Editors’ Note: This is the transcript version of the podcast. Please note that due to time and audio constraints, transcription may not be perfect. We encourage you to listen to the podcast, embedded below if you need any clarification. We hope you enjoy!
This week we are joined by Kristina Adduci, Founder & CEO of House of Puff, to discuss :
- Pairing Art & Cannabis
- Personalizing the First-time Experience
- Bringing Style to Cannabis
- and so much more
House of Puff designs approachable, luxe products & content to help the next generation of consumers. Our sophisticated puffware is made up of curated objects you can be proud of. Think of each piece as your own little work of art. Relax with them after a long day’s work, display them as part of your newest tablescape, or throw them in your bag when you’re on the go.
House of Puff replaces stigma with empowerment. We leverage our deep understanding of the role art plays in advancing cultural and social movements. House of Puff was built to be a vehicle for the future of the plant—to evolve and elevate the conversation about everything from consumption rituals to criminal justice reform.
https://www.instagram.com/thehouseofpuff/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAf_5fsvF5N_5oadAWo1LMw
#Cannabis #Art #Cannabiscommunity
At Eighth Revolution (8th Rev), we provide services from capital to cannabinoid and everything in between in the cannabinoid industry.
8th Revolution Cannabinoid Playbook is an Industry-leading report covering the entire cannabis supply chain
The Dime is a top 50 Cannabis Podcast
Contact us directly at [email protected] Bryan Fields: @bryanfields24 Kellan Finney: @Kellan_Finney
[00:00:00] What’s
[00:00:02]Bryan Fields: up guys? Welcome back to the episode of The Dime. I’m Brian Fields, and with me as always is Ke Finney. And this week we’ve got a very special guest, Christina Lopez, Ucci CEO House of Pup. Christina, thanks for taking the time. How you doing today? Pump
[00:00:15]Kristina Lopez Adduci: to be here. Too many teenies last night, but excited to be with you guys.
[00:00:19]Bryan Fields: I don’t know if there’s ever too many Teenies. Kan. How are you doing?
[00:00:22]Kellan Finney: I’m doing really well, doing really well. Excited to talk to Christina and you know, help educate the East Coast. Right? That’s what
[00:00:27]Bryan Fields: the West Coasters are here for. That’s that’s right. So Christina, just for the record, your location please.
[00:00:33]Kristina Lopez Adduci: I am based in, our office is based in New York, but I am currently in Connecticut. So East Coaster. Yes.
[00:00:43]Bryan Fields: Uh, I think we’re doing it ke I think we’re gonna have to go back and tally it up to the end of the year, and I’m gonna think, I’ll let you know. I, I think we’ve gotten you, I’m here for it. . So, so Christina, far listeners that are unfamiliar brought you, Can you give a little background about
[00:00:53]Kristina Lopez Adduci: yourself?
[00:00:54] Sure. Uh, so name’s Christina. Born and raised in good old [00:01:00] New Jersey. Uh, grew up in a strict Puerto Rican household. Um, Uh, just, you know, my dad worked at ShopRite for 27 years, cutting cold cuts. So always be nice to your deliman guys. Um, and my mom decided later in life that she was gonna quit her real estate job and become a physician.
[00:01:20] So I say that because that sort of just lays the groundwork of like who I am as a person and my entrepreneurial like journey and, and just being a risk taker and just being, that’s just part of my dna. Um, and I also grew up with two, uh, grandparents who were Pentecostal pastors. So all this to say, um, I was no fun as a kid and was never exposed to cannabis.
[00:01:46] Uh, and you know, was a goody two shoes, dare kid. And I didn’t really consume cannabis until later in life. I was, you know, went to grad school. Graduated that I was gonna work in politics. Glad [00:02:00] that didn’t work out. Uh, and went to go work for the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s research. And that was sort of the first time, uh, I was exposed to hearing about cannabis for therapeutic and medicinal benefits.
[00:02:13] Um, if you know anything about Parkinson’s disease, some. Some patients suffer from dyskinesia with the shaking and, um, a lot a host of other things. And it was just wonderful to see, um, millions of dollars going into research for Parkinson’s patients. And so, you know, living in New York, I, uh, started an art magazine, some art collector and little by little I, uh, so I left the Michael J.
[00:02:36] Fox Foundation, did the magazine full time. We had it in Miami, New York and la and little by little my anxiety and not sleeping at night really became, was hindering my, my performance. And I wanted to get off the big pharma train and I decided, Oh man, I think I’m gonna try cannabis. And so my boyfriend at the time, who’s [00:03:00] now my husband, uh, he came over with this just collegiate gross bong, and I’m just like, Oh my God, I cannot believe my first time is gonna be out of this like, just ugly thing that I just wanna throw in the back of my closet.
[00:03:14] So the pros were that I loved, it was instantaneous. The, when I consumed, um, I felt. Like myself, and I felt, um, more creative and I was sleeping better. And it was just such a beautiful awakening, if you will. Obviously the con was this like gross, like phallic thing that was sitting on my coffee table and I thought, All right, well I have this Rolodex of artists that I’ve worked with.
[00:03:42] I think I’ve interviewed over 1500 artists and thought, let’s bring. Art into cannabis, right? Cannabis heals, Art Heals. I love beautiful shit. So let’s just like bring it all together. And that’s sort of the story of how House of Puff was born.
