We were lucky to catch up with Sherry Boodram recently and have shared our conversation below.
Sherry, appreciate you joining us today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?
Launching my company, CannDelta Inc., really was a case of having the right skills and experience at the right place and the right time. I have always had an ambitious spirit and a passion for making a difference through my skill set. After completing a PhD in Chemistry, I started working as a Drug Forensic Chemist at Health Canada’s Controlled Substances Program where I analyzed illicit drugs confiscated by law enforcement and testified in court as the expert witness. Very CSI and I loved it. Then I transitioned to an amazing role as a Senior Compliance and Enforcement Officer aka a Senior Inspector in Health Canada’s Medical Cannabis Program. In my role I inspected cannabis facilities and was involved in reviewing licensing applications. At the time, commercial cannabis production in Canada had just started and it was an exciting time to see a new industry emerging. I had the fortunate opportunity to influence policy and observe first-hand, at the field level, the impacts of cannabis policies and legislation, as well as challenges the licensed cannabis companies were facing navigating a new regulatory landscape. Although I loved my career as an Inspector, after a few years I decided to leave my comfortable government job to pursue a management opportunity in the pharmaceutical private industry space leading the Canadian arm of a US based company. This position had a large sales component including prospecting and pitching clients to secure contracts – skills that would eventually lend itself to CannDelta. After leaving Health Canada, a few cannabis companies I had inspected and had built a rapport with reached out to me for regulatory advice and licensing assistance, recognizing that it is very rare for anyone to leave government they jumped at the chance to leverage my experience. I would help these companies in the evenings and weekends. Eventually the work started rolling in as it just so happened that the Canadian government was planning to legalize cannabis and implement a recreational cannabis market which included cannabis retail stores. Many people were interested in starting a cannabis business and needed help understanding exactly what they needed to do, down to how they needed to compliantly build their stores and facilities. That’s where I fit it. My business partner (who I went to grad school with and also previously work at Health Canada in the Inspectorate Program) quit his sales job to join me, and in March 2018 CannDelta was officially born!
Do you wish you started your business sooner or later?
I do believe that things happen for a reason and at the right time and place. Given the series of experiences that got me here, I think starting my business could not have happened any sooner, we capitalized on the wave of legalization to position ourselves as the experts in our field at just the right time. Any sooner I may not have had the experience I needed and any later would have been missed the cannabis legalization kick start. Through this journey I’ve been reminded that every experience prepares you for the next. So, be open to new opportunities, even when you don’t feel 100% prepared. It’s a leap of faith in yourself and when you look back it’ll all make sense.
Tell us more about your business. What do you specialize in? What sets you apart from the competition?
I’m Sherry Boodram a Chemist by training – I hold a Ph.D. in Chemistry from York University and a Hon. B.Sc. in Biological Chemistry from the University of Toronto, but I also have an education in law and regulations with a Certificate in Cannabis Law and Regulation from Osgoode Hall Law School of York University, and a Graduate Certificate with Honours in Pharmaceutical Regulatory Affairs and Quality Operations from Seneca College. I’m a mom, a runner with more than a few half marathons under my belt, an occasional model, and co-founder of CannDelta Inc. Ultimately, my career journey has led me to become an entrepreneur and expert in cannabis law and regulations in the cannabis industry. My unique experience in the industry, I’m frequently asked for my expert opinions for top media outlets including BNN Bloomberg, the Globe and Mail, the National Post, Financial Post, CTV, and CBC, and participation as a speaker in domestic and international cannabis conferences and events. My company CannDelta is a leading regulatory and scientific consulting firm with a focus in cannabis and psychedelics among other regulated industries such as natural health products. We have offices in Toronto, New York, and New Jersey. Our cannabis consulting services include but are not limited to licensing, cannabis business plans, business strategy, operational support, due diligence assessment, and ongoing compliance. Our clients are start-ups, publicly traded companies, universities, banks, licensed producers, retail store operators, pharmaceutical companies, and law firms. Our goal is to provide our clients with the guidance and reassurance necessary for success in a rapidly evolving market by building world-class business strategies. Ultimately, we are enabling our clients to be at the forefront of the cannabis industry.
What sets us apart is the fact that the co-founders (myself and business partner) have the unique experience of working in Health Canada’s Medical Cannabis Program and Inspectorate Program, combined with the skills obtained from both of us holding PhD’s in Chemistry that is useful when applied to technical writing and understanding manufacturing processes such as cannabis extraction. It’s a rare combination that gives us a professional edge. Now we’re a team of 20, with most of us holding advance degrees in the sciences and have experience in regulated industries. We are also a fairly young group of consultants, so we have an active social media presence where we’ve positioned ourselves as educators, providing relevant and factual information about the cannabis industry. We regularly participate as speakers in webinars, conferences, and media outlets including BNN Bloomberg, Globe and Mail, Financial Post, and CBC. When clients work with us, they know they’re getting high-quality deliverables and best in-class service.
I’m so proud of the amazing team we’ve built over the past five years, helping over 300 cannabis companies get licensed and maintain compliance.
Can you share the story of a time when you had to pivot in business, career or life?
Like many, the pandemic caused our business to experience ups and downs, twists and turns. On top of that, we are operating in an emerging industry that is often at the mercies of ever-changing regulations. And to complicate things further, the economy is not the greatest at the moment. Needless to say, our clients have experienced many hardships, which we subsequently faced in our own respect. As a result, the number of companies looking to start cannabis businesses has slowed, in addition to market saturation. For the longevity of our business, we needed to pivot and expand our services and geographic reach. For us this meant turning to our neighbours to the south. Fortunately, many American states are beginning to legalize cannabis and to build out a cannabis framework for a commercial industry. Given our experience in Canada, we jumped on the chance to be a leading cannabis regulatory and licensing consultant in the US, with a focus on launching in select States with an emerging industry such as New York and New Jersey. It was a huge learning curve for the whole team since each State has its own set of unique cannabis rules and regulations as cannabis is not yet federally legal. So, each State operates very separately. We were up for the challenge, dedicating time to learn the legislation, adapting our processes to accommodate the new services and deliverables, and developing targeted sales and marketing efforts. In some ways it was like starting the business from scratch, but with the assurance that we already had a great proof of concept to rely on.
What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?
Our services are used by a very specific consumer. Unlike most products or services, we cannot simply market legal cannabis licensing assistance to just anyone because not everyone would want to enter the cannabis industry, stigma still exists, and most importantly there are advertising and promotion restrictions around cannabis, cannabis products, and cannabis services. It can even be tricky on social media. Because of these challenges, participation in industry conferences and tradeshows have been one of the biggest drivers for lead generation. The benefit from face-to-face interactions is huge in fostering relationships, building brand recognition, and ultimately closing deals. So, the return on investment makes the initial cost of attending worth it. Inbound marketing is another effective strategy for growing our clientele, particularly website inbounds directed by strong SEO. We also spend a concerted effort to demonstrate that we are experts in our field through our YouTube Channel and by participating in relevant webinars with the appropriate target audience and where we have access to the attendee lists. These are the strategies that have been most effective for finding qualified leads and increasing our clientele.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory
I’m naturally an overachiever which causes me to be a bit of a workaholic and pretty particular about how I like work related completed. I’ve always been that way since I was a kid. When I started hiring staff and growing the team, I had to unlearn the “my way or the high” or “I know best” type of mentality. I think if you are working with the right people, you’ll realize there can be more than one way of doing things well.
Contact information:
Website: https://canndelta.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/canndelta/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CannDelta
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/canndelta/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/canndelta/
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