Five years ago, Jessica VerSteeg was Miss Iowa. Today she stands atop Paragon, an L.A. company that has developed software for tracking cannabis and is now focusing on blockchain technology.
In an interview, VerSteeg explains she began brand building when the struggles of her former partner, an ex-NFL player struggling with concussions, brought her to a cannabis industry that she had been raised to scorn. VerSteeg’s first brand came in 2014, the year prior to his death from an opiate overdose. “I created it out of [feeling] so guilty about what happened with my ex,” she said.
Cannabis Now
- VerSteeg came into the industry as her boyfriend Tyler Stash–– an NFL player struggling with concussions — looked for pain relief alternatives. She started a brand of high-end MED in 2014. Stash died of an overdose the following year.
- Today VerSteeg says she seeks transparency. “Let’s create an industry that’s so transparent that it’s better than Big Pharma. Why wouldn’t people choose this over opioids if we’re able to create an industry that’s transparent?”
Quick Hit
- The first-even non-retail license in Santa Cruz County will go to the singer Melissa Etheridge and her wife Linda. The “Etheridge Farms” manufacturing and distributing center will be based in Soquel.
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