[00:03:58]Bryan Fields: So how, how long [00:04:00] after that inception of that first experience, I’m assuming after you consumed and continued consuming, but how, how quickly after from a timeframe perspective did you decide, hey, like House of Puff, here’s an idea, this is something I’m gonna go for.
[00:04:12] It
[00:04:12]Kristina Lopez Adduci: was about, Six months and I kept consuming and I liked it so much, but I did not like the, the experience. I didn’t like the, you know, I went down to St. Mark’s and tried to find a pretty pipe pink pipe that I could fit in my purse. I couldn’t find it. I went online like, you know, this is a, you know, back 5, 6, 7 years ago.
[00:04:35] So the green rush was just starting to happen and you were seeing a lot of accessories come to market, but nothing that sort of fit who I was as a stylish doll, as a woman and as a woman of color, right? A lot of these things I was ordering online for starters came in like CD packaging, so, Check. No, that’s that, that didn’t make me feel good about my experience.
[00:04:57] But they were also super confusing to use. Like, [00:05:00] which end of the pipe am I lighting again? I’m a, I’m a new consumer. Um, so I thought, all right, right off the bat, I started reaching out to artists, ceramicists, uh, contemporary artists, start licensing their artwork to put them on, you know, rolling papers, et cetera.
[00:05:15] But the second part of that was like, I need to educate everybody around me. Like the women I were, I was talking to like, Yeah, we, we like cannabis, but like, you know, how did you even use a one hitter or a bong? Like again, back to basics, right? Um, and so it took about a year for me to do an mvp, which we called our lip kit, and it came with the one hit.
[00:05:38] That was pink. Uh, that Abbu got rest for salt. Thought, thought was a lipstick holder. Um, and, and instructions and a beautiful candle that we teamed up with, uh, Joya out in Brooklyn. They designed scents for Nike and Thomas Keller and all these wonderful people. They did a custom scent for us and we sold out, and then I found out I was pregnant with twins , [00:06:00] and everything came to a screeching halt.
[00:06:05] Um, and so I decided, um, you know, I got, I went on tv, I got all this press, um, and then I had to go on bed rest, and I thought, All right, let me just, For the next year, sit in this bed and figure out how to scale this. Right. Cuz I didn’t really know that much about cannabis. And one of the first things I did was, you know, I’ve reached out to people who I knew in New York who were, you know, like occlusive.
[00:06:30] Those were like the first, you know, women to embrace me and sort of guide me, you know, on this journey. Um, and then it didn’t really take off until 2020. Right before the pandemic, I brought on our coo, Holly Hager, and uh, that’s when the magic really started to happen. You wanna
[00:06:47]Kellan Finney: talk us through that first mvp?
[00:06:49] What was the kind of the motivating factors for including the one hitter with the candle and kind of what else was in there?
[00:06:55]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Yeah, I, how I was consuming and how other women around me were consuming was [00:07:00] very much a ritual. It was, you know, you come, you come home from work, kick off your heels, take your bra.
[00:07:05] off You do want a glass of wine, you wanna, you wanna sit in bath light a candle. Have two puffs. You know, I hate to call it a one hitter cause I, I get at least three or four puffs out of it. . And you just like, wanna unwind and it was just such this a beautiful experience after a long day. And then like right before bed, you know, it was helping me sleep.
[00:07:27] And all the women who were our first, you know, receivers of the mvp, the feedback was this just. It Seamlessly into how I live my life and my lifestyle. And for me, that sort of solidified, okay, if the women I’m surrounding myself with in, you know, our little New York bubble are saying this and thinking this way, there’s gotta be other women who are still in, you know, more or less the can of closet.
[00:07:52] Or maybe just starting to dabble in c b D, maybe not ready for cannabis per se, but, you know, women [00:08:00] turn to cannabis mostly for wellness reasons. We know that, like the stats are out there. Um, so yeah, so that’s how it just, it, it, it sort of began and I had. I really didn’t think it’d take off as much as it did.
[00:08:12] I had to sell my art magazine to really focus on half a puff full time. Cuz as we know investors, they don’t like to hear that you have multiple businesses, you have, you focus on one. Um, you know, and then I put a little pitch deck together. I look back at my first pitch deck and I just, I just laugh. I had no idea what I was doing.
[00:08:29]Bryan Fields: We’re all just figuring out as we go, but I think the adoption is so important, right? Like Zach Connect, you were saying you, you found a niche, then you, you looked out for other consumers, and it might be like women could see consumption devices like you were describing in that first story and never felt connected, right?
[00:08:44] They were interested in cannabis, but those devices might have been a hindrance for them to be like, See, it’s not really for me. And then, They see your device and it all clicks and now it all feels like something that belongs to them. And I think that’s so important when you’re talking about building a brand to have that voice and that identity for that customer.
[00:08:59] For who you’re creating the [00:09:00] product for.
[00:09:00]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Yeah. And accessories were just a very pragmatic entry point for us. You know, when you’re an entrepreneur. One of the first things you have to think about is like, how big is this problem I’m trying to solve? And the problem we know is huge. I mean, women are the fastest growing consumers in cannabis.
