Marijuana Business Magazine January 2019

January 2019 | mjbizdaily.com 51 BACKSTORY Ward Horton co-founded the NuLeaf Project in July 2018 with her husband, Jesce Horton, to provide grant funding for minority-owned cannabis companies. The impetus to found NuLeaf arose out of the work she did with the Minority Cannabis Business Alliance starting in 2016. In the case of NuLeaf, she brings to the table five-plus years of cannabis industry experience as vice president of global marketing and communications for seed-to-sale tracking provider MJ Freeway. WHY TOWATCH Ward Horton hopes to raise significant funding for minority- led cannabis businesses, both for established companies and those looking to enter the market. Her goal is to raise enough capital so these companies have the appropriate financing to compete in the highly competitive cannabis market. NuLeaf is starting with help from the city of Portland, Or- egon, but Ward Horton has plans to grow the diversity-fund- ing program to include the entire state—and, ultimately, the rest of the country. After more than five years with a prominent cannabis company, Ward Horton has the connections in the industry to succeed at this venture. And the marijuana industry stands to benefit from her efforts and reach new customers. “When you have more diverse business ownership, you’re going to be able to recruit a more diverse consumer base,” Ward Horton noted. – Bart Schaneman BEST BUSINESS ADVICE “Businesses of color, which traditionally have less access to capital, need to make fundraising their primary focus. Commu- nities of color are a hotbed of innovation and untapped talent, and it will take capital to surface those great ideas to the top.” Jeannette Ward Horton Executive Director and Co-Founder, NuLeaf Project | Portland, Oregon BACKSTORY For the past 17 years, Margolis has been representing clients in the cannabis space—first as a criminal lawyer, then transitioning into the legal cannabis industry. She has served on the Port- land Marijuana Task Force and a number of state advisory committees. Margolis is the founder and director of the Ore- gon Cannabis Association, the largest professional marijuana association in the state, and the Oregon Cannabis Political Action Committee. WHY TOWATCH The percentage of women in founder and executive positions in the cannabis industry is declining as the sector becomes a multibillion-dollar global business. Margolis is concerned about that trend and the significant lack of access women have to capital compared to men. She hopes to help reverse that trend as the director of The Initiative, a business accelerator and suite of business services to help women- founded cannabis companies. The Initiative will kick off its program this year by training and mentoring eight companies selected through a compet- itive process. The business leaders will receive three months of training on everything from financial basics to fundraising to negotiating and planning for strategic growth—all led by experts from across the country. Participants in The Initiative will have the opportunity to make an investment pitch to a group that is committed to funding women entrepreneurs. – Jeff Smith BEST BUSINESS ADVICE “This industry expands so rapidly, and the goalposts are always moving. It is extremely important to be nimble and adapt- able in order to survive. It is also crucial that a business be well-funded enough to survive these frequent changes and the need for lightning-fast growth.” Amy Margolis Attorney and Founder, The Initiative and The Commune | Portland, Oregon Women to Watch: Finance