Whoopi & Maya Medical Cannabis, a California company with MMJ products available in stores in California and Colorado, has ceased operations in the wake of an unresolved dispute between co-founders Whoopi Goldberg and Maya Elisabeth.
The end of the partnership between actor and comedian Goldberg and marijuana industry veteran Elisabeth is a dramatic departure from 2017, when Goldberg joked during an interview with Marijuana Business Daily that the next step for the company would be “world domination.”
“The board still has the company, but it’s a much different company without Whoopi’s name on it.”
Founded in 2016, the company built its business around a line of women’s health products designed to relieve menstrual cramps. At the time, celebrity investors in marijuana companies was considered a novelty, while today they are common.
Whoopi & Maya products such as Soak, Relax, Rub and Savor were available in more than 300 marijuana stores in Colorado and California, according to the company’s website.
Cusick said it became clear to people involved with the company about two or three months ago that Goldberg and Elisabeth wanted a business divorce.
The company then started developing a plan that would have kept the equity intact and allowed the company and products to continue.
Goldberg indicated that the plan might be acceptable, so a board meeting was scheduled, Cusick said.
“About an hour before the call, we got an email and she had resigned from the company,” he added.
“We thought we had a good solution … instead, the divorce became final.”
The board is expected to meet later this week to determine the company’s future.
“I’d like to keep it going – we still have the assets and formulations,” Cusick said. “The company is still intact but has lost a great deal of its power in the marketplace without Whoopi’s name.”
– Margaret Jackson