[00:09:16] Full stop. Um, and so I knew I could solve the problem fairly quickly, right? Not flat, not, we’re not flower touching company. Um, so very little regulatory constraints, although, you know, we do have hurdles that we jump through. Um, but accessories was, it was very intent. How did
[00:09:34]Bryan Fields: we blend the art with it?
[00:09:36] Right. Obviously with the art background, that’s a, that’s an interesting niche that you have and obviously applying your, your previous experience that had have been something where you wanted to forge the two of them together. So was that easier than you thought, or harder than you thought? Looking back.
[00:09:48]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Um, it was easy, right? Because I, I like to say that, you know, house puff sits at like the nexus of social justice art, uh, in cannabis. And women need to be put at ease, [00:10:00] right? With, with cannabis, especially if they’re doing it for the first time. And so art and high culture like sort of normalizes it for them, right?
[00:10:08] Especially when you pair it with beautiful lifestyle content. Um, We’ve, the, the art is, is so integral to who we are as a company. It’s just part of our dna, and we have a really cool model on how we do that. You know, we work with bi women artists for the most part. Everything we do is. Still hand glaze like our ceramics, which, you know, I don’t know how long that’s gonna last as like we continue to scale.
[00:10:36] Um, but I’ve refined my eye as an art collector for so many years, so I, you know, I know good design and I, and appreciate artists. And so what we do is we will take, uh, a product and the artist will do like, you know, a run of some, just a very small. We’ll test it out and if it does well, then we’ll put that product in into [00:11:00] commercial production.
[00:11:01] Um, and so we did that for our LA Pipes, which was our hero product, our first product, and now we have it in eight colors. Still all hand glaze here in the us um, by women artists. Um, we also license artwork, and. A really cool model because they’re not just pretty rolling papers, right? Like of course they are.
[00:11:20] But we, our artist series, we’ve done two so far. One was a Mexican artist, Pa, Paula Flores. Um, and most recently, which, um, I know you guys were both at the, uh, event we did for Chris Wilson. Um, and that was just, Sort of a dream come true for House of Puff where we license the artwork, we put it on rolling papers, and there’s a give back component.
[00:11:42] So of course we wanna support our artists in that beautiful ecosystem. And with Chris, uh, you know, he spent. 17 years, 16, 17 years in prison. Spent some time in solitary confinement. Uh, the artwork that we put on the rolling papers was positive delusions. Um, and it was [00:12:00] how he got through solitary confinement.
[00:12:01] And I encourage everybody to read his book, The Master Plan, and. He’s just such an inspiration. And so the colors and positive delusions, um, all you know, mean something like the black in the painting represents the anger and rage he felt as a black wo uh, black person. Um, and so we give back to him, but we also give back to solitary watchers as an organization trying to end solitary confinement, uh, in the us.
[00:12:25] So art and artists are inseparable from House of Puff. Um, And it’s, I think, you know, because we’re rooted in art, that’s why we stand out. It makes us, um, pretty much different from other folks who are doing, you know, cannabis, uh, accessories. That’s beautiful. Can
[00:12:42]Kellan Finney: you walk us through kind of the strategy for pairing specific art pieces with, uh, the form factor?
[00:12:49] Right. We were talking Chris Wilson, a specific painting went on the, the rolling papers. What was kind of the decision and the conversation that went into choosing that piece
[00:12:57]Bryan Fields: on the rolling papers?
[00:12:59]Kristina Lopez Adduci:[00:13:00] Um, so Chris, this was Chris’s first foray into, um, abstract R and we were staging, um, an exhibition, Atta, and, you know, we, we, we saw all the paintings, you know, over Zoom and positive delusions.
[00:13:16] First of all, the name itself, it was just, just strikes you. You’re like, What, what is that about? Before you even see it, right? You like, wanna know more. And Holly and I got quite emotional when we saw positive delusions. And then when Chris goes to explain it, um, so it’s sort of this like, not to sound too woo woo, but I had sort of just like this, this feeling in my heart and in my gut, like that is it.
[00:13:41] That is a painting we need to. And yeah, of course we have to get permission from Chris cuz we don’t know, like, is it an art collection? Does somebody own it? Because then obviously that gets, and licensing is already complicated when you’re licensing artworks. Um, but it’s, Holly and I just have this like, just, we saw it and we [00:14:00] were like, That is it, It’s, it’s positive delusions.
[00:14:03] And how cool is it that you get to carry a piece of artwork, you know, in your pocket or your purse? Um, that has a beautiful story. Um, and, and a give back component. So it’s all gut. It’s all I, There’s no rhyme or reason. We just, when you know, you know,
[00:14:20]Bryan Fields: I think the level of details is really what I, I enjoy most about that because I, I think a lot of people talk the talk, but you go ahead and actually back it up with the actions, and I think a lot of people in the industry and a lot of the bigger companies would be beneficial to take a page out of your book in order to back up the actions and not just kind of put the words out there.
[00:14:37] So, I wanna stay with some of the tiny details. I ordered the product, so I wanna get the experience, and I was blown away with opening the box, the personalized note, the instructions, it just felt completely different to me. Uh, in my household. We receive a gift from the Amazon guy every single day, , and there is no feeling with it.
