Q&A With Tripp Keber Posted 2 days, 54 minutes ago by Anna Helhoski   |   Comment

Tripp Keber: That was 25 years ago and I can assure you when I was working with the Heritage Foundation I had no idea I would be ever involved with the cannabis space in any capacity. There’s a lot of history between where I was 25 years ago and today. Subsequent to leaving politics I became a serial entrepreneur. In 2009 … I realized unexpectedly they had legalized marijuana for medical marijuana and I saw it as an opportunity to profit from. I was kind of unpopular early on for saying that, but I quickly understood the powerful medicinal benefits this plant can deliver.

Tripp Keber: I describe the cannabis industry as crisis management by the hour. I can tell you there’s no single day that is ever the same as the next; every day we’re faced with certain new opportunities and more importantly real challenges, whether it be at the federal level or state level dealing with regulators, health departments, fire departments that have never inspected a cannabis or marijuana infused products manufacturer, all the way to the consumer that may have had a relationship with this plant 26 years ago, but it’s a dramatically different species now. Dixie has been at the forefront of finding out what the adult consumer wants. I think that’s the greatest challenge we face

Tripp Keber: Well, it took 18 months for me to decide to flick the switch from being a free site to a premium. So I had to build up a brand along the way - web development, internet, scaling servers, marketing - and that was interesting, still is interesting. You know there’s of course barriers from companies like Visa and Mastercard, or T-mobile and AT&T that have tried to stop us from doing business when normally other businesses would be able to, but it’s marijuana

Tripp Keber: I got into the infused product space for two reasons. One, I didn’t know the first thing about cultivating cannabis. To grow good quality connoisseur marijuana it takes an incredible amount of skill and art. I didn’t have that kind of green thumb, it’s actually more gray or black. Secondarily, I couldn't get my arms around who the medical marijuana patient was – is it the 22 year old lifter with a back injury, which is one of the most common complaints? Is it your grandmother who is 74 years old who had glaucoma and who is doing it to relieve hypertension? Developing a segment of the industry that would allow me to serve all those patients and ultimately consumers is where I planted my flag.

One thing I’ve learned is it’s not a lazy person’s business, it is not a fool’s business and it is not a poor man or woman’s business. You have to be incredibly committed to this cause and this industry. You have to be incredibly thoughtful and intelligent because that crisis management comes at you fast and furious, with the risk up to the federal penitentiary. I distribute enough marijuana under medical and adult use to qualify for kingpin status a hundred times over. There’s no bank I can go to today. It’s also about having access to capital, either yours or someone else’s who is incredibly patient.

Tripp Keber: I would humbly submit, there is no larger tester of marijuana than Dixie Elixirs. Every single one of our products and formulations are tested no less than three times beginning with the material coming into the facility. We test the strength of the strain; it goes into a liquid format cannabinoid to determine concentration and determine the accuracy of dosing. If your targeted dose is 100, you're not making it to school next day, you’re not making it to work. Testing is a huge and integral part of what we’ve been doing for almost four years and it’s built a strong foundation which the company can grow on.

Tripp Keber: I think first and foremost we hire the best of breed thinkers, even in year’s past when we couldn’t afford it, we employed PhD food scientists. We were hemorrhaging cash; I was taking money out of my left pocket to put into my right pocket, but we invested in the human asset. In some cases it was a difficult decision to make. Beyond that, we were at the forefront of labeling and packaging well in advance of January 1 2014, the child-resistant packaging; designing, developing and delivering a high-end good that can reach the cannabis culture; giving patients or consumers a level of discretion he or she would appreciate - I think those innovations really set us apart. The adult use consumer is a dramatically different demographic than the medical marijuana patient.

Tripp Keber: There is no such thing. Not related to THC. The state is very clear there is no interstate commerce, so it’s a very inefficient model. You have to build one mousetrap then do it again in Arizona or Washington state. That is the single most important tenants the DOJ will allow, that there is no interstate commerce. There are companies that focus on building, creating and licensing intellectual property. It’s expensive.

Tripp Keber: I think you'll see how to bring to market our Dixie 1 – that one product one single dose active cannabinoids and THC. Subsequently we’ll be in the midst of announcing several strategic deals that will officially bring our brands into new markets, which will likely be from the new markets where our attendees are emanating from. Last, I think setting the tone, a new high bar for marketing to an industry that is still in it’s infant stages. The level of sophistication that many of these businesses bring is not insignificant.