BY STEPHANIE DELACY
Amber Senter has established herself as a powerful force and major disruptor in the cannabis industry. The former marketing executive has founded and now leads multiple cannabis companies, at every level in the industry.
Amber is the founder and CEO of the company Breeze Distro, which supports cannabis companies in scaling their supply chain management. She’s also the founder of Shady Pines Box Club, a cannabis delivery service. She’s the co-founder of EquityWorks! Incubator, a first of its kind workforce development program, recruiting, training and placing social equity workers in the cannabis industry. And, she’s also a co-founder and executive director of SuperNova Women.
For Black & Brown People
SuperNova is a 501c3 organization that empowers Black and Brown people to become self-sufficient shareholders in the cannabis industry. The goal is to lower barriers of entry, whether it’s at the ownership level or starting a career in cannabis. “We want it to be an accessible market for everybody. We do that through advocacy, education and network building,” Amber explains.
“Before legalization, Black and Brown people were taking risks to sell cannabis and going to jail because of it – disproportionately. It’s written all over the data… You are ten times more likely to be arrested for cannabis if you’re Black. Black people are always targeted, because the system is racist, but then also we were the ones bringing in the weed. There’s a good chance that prior to legalization, you were buying weed from a Black or Brown person, and that’s not the case now. That’s just crazy, and that’s not right.”
Redirecting Legislation
SuperNova was influential in helping California to fund the SB 1294 Act of 2018, which funds all the social equity programs in California. Amber explains that SB 1294 provides those individuals affected by the war on drugs access to grants, 0% interest loans, legal and technical assistance, and shared manufacturing kitchens.
Impressed by SuperNova’s ability to make change at such a high level, I ask her what advice she has for others who might want to advocate for similar legislation in their state.
“It’s interesting, because people think they have to go to the state and deal with all these bureaucrats that they’ve never really talked to before, when in reality you have to start at the local level. It’s much easier if you can have a lot of change at the local level,” she responds. “That’s really where all the magic happens. They’re super accessible”
Bypassing Old Boys Clubs
Providing networking opportunities is also an important aspect of Supernova’s offerings..
“There are the big retailers and they in turn work with the big distributors, the big manufacturers, and the big cultivators. Where does that leave all these small diverse businesses? We are working to make sure that we are building inclusive supply chains. We’re still working on how to do this virtually because we used to do a lot of networking events in person before COVID.”
Prior to the pandemic, SuperNova hosted in-person events aimed at disrupting the old boys network. Most notably was their big party during the middle of the annual National Cannabis Industry Association conference in San Jose, CA.
“We had 400 people come to our party every year. We called it the ‘Urban Mixer’. We make sure everyone’s having a good time and smoking weed, and we make sure people of all levels are talking to each other, in hopes that the bigger operators can talk to smaller operators and cut them into their deals,” Amber says.
For those who need some information to get started or further their business, SuperNova hosts low-to-no cost educational programming on how to get involved in the cannabis industry. These workshops include everything from applying for social equity status, to increasing brand awareness.
Learn more at Supernovawomen.com