[00:14:54] It is just a plain box. And I think that was kind of like what my condition thought would be when I opened it up [00:15:00] and I was completely blown away by the different experience. Felt opening and just, just having it. So I wanted to kind of expand on some of those experiences and those details. Like, was that always an intention?
[00:15:09] Was that something you kind of worked through? How did that happen?
[00:15:13]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Um, in, in, in terms of what? Like what? Like the, the pa like the opening of the, like every little detail. I mean really it was, it was trial and error and I did a lot of shopping, which, you know, shocker. Right. That had to be. Tough, you know, so I was doing market research, but also, you know, shopping.
[00:15:32] Yeah. . Um, and I, you know, just like with art, you just, to your point, the attention to detail, right? The little things you, you notice in a painting, you know, a corner of a painting that might inspire the colors. It’s sort of the same thing when you get a house of. Package. Right. Every little detail. I thought, like, how would I back to my first experience when I was opening up all this CD packaging, like what would [00:16:00] make me feel good about something that, let’s face it as a woman, as an, as a Puerto Rican, like the stigma, right?
[00:16:05] And so from beginning soup to nuts, like the packaging matters. So I want folks to open it up. They get a handwritten note from me. They, they get to hear my story and, and it’s just, Everything has been well thought out, but it took, you know, it took four years to really just, um, hone that in and, and finally we got a, a fulfillment center now, which was cuz I was doing that stuff outta my garage.
[00:16:31] You know, me and my looking, I’m wearing a Steve, my Steve Jobs, uh, turtleneck reference to, to businesses out of garages. and, you know, to, to, to pack up all of your stuff and to send it away and, you know, trust that packaging experience in somebody else’s hand. Luckily, um, we work with a woman owned company in New York and they’re amazing and I zoom with them all the time.
[00:16:56] I’m like, Let me see how you’re packaging do to get, Wait, put the tissue paper. Yep. [00:17:00] There we go. Put the sticker on. You know, like every little branding moment, um, is intent.
[00:17:07]Bryan Fields: It’s so, it’s so important, especially for new consumers, right? Because especially here on the east coast, we have that stigma still, people don’t understand or don’t, don’t know what to experience.
[00:17:15] So that first time is so important and having those instructions like it, it’s such a a minute detail for maybe for some, but for others it’s so critical because getting a product like that, most people are like, I don’t know what to do. But a product like yours experiencing that, I’d feel comfortable sending it to someone for the first time and they wouldn’t have to ask me, Hey Brian, like, what do I do now?
[00:17:34] And like, then it gets kind of weird. So I, I’ll applaud you for those type of details. Thank you.
[00:17:39]Kellan Finney: Apple. Apple also is pretty good at packaging too with your Steve Jobs.
[00:17:47]Bryan Fields: So how, how do we continue forward and kind of, uh, remove the stigma, obviously that, that stench kind of continues to get on, but embracing what, what other opportunities can we do to help remove.
[00:17:59]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Listen, I [00:18:00] think normalize normalization is the key to everything. But you know, I, I, I like to say normalization then legalization, right?
[00:18:07] That’s how we get there. And the more we talk about it, obviously when we have, uh, folks like, you know, Biden going on and, and, and, and talking about cannabis, and you have, you know, celebrities and people you look up to, that’s great. But really at the end of the day, I have to say, it’s education. You just, you know, the more people feel comfortable on a topic, the more likely they’re gonna talk about it.
[00:18:30] And the more that they talk about it, the more that it becomes part of everyday conversation. Like I’m. I was talking to a, a another parent about the other day. My, my kids go to, you know, a fancy pants private school, and I’m afraid, you know, are these parents gonna, you know, judge me if they know ’em in cannabis?
[00:18:48] But you know what Christina does? Christina just, she likes to talk about it. I’m like, Here, here’s my YouTube channel. You go to my blog. You have any questions? Come back and, and now more and more parents are [00:19:00] approaching me in, you know, at the parking lot being like, Hey, so I, uh, just watched the terpene video.
[00:19:05] So like, what kind of, uh, terpenes are in my gummies. You do you get, do you get gummies? Can I get, So can I get some? I become like the, the. The We Witch of Westport,
[00:19:15]Bryan Fields: the, the Plug ,
[00:19:17]Kellan Finney: that’s quite the name, .
[00:19:20]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Um, and so that’s why we’ve invested so heavily in content marketing, right? Because, um, specifically we don’t wanna, wanna be talked to and educated a certain way and we make it super digestible and easy and pull that friction out for them cuz once again, If you’re educated on a topic, you’re gonna feel good about it and you’re gonna, especially within the Hispanic community, like it is tough to talk to Abbu about cannabis, so she don’t wanna hear none of that.
[00:19:46] Um, But if she sees a beautiful video of a, a manicure and, you know, not some white kid in his mom’s, you know, basement teaching her how to roll a joint, but she sees me, she might, [00:20:00] she will definitely have gonna have a different experience, right? And so that’s why we, you know, our editorial site in YouTube is just something that we really focus.
[00:20:11]Kellan Finney: Have you noticed that stigma kind of changing more recently rather than in, or has it just been kind of consistent over the, since you’ve been doing the content?
