About a month ago, on an unseasonably warm Wednesday evening in the courtyard of the Oakland Museum, partygoers in blazers and floor-length gowns mingled, sipping champagne and martinis. A DJ spun remixes on a neon-lit stage. A photographer snapped photos. Tiki torches and triple-decker towers of appetizers helped set the mood.
It looked like any fancy A-list event, save for the cloud of marijuana smoke hovering over a cordoned off area, the most crowded section of the party. Revelers passed joints back and forth, sucked on vape pens, and lined up for their turn at the dabbing bar (dabbing, a newly popularized way to consume marijuana, involves inhaling heated cannabis concentrates). It's a fitting way to celebrate the 10th birthday of the country's biggest dispensary.
Steve DeAngelo, wearing a teddy bear's smile and a fedora atop his signature silver braids, approached a podium to greet his guests. The crowd fell silent as he recounted the recent history of Harborside Health Center , a dispensary he founded a decade ago in an effort to create a mainstream model for cannabis retail.
"We are entering the era of modern cannabis," he tells the cheering crowd. "The revolution has only just begun!"
Since its founding, Harborside has been featured in documentaries and TV shows, played legal jiu jitsu with the federal government, and ballooned into a multi-million dollar company that serves tens of thousands of patients. DeAngelo was recently named one of the 7 most powerful people in the marijuana industry by Forbes magazine. Simply put, Harborside is the Green Standard.
And now it's more front-and-center than ever. Earlier this month, in the shadow of Donald Trump , marijuana enjoyed a sweeping victory across both the blue and red parts of the United States. Florida, Montana, North Dakota and Arkansas -- all heavily conservative-leaning states -- approved medical cannabis initiatives. California, Massachusetts, Nevada and Maine all legalize full-scale adult use. Arizona was the only state in which any sort of measure failed.
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De Angelo in front of his Oakland storefront.
But the future of cannabis still remains uncertain under a Trump presidency. Marijuana is still federally classified as a Schedule I substance, which means it's illegal under the premise that it has no medicinal value. Meanwhile, the president-elect has pledged to reverse socially progressive legislation from climate change to abortion rights.
De Angelo, however, is not worried. "I don't expect any further progress at the federal level, but also don't expect any attempt to roll back at the state level," he says. "On the campaign trail Trump has repeatedly said cannabis laws should be a state matter."
In the spirit of progress, DeAngelo recently decided it was time to give his legacy brand a facelift. In accordance with its 10th anniversary in October, Harborside revealed its brand-new look, complete with a sleek logo and storefront renovation. Last month, its makeover paid off when the company nabbed a 2016 Cannabist award for Best Retail Branding
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"This is more than a logo change -- it is really a recognition that the cannabis industry is rapidly becoming a consumer-driven marketplace," John Yost, Harborside's Chief Marketing Officer, says. "To separate ourselves from this cluttered, competitive landscape and prepare for the future, we decided it was the right time to update."
I recently caught up with DeAngelo to hear more about the reasons behind the rebrand, his own consumption habits, the future of the erupting cannabis industry, and Harborside's evolution from a small Oakland shop to a marijuana megastore. Our [condensed and edited] conversation is below.
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De Angelo in front of his Oakland storefront.
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