African-American female entrepreneurs are increasingly becoming more and more involved in today’s cannabis industry. It seems many black women have taken notice of the cultural and societal shift towards cannabis-mainly the de-stigmatization of the plant through proper education and awareness- and are making the decision to start their own cannabis-related business ventures.
According to MJBizDaily, the cannabis industry will create an estimated $28 billion to $34 billion impact just in 2018 alone and by 2022 that figure could exceed $75 billion annually. The cannabis industry is estimated to be bigger than the NFL in just a few years creating vast opportunities for professional growth and attaining financial freedom.
The “You Oughta Know” series will highlight Black female entrepreneurs who are using their businesses and platforms to inspire and educate the masses about cannabis and the emerging cannabis industry.
We kick off this series with none other than Joy Hollingsworth.
Joy Hollingsworth is the Co-Founder of The Hollingsworth Cannabis Company (T.H.C. C.o.), a Black and family-owned and operated Tier III cannabis Producer and Processor located in Western Washington. Prior to getting involved in the cannabis industry Hollingsworth was a star collegiate athlete. She played basketball overseas in Greece before returning to the U.S. to receive her Masters in Education and become the assistant women’s basketball coach at Seattle University for three seasons.
In 2013, Joy along with a few other family members joined her brother, Raft Hollingsworth (Founder and CEO of The Hollingsworth Cannabis Company) in starting a cannabis business after Raft held a family meeting and gave a presentation about why they as a family should get involved in Washington’s legal cannabis industry. While Joy wasn’t immediately sold on the idea, she eventually warmed up to it, especially seeing how dedicated and driven her father was in bringing Raft’s vision and family business to life, investing his entire retirement savings into T.H.C. C.o.
At T.H.C. C.o. Hollingsworth oversees compliance and regulations. She admits she and her family’s involvement in the cannabis industry actually came about very naturally and really isn’t too surprising knowing her family’s medical history. A few members of the Hollingsworth family have consumed medicinal cannabis over opioid prescriptions to treat pain. “My mom has scoliosis, my uncle is a quadriplegic, and my grandma is 97 years old and experiences pain in her knees. So, I’m familiar with medicinal cannabis as they’ve consumed it for pain management.”
Hollingsworth says her experience being a Black woman in the cannabis industry hasn’t been much different than her experiences existing in any other industry or space; constantly having to prove that she’s knowledgeable and worthy of being here, especially being the co-founder of a cannabis producer and processing company. Although the work can grow tiring at times, Hollingsworth is grateful to be able to share this journey and experience with her family.“It’s been hard, it’s definitely been a sacrifice, but it’s also been the most rewarding, fulfilling past four years of my life. Working with the people you love the most is an amazing, incredible experience.”
Joy believes T.H.C. C.o. will leave a lasting impact and legacy in the Black community. “Creating generational wealth and giving back to the community is super important to us. Five to ten years from now we want the Hollingsworth company to be the foundation for other endeavors we’re passionate about and committed to; whether that’s a real estate development or a non-profit giving money to people of color,” says Hollingsworth.