[00:20:19]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Yeah, I, I, you know, I, we get a lot of comments on, you know, our social channels a lot. It’s like, I never thought I’d see somebody like you consuming, and I’m like, Like, you know, this is, this is how we start to break it down.
[00:20:32] And especially, I mean, with the Northeast, you know, the Northeast we’re the, Sorry, but Callum we’re the epicenter of a lot, right? And so we’re the trendsetter. So, All these other states are falling like Domino’s. It was New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Virginia, you know, and, and so I think with, with legalization happening in the northeast, it really is helping accelerate, um, you know, ization and normalization for sure.
[00:20:59]Kellan Finney: I [00:21:00] completely agree. I mean, there’s about 18 million people that just live in New York City and Colorado has like five. So , that’s .
[00:21:06]Bryan Fields: I get it. . I get it. . And you’re right Christine. If you go on YouTube and you search for like rolling a joint, you’re gonna get 90% are gonna be the same kind of in close your eyes.
[00:21:17] And guess you can see the person in your head totally. Having someone like yourself kind of be that face For others people similar interest. It, it changes that perception because people immediately assume, wait a minute, like, like you. Originally with the product, you’re changing the idea that this is for me and this can be for me if this is someone else doing it.
[00:21:38] So, uh, I definitely think that you’re on the right track. So was that something that was easy to start? Cause obviously putting yourself in that, in that shoes is challenging, right? Being the face for others to look to for, for continuity and for, for comfort. That’s, that’s a challenge or that’s something that came natural.
[00:21:52]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Yeah. You know, I gotta say I love the, I love the camera and the camera loves me. I, I don’t know, I’ve just like alwa, you [00:22:00] know, my mom shows me videos of me like performing at like other kids’ birthday parties. Like, I just like love to like, entertain and educate. I love to share my story because, I growing up, I got, you know, I was bullied a lot for being, for being Puerto Rican and, um, I didn’t really have a role model.
[00:22:20] I, I could, you know, turn on the TV or read about that, you know, would make me feel okay. And I feel like now maybe the reason why I like to be, you know, on TV or do a YouTube or it comes so naturally to me because I wanna share my story and if I can inspire whether. You know, another Latina who wants to be in cannabis or just a, a college student who, you know, wants to, you know, do something else with their life and, and needs that, like, encouragement from somebody who’s had a patchwork career like myself.
[00:22:53] Um, I’m gonna do that. And so I’m also a Leo, so I’m just loud, proud and, and, [00:23:00] and just love to dish and it’s fun for me. The, the only thing was I didn’t wanna do a YouTube channel. We were a team of two. So like we had no bandwidth. Um, but it was the pandemic and we had to, we had to like pivot a little bit, right?
[00:23:15] Like a lot of the stores that were carrying us closed, um, and everybody was at home. So you have to meet your customer where they are. They were at home and so, I honestly didn’t think that the two would be as big as it, as big as it is. I think our Hatter roll joint video has like over a million views now.
[00:23:33] We’re one of the top joint rolling videos, which is like cool because I’m definitely not the, the best joint roller to be like, truth be told, but I can teach you the basics and it really resonated with our community. And so investing in, in, and by the. To anybody like nervous about like getting a fancy camera, don’t.
[00:23:54] I did all of those videos on our, on my iPhone. Okay. Now we just started to invest [00:24:00] in, into. You know, we work with an amazing videographer, but back then we had $0. So I had like a little cheap microphone. I would clip and I’d clip it into my iPhone and it worked, right? Cause all I was trying to do was just reach our, reach our women and, and, and educate them and, and it, and it paid off because it’s, you know, we’ve got thousands of subscribers now and it’s, it’s wonderful to, to build that community.
[00:24:25] What’s
[00:24:26]Kellan Finney: your favorite part about building the, the channel so far? What’s been the, your
[00:24:29]Kristina Lopez Adduci: favorite? Interacting with other, with other people, interacting with other women, specifically interacting with women who were, where I was when I first started. You know, confused, scared, nervous. Um, had there been somebody like me on YouTube or a a or a place or social channel, um, That I could have looked at, I probably would’ve been a lot more comfortable early on.
[00:24:56] But, you know, everything happens for a reason. So it’s just hearing the [00:25:00] stories from, from just incredible, these kinda curious folks and their, their journey, right? Because we’re not West Coast legacy. We haven’t been doing this for 20 years. We’re, we’re newbies and you can’t, and we can’t forget about that.
[00:25:15] There are people who are just realizing how beautiful this plant.
[00:25:20]Kellan Finney: That is beautiful. This such is gotta fuel the fire.
[00:25:23]Bryan Fields: Yeah. , does cannabis help with the creativity and does it help calm the nerves? Maybe pre-recording.
[00:25:31]Kristina Lopez Adduci: So you know, I am, again, like the type A in me. I never wanna consume when I film. But then I, I think our last video, seven questions to ask yourself before you go to a dispensary.
[00:25:45] I had done it so many times and Holly was like, Why don’t you just like, have a little puff and do it one more time? And I’m like, Oh, fine. Okay. So I take little puff and it was of course the best, the best take out of all of ’em. So now, now I’m [00:26:00] rethinking it. Maybe, maybe I just need a little. Personality puff, hashtag personality, puff, uh, and, and then, and then get on camera.
