Marijuana Business Magazine - February 2018

the stereotypical images that had long stigmatized the plant. “It seemed taking a mainstream approach would help differentiate ourselves.The landscape was just a glut of older stoner culture,”Wansolich said. “We wanted to elevate it and help people who were kind of like us, folks we knew with office jobs and haven’t stopped their herb intake. … It was an audience that needed to be serviced.” After its launch in 2010, Leafly attracted a rising flow of visitors.The company also landed dispensary cus- tomers in California that agreed to pay for advertising and visibility benefits on the site. Soon, the three computer engineers had grander ambitions to scale Leafly. That required quitting their day jobs at Kelley Blue Book. Along Came Privateer To grow, Scott, Wansolich and Vick- ers concluded they would need outside investors. They began pitching investors in California but struck out because, in their view, potential funders consid- ered marijuana too risky based on the plant’s illegal status at the federal level. Eventually, the site caught the eye of Privateer Holdings, the cannabis- focused private equity firm in Seattle. In 2011, Privateer made Leafly its first acquisition for an undisclosed price. “We had very similar visons on how the cannabis market was heading,” Scott said. “Once Privateer acquired us, we were able to utilize the financial support to build Leafly. We were able to operate it and build it within the Privateer organization and scale it up, and we stuck around for almost four years after the acquisition to get it to a really good spot.” Today, Leafly bills itself as “the world’s largest cannabis informa- tion resource.” It attracts 13 million monthly unique visits per month and generates 60 million page views across dedicated home pages: Leafly.com (main website), Leafly Canada (Leafly. ca), Leafly Germany (Leafly.de) and Leafly in Spanish (Leafly.es). Spotting Their Next Market Opportunity In 2015, Scott, Wansolich and Vick- ers left Privateer and Leafly knowing that their next business also would be in the cannabis industry. “We knew (the industry) would con- tinue to need services that we could be able to provide. It was just a question of finding what service,” Scott said. In doing their market research, the three concluded the industry had matured considerably since Leafly’s launch in 2010. In 2014, for example, Colorado and Washington state rolled out the nation’s first full-scale rec- reational cannabis markets. Six other MEET THE FOUNDERS Cy Scott, CEO Company: Headset Previous Business Founded: Leafly Education: B.S. in Computer Science, California State University, Fullerton Age: 38 Business Advice: “Listen to your customers and commit to the problems you are solving more so than the solutions themselves.” Little-Known Personal Fact: “At age 16, I lasted a mere seven days at my first job, Dairy Queen.” Scott Vickers, Chief Technology Officer Company: Headset Previous Business Founded: Leafly Education: B.S. in Computer Science, California State University, Fullerton Age: 38 Business Advice: “Knowing where not to focus is just as impor- tant as knowing where to focus.” Little-Known Personal Fact: “Growing up, I wanted to be a pilot. Then I got my first computer. Now I want to be a pilot.” Brian Wansolich, Chief Design Officer Company: Headset Previous Business Founded: Leafly Education: “Dropped out of college and jumped right into my field of work as soon as possible.” Age: 43 Business Advice: “If you find that you are constantly minimiz- ing your successes or casting doubt on your own abilities, then chances are you’re suffering from imposter syndrome. Look it up. You are not alone.” Little-Known Fact: “I can jump rope like a boxer – consecutive double-unders and everything.” 52 • Marijuana Business Magazine • February 2018