When John Lord, a former head of a child-safety-seat manufacturer, started in the cannabis industry, he was viewed with suspicion by legacy operators because he was an outsider. But the CEO of Denver-based LivWell Enlightened Health quickly became a believer in the product. Cannabis was unlike any other product John had sold, but he realized that to successfully sell it, he still needed standard business practices.
In this season finale of Seed to CEO, John dishes on the early days of building a cannabis company as well as:
- How technology and standard operating procedures can vastly improve your operations.
- Why looking beyond today’s ecosystem is critical for long-term growth.
- How changing regulations set the stage for LivWell’s acquisition strategy.
- Why now was the right time for LivWell to be the acquired rather than the acquirer.
Who is John Lord?
John Lord is the CEO of LivWell, a vertically integrated cannabis company operating in Colorado and Michigan. LivWell was acquired by Chicago-based multistate operator PharmaCann in October. New Zealand “born and raised,” John started in dairy farming before building one of the most successful child products companies in the world, selling in major retailers such as Walmart, Toys R Us and Montgomery Ward. John sold that company and retired at 49, but boredom quickly set in and the cannabis industry was just getting started. So he unretired to launch the company that would become LivWell.