[00:26:08] You’re like, it’s for the
[00:26:08] content.
[00:26:09]Bryan Fields: It’s, it’s just for the content .
[00:26:11]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Cause I can’t consume during the day, like working hours. Like I know there are people who do it and they need it and it’s great. I, I can’t, I’ll just, I’ll just be in the pantry just eating Doritos if I do.
[00:26:23]Kellan Finney: That’s also not favorite. Torito Cool.
[00:26:25] Ranch or nacho cheese?
[00:26:26]Bryan Fields: Cool. Ranch,
[00:26:27]Kristina Lopez Adduci: are you coming outta your mind? Of
[00:26:29]Bryan Fields: course. Cool. Ranch. He’s just setting you up for a That’s a gotcha question. . So what’s the, what’s the state of New York, right? Like what, what, what can we anticipate? Obviously right now it’s disappointing. Um, but for the people out there, especially for the East coasters, specifically here in New York, like what can they expect in the future?
[00:26:48] And like, what can we hope for from what you’ve seen, uh, to come.
[00:26:53]Kristina Lopez Adduci: I think we are going to see a robust competitive. New York market and the [00:27:00] OCM has, so like they want this to be a very competitive market, uh, marketplace as it should be. Um, I think you’re gonna see a lot of, of creative brands and companies and people, and I pray and I hope that most of these operators and brand builders and companies are black, The black and brown community, because, We deserve it.
[00:27:28] They deserve it. And New York is, is, is, is doing their part and they’re sticking to Now I know everybody has their opinions on, you know, regulations that drop every so often and I actually host, um, The Thursday, a, a small group of folks and we, you know, dissect them and what we like, what we don’t like, should we submit comments?
[00:27:50] Um, but overall, I mean the diversity, uh, uh, of, of, of products and is gonna be incredible. I went to my first. [00:28:00] Uh, grow, uh, in, in upstate New York and Walden, New York. And I gotta say, I was so emotional to see cannabis being grown, uh, outside in New York, in New York soil. Um, and so, you know, Callie better watch out because, uh, in the next few years we might be the biggest, uh, cannabis capital
[00:28:22] I think
[00:28:22]Bryan Fields: Christina just put California on notice. Yep.
[00:28:26]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Don’t at me. .
[00:28:29]Bryan Fields: So what about events? Can we expect, Obviously like an intersection of more art-based cool events. Ones that I think like when we hear cannabis events, I think people all go, immediately go and think of like a, a more dingy and a basement style event.
[00:28:41] But can we expect in New York a more upscale. Vibrant environment with art and cannabis in the future, in your opinion? Oh,
[00:28:48]Kristina Lopez Adduci: absolutely. I mean, it’s already happening now. You have, you know, folks like happy monkeys throwing events, uh, with live artists doing painting at the classic car club. I mean, [00:29:00] what I mean, how incredible.
[00:29:01] They had like a thousand people there. You’re gonna, you’re gonna see not only the intersection of art and cannabis, Fashion, Right? We’re the fashion capital, we’re the art capital, we’re the, you know, banking capital. You’re gonna see so much crossover, and that’s why, that’s why New York’s so great. We’ve always been good at that.
[00:29:20] We’re, we’re the melting pot for a reason, right? And just bringing everybody’s diverse. Backgrounds, right? Cause we all didn’t come from Canada. We come, we came from somewhere else. I came from the art world, Somebody came from, you know, running magazines. Word. Have you now we’re all doing this together.
[00:29:35] You’re gonna see a lot of interesting, again, like nothing like you’ve seen before. So watch out .
[00:29:44]Bryan Fields: What’s the future roadmap look like for you,
[00:29:48]Kristina Lopez Adduci: for House of Puff? What is the future? Well, um, Obviously we are a brand that, um, is built in New York. Uh, we we’re [00:30:00] here in New York. Uh, most of our products are named after spots that I love in New York.
[00:30:07] Um, you know, we wanna be. We’re D to C we’re b2b. I think the next step, you know, put two and two together is, is a house of puff il uh, and, and giving customers finally the opportunity. Cause whenever we do a popup, you know, they get to like, touch the product and meet me and meet our team. They’re just like, oh.
[00:30:27] I love it. I get it now. Right? Because there’s a difference between shopping online and shopping in person. So I am bullish on retail. Uh, and, and I know that that might be controversial, but I am, I think New York goes, there’s, it’s, it’s up and downs. Um, but I, for us, it definitely looks like a House of Puff somewhere.
[00:30:49]Bryan Fields: Oh, I see. Is, see what I did there. Yeah. Yeah. Win Wing. But I think you’re right. I. There’s something tangible about touching the products. Uh, I’ve been shopping enough with my wife to see her touch the [00:31:00] clothes, Not necessarily buy them all, but just touch them all. And I never understood what that concept in theory was, but yeah.
[00:31:04] She said there’s something different about feeling the products, and I think you hit the nail on the head with, with kind of being live with the products and they experience it and then truly understanding it. Yeah.
[00:31:14]Kellan Finney: And it could be a really, really awesome retail experience, integrating the art and all of your products.
[00:31:19]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Exactly, and it’d be great to, you know, continue to work with all these incredible artists, support our local artists in our community. Um, stage art shows. Um, we’re really excited for the future for sure.
