Why the Marijuana Business Is Appealing to Female Entrepreneurs

It’s A New Industry

One of the major perks of entering the cannabis business is that it’s a brand new industry. There are many advantages to this. For one, the industry will continue to grow rapidly over the next few years, and anyone who gets into the marijuana business early stands to make plenty of money. It also means that the industry isn’t held back by traditional gender roles.

Although equality has grown and there are now plenty of women in successful positions, some industries may still feel like an “old boy’s club”. Catalyst notes that women hold only 31 (6.2%) of CEO positions at S&P 500 companies. This is an improvement from 4.2% in 2016, but women still feel held back in certain industries.

The good news is that there’s now a brand new, booming industry where women can get in early and avoid old school gender roles. The marijuana industry offers an excellent opportunity for women to thrive and a Newsweek report stated that legal marijuana could be the first billion-dollar industry that’s not dominated by men.

There Are All Kinds Of Unique Business Opportunities

Another one of the reasons why female entrepreneurs may be attracted to the marijuana business is that there are so many ways to get involved. There’s nothing to stop women from running marijuana dispensaries, cultivation businesses, testing facilities, or manufacturing plants. However, there are also plenty of unique business opportunities.

The marijuana sector doesn’t just include the cultivators and retailers of marijuana products, there are also all kinds of ancillary services and other marijuana-related companies built around it. Women can become marijuana nurses, accountants, marketers, real estate agents, or offer other services targeted at marijuana businesses and consumers.

Some women have even started businesses such as Cannabis Art Classes or Cannabis Cooking Classes, aimed at customers who want to try these classic activities in a new and unique context. Of course, there’s also plenty of freedom to come up with a brand new idea and execute it, especially as the industry is so hot right now.

You Can Start A Cannabis Business From Home

Some women may feel discouraged from taking on any entrepreneurial pursuits purely due to time constraints. Stay-at-home moms may feel like they don’t have the opportunity to start a business between housework and looking after children, not to mention working women who may need to come home and take on household duties.

However, the cannabis industry is a great place for women in these positions as there are many ways to start a cannabis business from home. Ancillary services for cannabis businesses can work particularly well- you can offer services such as marketing or accounting digitally if you set everything up well.

Although you can’t run a growing operation or large-scale dispensary at home, there are still tons of good home business ideas in the marijuana industry. Even if you start one as a side hustle to focus on in your spare time, it could eventually grow into a successful and profitable business.

Marijuana Helps Everybody

One of the best things about the marijuana industry is that it can help pretty much everybody. Of course, you must live in a legal state and adhere to local laws regarding age and how to buy marijuana, but marijuana is just as helpful to women as it is to men.

As such, women fit right into the marijuana market. They won’t be trying to market a traditionally masculine product. Marijuana can help all kinds of people and it can be marketed to both men and women. For instance, medical marijuana helps women with issues such as PMS and endometriosis.

Of course, women don’t need to specifically aim their marketing efforts at women. However, they won’t feel out of place participating in the industry and marketing the product to all kinds of people. Marijuana is good for everybody and there’s no real stigma or expectations when it comes to gender.

There Are Various Successful Females In The Industry

If you need some inspiration, you might want to look at some of the successful females currently in the marijuana industry. For instance, Marijuana Business Daily was co-founded by Cassandra Farrington and Anne Holland, two women who are now at the helm of an Inc. 500 company.

Jessica Billingsley is the CEO of Akerna (previously known as MJFreeway), a successful cannabis tech company that’s now traded on the NASDAQ. The OTC-listed cannabis company Item 9 Labs is also run by a female CEO- Sara Gullickson.

These are just a few examples, but there are many others. And while the industry is still currently predominantly male, these women show that females can be highly successful in the marijuana business and the share of females in the industry will likely grow as time goes on.

Conclusion

The legal marijuana industry is great for female entrepreneurs. From dispensaries to growing facilities to ancillary services to home businesses, there are all kinds of routes into the industry and there are various successful female CEOs behind successful cannabis businesses.

If you’re a budding female entrepreneur, then you might want to think about starting a cannabis business yourself. Of course, the industry is also open to people of any gender and anyone interested in marijuana should consider it. If you need help with starting and marketing your marijuana business, check out CannabisPromotions.