The founding of Cannador with CEO Zane Witzel

The founding of Cannador with CEO Zane Witzel

Why did you start Cannador®?

I started Cannador® in 2014 because I not only wanted a way to organize my stash, I also wanted to keep it fresh so I could taste the terpenes and enjoy the full flavor of cannabis. There's so many different strains and terpenes profiles to experience so when I first learned that humidity plays a role in preserving flavor, I thought this would be a great way to introduce such a concept.

 

What is it about this particular line of work that you enjoy most?

Turning an idea into something tangible, profitable and fulfilling is the American dream, that’s what I love. The simple idea of cannabis storage, finding unique solutions to solve this problem, that’s what keeps me going. Plus, I fully subscribe to Peter Drucker’s philosophy that the purpose of business is to create a customer. I only want to make a profit so I can keep satisfying new customers with new concepts, new products and new ideas. So there’s no ‘one thing’ in particular that I enjoy most, I just step back and look at the aforementioned and relish.

 

What’s your gut tell you about the intermediate future of the US cannabis industry?

I’m not as optimistic as my colleagues in the industry (I wish I were), and frankly I never have been since founding the company. Congress continues to outsource its responsibilities to Administrations so we end up with the DEA dictating legislation. The tail wags the dog and everyone wonders why nothing gets done. In the years ahead I do see congress passing banking regulation that allows banks and credit cards to process cannabis transactions with impunity, however, similar to guns or tobacco, a majority of the big banks will still deny access, leaving a small few number of players fighting for absurd rates.

 

What’s the future of Cannador® look like?

Despite my pessimistic view on the future of the industry as a whole, I am optimistic about Cannador®’s future because we have taken an international approach. We formed an international company in British Columbia, Canada that doesn’t have to deal with the transactional restrictions that the US imposes, so we can serve customers globally knowing that the Canadian government supports us. This is what it’s all about, if your country doesn’t support an industry, work with one that does and make it big.