[00:31:33]Bryan Fields: What is one factor statistic about being in the cannabis industry that would shock others to know ?
[00:31:40]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Oh my gosh.
[00:31:41] Uh, let’s see. I don’t know if this is. You know, cannabis in general, but the disbursement of funds to, to women and women of color, um, I think is what 0.8% of venture capital 0.8% goes to us. Uh, I hate to like, [00:32:00] You know, think about it, but people, more people need to know about that, right? And I think, um, access to capital is something that, especially access to capital for people of color, um, is something I’m very passionate about.
[00:32:12] Um, I don’t think it’s talked about enough. Um, and that stat, while a sad one, you know, I, I don’t let it, you know, bog us down. We just keep on keeping on and there. Tons of investors and, and, and people and folks who wanna support and invest in, in brands, um, that are owned by, um, black and brown, uh, folks.
[00:32:34] And I think that, um, we need to be talking about that more. So I would say that’s a stat that maybe not cannabis related, but something that I always like to mention because I want it, I want it changed, right? So if I want something to change, God talk.
[00:32:48]Bryan Fields: Do you think that they get passed over more or do you think we just need more female entrepreneurs or a combination of both?
[00:32:54]Kristina Lopez Adduci: I think they get passed over. I think there are a, I, a lot of female entrepreneurs doing a [00:33:00] lot of kick ass things that get passed over just because they’re women.
[00:33:04]Bryan Fields: What can be done to make more noise about it or to change that?
[00:33:09]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Well talking about it, right? This beautiful platform. So, you know, thanks to you guys and you know, you’ve always done such a wonderful job of, of bringing women on your show, so I appreciate that.
[00:33:19] We need more of you, right? We need more platforms, um, to be talking about this. Uh, we need to be in the room, right? When I go to a lot of these capital conferences, Ben Zinga was just at, they’re very intent. They are trying, right? They’re teaming up with. Organizations like Women Grow and you know, gave me a 10 minute pitch for $0.
[00:33:41] Like let me go on stage and talk about, So, you know, there are people in this space who are doing the good work. We just need to amplify that more. Well said.
[00:33:52]Bryan Fields: When you started your journey in the cannabis space, what did you get? Right? And most importantly, what did you get wrong? ?
[00:33:58]Kristina Lopez Adduci: What did I get right? [00:34:00] Um, I think.
[00:34:03] I’m gonna be a little cheesy. I got right. My Holly Hager, my coo is the one thing I I absolutely got right? I think, um, too many times you hear about failed partnerships. Um, and I am extremely blessed and honored to be working with such an incredible mind. And I know you feel the same way about ke .
[00:34:27]Kellan Finney: It’s mutual over here too.
[00:34:28] I have that same feeling, .
[00:34:31]Kristina Lopez Adduci: What I got wrong, how difficult some of, uh, you know, advertising and marketing. I didn’t realize the shadow banning on Instagram was like a thing, right? I didn’t realize that. TikTok would strip down all of my videos, even if it was just a REO in the video. Um, I was not prepared to, to, to have, to get creative and perhaps even leave some of these [00:35:00] social channels because we were getting booted off all the time.
[00:35:03] And it’s frustrating when you invest time and energy and money and you have a social media manager and you’re posting all these things. You’re trying to reach your community, you’re trying to, to do sales and you can’t. Um, so I definitely underestimated that for.
[00:35:17]Bryan Fields: That one, that one agitates me so bad because people are like, Can’t you just do X, Y, and Z?
[00:35:22] And you’re like, Yeah, if only, if only, thank God
[00:35:25]Kristina Lopez Adduci: for LinkedIn. Shout out to LinkedIn. You know,
[00:35:28]Bryan Fields: But like realistically, like at any moment people be kicked off that and like then you’re, we are gonna be here next week being like, You know what? We’re sorry we gave LinkedIn. Any love like deserve to be in the back of the room.
[00:35:37] Like everyone. Well,
[00:35:39]Kristina Lopez Adduci: that’s why I think podcasts are the, are also like one of my favorite things to do. It’s audio right? You can’t, very little regulatory constraints there. So, um, right. Again, you guys are nailing
[00:35:50]Bryan Fields: it. . You can control what you can control, but you need to do your own voice in order to dictate that out.
[00:35:55] And if you put yourself in position to have the big social media platform to control your [00:36:00] voice, you know, you’re subject to what they think is, is necessary and best. 20 years from now, we will look back and say, That was barbaric. I can’t believe we did that in the cannabis industry. What is that
[00:36:14]Kristina Lopez Adduci: two 80
[00:36:16]Kellan Finney: Yeah.
[00:36:19]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Say banking any, like you name it. Like I, you know, I just, um, I, that’s top of mind for me because obviously we know a lot of businesses unfortunately, are closing and struggling, especially the California market. Um, and it’s really sad to see. Um, I also think that we’ll look back in 20 years and be like, Why did we take so long for federal legalization?
[00:36:41] Like we are talking about. Medicine. This is a medicine, but we cannot forget that. Yes, we like to consume and have fun and be giggly, whatever. This is a medicine first. Um, so I think we’ll look back like we did prohibition in the twenties and be like, that was like illegal. [00:37:00] What? Um, so yeah, that’s my answer.
