After being purchased by a New York cannabis company, CBD For Life has moved its office from its founder’s home into the Galleria in Red Bank and begun hiring fast, its owner said.
Beth Stavola said the company is trying to keep up with an expansion that includes 25 new retailers a week. Most recently: Dillard’s Inc. said last week it would sell CBD For Life’s wellness and beauty products in its 265 department stores.
„I think (we can expect) explosive growth,” Stavola said.
iAnthus Capital Holdings closed on its $10.4 million acquisition of CBD For Life in late June, the second time it has merged with a Stavola company.
They are hoping to get a piece of the growing demand for cannabidiol, a compound extracted from hemp that is seen as a natural cure for anxiety and inflammation —without the psychoactive high associated with the plant. Learn more about it in the video at the top of this story.
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CBD For Life makes CBD-infused creams, liquids and sprays, selling both online and in more than 1,000 retailers nationwide. It has about two dozen employees in Red Bank.
Stavola, 49, of Middletown, isn’t new to iAnthus. She previously led MPX Bioceutical Corp., whose operations included medical marijuana dispensaries in Arizona.
The publicly traded company was acquired by iAnthus in February in a deal that was valued at $845 million in stock, creating a company that cultivates and sells cannabis in 10 states.
Stavola was named chief strategy officer of iAnthus.
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CBD For Life will continue to operate in Red Bank. Stavola founded the business with her sister, Julie Winter, in 2015, selling mainly to dispensaries and independently owned health food stores.
They got a spark last year when the 2018 Farm Bill went into effect, making hemp — and hemp-derived CBD — legal nationwide.
The new law has generated concern from regulators that it opens the door to businesses making unsubstantiated claims both about CBD and their own products.
But CBD For Life seems to have found a new market with apparel stores. In addition to Dillard’s it signed a deal to sell its products in Urban Outfitters, starting with stores in Manhattan, San Francisco and Santa Monica, California.
The millennial generation „wants everything as natural as possible,” Stavola said. „So I think a lot of these big chain retailers want to make sure they’re not missing out on the newest and greatest trends.”
Michael L. Diamond has been writing about the New Jersey economy for 20 years. He can be reached at 732-643-4038; mdiamond@gannettnj.com; and @mdiamondapp.