same magic of connection and community at Lifford’s in her role of Cannabis Portfolio Specialist where her mandate will be to work with licensed producersand craft makers to ensure their products get into the LCBO and SAQ. It’s an exciting time for both Campbell and the industry, and we had the chance to talk to Campbell about why cannabis conversations matter and what changes she foresees happening in the world of cannabis. Keep reading for our Q&A:

The cannabis industry is filled with passionate, forward-thinking people who have devoted their life's work to changing people's perceptions. But the question remains - how do people become involved in the cannabis industry in the first place? It turns out everyone has a unique personal journey that has brought them to the world of cannabis. Each week cannabis professionals, activists, and others will tell their stories in their own words. T

“Gender inequity is not unique to cannabis, although in the US women are leading the way with 36% of cannabis industry executives being female. By contrast of the 30+ Health Canada licensed producers in Canada, most are led by men, including the newly rebranded industry association Cannabis Canada which has an all male board of directors.?

"We are crushing it but we're not being included in legalization..."

In Canada, women are grossly underrepresented when it comes to leadership positions in publicly traded companies. In fact, our highly qualified females only fill 12% of board seats at 677 Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) companies. The numbers are, sadly, even lower when it comes to the Canadian cannabis industry.