[00:37:03]Bryan Fields: or we do predictions. We ask all of our guests, If you can sum up your experience in a main takeaway or lesson, learn to pass onto the next generation, what would.
[00:37:14]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Don’t worry about making mistakes cause you’re gonna make them. You have to keep going, especially in a nascent industry like cannabis. Very difficult.
[00:37:25] I don’t think people realize how difficult the cannabis industry is. And I, you know, we are changing the tire as we drive the car. Right. It’s still moving. We are going to have hiccups and we’re going to change gears and that’s okay. Um, but those things, bad experiences, especially personal experiences that go haywire, um, can help build an incredible business.
[00:37:52] And I think the House of Puff stories is a testament to that. You just gotta keep going. I made a lot of mistakes. [00:38:00] But I built this company because my own bad personal experience. Right? Said gross collegiate, bong. And, uh, and now look where we are. Right? Um, you know, we’ve got a, a worldwide community of almost 5 million and I would’ve never thought that.
[00:38:15] Um, so that’s, that’s the takeaway. Yeah.
[00:38:18]Bryan Fields: I mean, drawing inspiration from a dirty, ugly bong is, uh, pretty incredible. I gotta tell. I have to . All right. Prediction time. C. What is one cannabis essential or product that every new customer should have or consider to own?
[00:38:36]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Ooh, I think. I mean, I obviously wanna say a one hitter, right?
[00:38:41] Whether you’re a cannabis connoisseur or you’re just, you’re a kinda curious gal. I think it’s just an easy, quick way to get a little puff. I also think that beverages, you know, a lot of family members of mine who would never cons, would never smoke. [00:39:00] Or even nervous to take an edible when again, bullish on beverages.
[00:39:05] I think that you, you know, pour, Jamie Evans has a rose that tastes just like rose. There’s no alcohol in it. Um, I think that everybody at some point should have a little case of can or a drink or a, an infused beverage because I do think that is the future. I really do. I think beverages are, are just a fantastic entry point for a lot of folks.
[00:39:32] Um, And I’ve seen it in my own family that, you know, again, like my mother would never be caught puffing, but, you know, she’ll pop open a, a, a 2.5 mg, uh, you know, a seltzer. And it’s, it’s, it’s a wonderful thing to say. Helen,
[00:39:51]Kellan Finney: uh, I’m gonna go with two things cuz I think that there is kind of the traditional market or consumer, if you will, right now, which is [00:40:00] 70% probably smoke.
[00:40:01] So I would say probably most 70% of people that are getting me involved in, you’re gonna inhale or smoke it. So they probably need ashtray. This probably would be my first thing I would suggest. Right? A nice ashtray for ’em. Um, just cause it’s pain in the ass, ash in your sink and stuff like that. And then I would say probably beverages as well.
[00:40:19] Um, it’s the second, it’s just the safest form factor probably right. Most. Most humans are used to consuming something that inebriates them via liquid, right? Like alcohol, we’re used to it. Society’s used to it. So I think that that’s gonna be the, the
[00:40:36]Bryan Fields: easiest hill to
[00:40:37]Kellan Finney: climb for most consumers that have any apprehension for ingesting cannabis
[00:40:42]Kristina Lopez Adduci: for the first time.
[00:40:43] And, and you meant to say House of Puff ash tray.
[00:40:47]Kellan Finney: I was looking
[00:40:47]Bryan Fields: at ’em actually
[00:40:50]Kellan Finney: and if I was uh, more in tune with the art world, I would know the name of those plates that have that same passel color, the famous plate set from [00:41:00] like the seventies. I dunno if I’m just making a fool of myself right now, but
[00:41:05]Kristina Lopez Adduci: I’ll teach you my ways and I got you
[00:41:07]Bryan Fields: Thank you. I think we need more people to do educational focus so that others can see like-minded people that are doing similar things. I think one common thing I hear now is with cannabis, I don’t wanna smoke. Right, exactly. Like you said. Mm-hmm. , I don’t want to eat. I don’t want to eat edible. So there’s different form factors, but that starts with educating yourself and understanding.
[00:41:27] That it’s not these preconceived motions that you’re feeling. And I think that starts with having a, a social figure like yourself, Christina or others out there that are helping knocking down doors and these barriers to stigmas of saying that like, Hey, maybe I don’t need to have a glass of wine after work.
[00:41:41] I can have, you know, a 2.5 milligram beverage can. But it, that starts with educating yourself and being comfortable with, with putting in some of the effort to go find someone that makes you feel comfortable and then following what they’re doing. Yeah,
[00:41:54]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Well said. For.
[00:41:57]Bryan Fields: So Christina, for our listeners, they want to get in touch.
[00:41:59] They wanna buy [00:42:00] House of Puff products. Where can they find ya?
[00:42:02]Kristina Lopez Adduci: Uh, house of puff.com. We’re on Instagram at the House of Puff. I’m Christina at Christina dci. Slide into my dms if you want. Um, and, uh, our YouTube channels at home with House of Buff. We’ll
[00:42:17]Bryan Fields: link it up in the shots. Thanks for taking the time.
[00:42:19] You guys rock. Thank you.
