On the 9th episode of the Creator Spotlight Series, we interviewed Daryn Medwid who is the CRO of West Blvd Cannabis. Daryn has a wealth of experience under his belt, from spending 13 years at Diageo to (most recently) exiting Experion Wellness/Citizen Stash as their COO. His passion and perspective for the cannabis industry is inspiring and we are truly honoured to feature him today.
Introduce yourself and what do you do?
Hey! I’m Daryn Medwid and I’m the Chief Revenue Officer at West Blvd Cannabis but I get to wear lots of hats. It’s a very collaborative environment so, while I get to spend a lot of time trying to figure out how to drive revenue, I also get to weigh in on a lot of the commercial and operational aspects of the business.
Can you share any turning points in your career or particular moments of success?
I’ve had a fun career and have had the opportunity to be a part of some cool projects all of which might count as turning points whether they were successful or not…there’s always something to learn whether you knock it out of the park or strike out. To make this answer relevant I’ll refer to my time at Citizen Stash and our 12 Joints of Christmas preroll mixer pack which was released during the 2021 holiday season across Canada. We conceived of the idea in February of that year and between Covid, floods preventing access to our facility, supply chain craziness, we still barely delivered on time. We took preorders for 70,000 cases but only had the capacity to produce 10,000 so worked (begged?) with every provincial board to put flexibility into systems that don’t generally like flexibility. The team stretched far beyond what anyone could have expected and the customers worked with us the whole way allowing us to move all 10,000 cases within 3 minutes of release in each market. The end result was gratifying and proof that a small team could punch well above its weight given the right dream and a bit of hubr.
Describe your cannabis use in 3 words.
Nightly. Joints only
Describe the impact Cannabis has had on your life?
The plant allows me to relax and I get a far better sleep than if I was drinking whisky (but I also like whisky!) and the business inspires me as we’re all start ups in a start-up industry (the legal industry anyway) trying to figure out what it’s all going to look like.
“That Zelensky kid running the Ukraine right now…’I need ammunition, not a ride.’ Powerful.”
Where and when were you introduced to cannabis for the first time?
Probably 14 or so burning hash on butter knives at my buddies house when his mom was at work.
What’s your favourite post-smoke activity? Workout? Food?
Sleep lol.
If you could sesh with one person dead or alive, who would it be?
That Zelensky kid running the Ukraine right now…’I need ammunition, not a ride.’ Powerful.
What music do you vibe to when using Cannabis?
I’ve got a pretty good vinyl collection but right now I can’t get Khruangbin, Texas Sun off the turntable. Who doesn’t love Thai funk played by a Houston trio supported by Leon Bridges?
“I’ve tried cannabis most of the ways but I’m old school and lean into joints almost exclusively”
What are your favourite ways to consume cannabis (joints, vapes, edibles, beverages etc.) and why?
I’ve tried cannabis most of the ways but I’m old school and lean into joints almost exclusively.
Is there anything interesting that you’d like to share with the Choklit Park community? (feel free to share any important projects or exciting news you’d like our community to know!)
Choklit Park High Country Diesel (+30%) is coming your way in a couple of weeks.
