Danielle Dao is founder and co-CEO of Eco Farm Holdings PBC/Thrive Society in Los Angeles.

By Danielle Dao

My passion to work outside the box has strongly driven the last few decades of my career in cannabis. As this industry continues to evolve and adapt to increasing regulation, we’re seeing exciting steps forward, but we’re also seeing areas where we can still improve.

I’m the founder and co-CEO of Eco Farm Holdings PBC/Thrive Society, a leading distribution company in California supported by a digital marketplace and go-to-market platform that’s both plant touching and tech driven. Our main goal is to support the legacy market that many of us have been part of for generations.

Going from 20 years in the legacy market to the recreational market was a shift for California’s cannabis industry, and for my own career. When Prop 64 legalized adult-use cannabis for 21+ in California, operators were forced to tackle a steep learning curve that included working in compliance with local and state laws.

As one of the first to dive into this space out of thousands of legacy farmers, I found the trenches where the pipelines hadn’t been dug yet. In establishing them, I became a mapmaker. We’ve run into a lot of obstacles, but we’ve persevered and created pathways for other licensees to follow!

Since California’s legalization implementation, I’ve seen dozens of smaller distributors, farms, and manufacturers going out of business or closing doors - they’ve been pushed out. I’ve spent hours consulting, educating, and inspiring legacy farmers with the hope the legacy community can one day enjoy interstate commerce within the regulated space. It’s our goal now with Thrive Society to support multi-generational operators that have been around since the beginning, help them establish a standardized agricultural supply chain and bring their operations into the future. The industry continues to grow, the struggles continue to evolve, but so do we.

““My passion to work outside the box has strongly driven the last few decades of my career in cannabis. As this industry continues to evolve and adapt to increasing regulation, we’re seeing exciting steps forward, but we’re also seeing areas where we can still improve.” — Danielle Dao #PowerToChangeStories”

Danielle Dao is founder and co-CEO of Eco Farm Holdings PBC/Thrive Society in Los Angeles. https://www.instagram.com/devi.dao.thrivesociety/?hl=en-gb ; https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielle-dao-11009714a ; https://www.thrive-society.com/