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The Dime

Bryan Fields

Most cannabis companies won't survive the next three years. The ones that do will have better capital discipline, sharper regulatory reads, and operational frameworks built for compression, not growth. The Dime is where cannabis operators, executives, and investors hear directly from the CEOs and founders making those decisions right now: MSO strategy, state-by-state market dynamics, cultivation and extraction economics, brand positioning, and the financing structures keeping companies alive. Bryan Fields hosts weekly conversations built for operators, not observers.

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20 episodes
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Avg 49 min
English

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#306
August 4 · 53 min
Paige Figi: The Cannabis Industry Is Cheering A Ban On Medicine
Much of the licensed cannabis industry is quietly counting the volume it expects to inherit from the federal hemp ban coming this November. \*\* Now December. What they may not realize is that the ban could eliminate the full-spectrum therapeutic hemp formulations that helped change America's view of cannabis and are used daily by an estimated 45 million Americans. The provision was written by two members of Congress, without a conference or regular order, and inserted into a massive spending
#305
July 9 · 50 min
Understand This Before You Use AI To Build Software ft. Chris Guthrie
AI has made software easier than ever to build. That does not mean every internal tool should become the backbone of your business. In this episode, Bryan sits down with Chris Guthrie to break down the growing temptation inside cannabis companies to vibe code internal tools, dashboards, CRMs, ERPs, and operational systems in the name of saving money. The problem is not the first version. The problem is what happens two months later, when a field does not map, the workflow breaks, the person wh
#304
June 25 · 1 hr 11 min
Hirsh Jain: Rescheduling Is Already Picking Winners
Cannabis rescheduling is not as simple as “Trump rescheduled cannabis.” States are interpreting rescheduling completely differently depending on their license structure. These tiny details are widening the gap between potential winners and losers. In this episode, we break down what actually changed, what is still unresolved, and why rescheduling may already be picking winners and losers. This week, we sit down with Hirsh Jain to discuss: • What the April order and June 29 hearing actually mean
#303
June 22 · 41 min
Germany Is the Engine: What BAT Knows That Cannabis Doesn't ft. James Yamanaka
Predictable cash flow is the whole game. In cannabis, predictable is the one thing almost nobody has. Organigram CEO James Yamanaka came up over 20 years at British American Tobacco, where that discipline is the entire model. He thinks the opportunity starts there: trim the portfolio, stop chasing every trend, tighten the supply chain, lean on the science, and align operations. Germany's market could nearly double in the next two years, but capturing it will take more than expansion. This week
#302
June 11 · 47 min
Why Ohio Cannabis Is Built Different: Inside the Regulator-Operator Alignment That's Actually Working ft. Caroline Henry
When a regulator asks what the downside is of adding one more testing requirement, what is the downside? Just a little more safe. Just in case. Especially when adding one more item to an already exhaustive testing panel. That logic is how licensed cannabis markets end up buried under compliance layers copied from other states, calibrated to someone else's problems. It is also exactly how two adjacent markets with nearly identical consumer bases, Ohio and Michigan, ended up with completely diff
#301
May 21 · 50 min
Cannabis Was Medicine. Now the Proof Is Catching Up, ft. Joel Stanley and Dr. Marcel Bonn-Miller
The cannabis industry convinced the world it had a medicine before the science caught up. Now the science is here, and almost no one is paying attention. CBD is not a panacea. When Charlotte's Web opened hearts and minds, the messaging of what it could do ran years ahead of what the data could actually support. That gap created a backlash the legitimate medical thesis didn't deserve. What's left on the other side of the green rush is a near-complete forgetting of the reason this industry starte
#300
May 15 · 43 min
Joe Lustberg: What Cannabis Lenders See That Operators Miss
The cash amount in your head and the cash you actually need are not the same number. That gap is where most cannabis businesses break. Joe Lustberg has financed operators across the country for years and watched that gap swallow businesses that looked fine on paper. He has also spent over two years paying rent on a Hamptons dispensary he cannot open because a municipality tried to rezone his property out from under him. The person telling you to build in 1.5X as your burn capital cushion has b
#299
May 8 · 58 min
The Hidden Margin Killer for MSOS ft. Braunz Muller
Cannabis operators aren't short on data. They're drowning in it. The real problem is what happens when that data gets handed to the wrong person, read at the wrong time, or used to justify the wrong decision. Overproduction cycles, steep discounting, margin pressure building back into manufacturing: most of that traces back to data being used reactively instead of as a decision guidance tool. Layer on the reality of multi-state operations where every market runs a different system, tracks diffe
#298
April 24 · 55 min
Ed Rosenthal and Greg Baughman: You're Still Growing Cannabis Wrong
A customer walks into the dispensary and asks the budtender for a flower recommendation. They end up with a degraded version of the once high-end flower that graced your cultivation floor. They do not know it. Your brand took the blame. Ed Rosenthal, the most referenced name in cannabis cultivation history, says the cannabis supply chain has a freshness problem that starts in the dry room and compounds at every handoff. The smell of your drying room that everyone loves walking into? Those are
#297
April 6 · 40 min
The Legal Market Was Never Built for Payments, Why Cannabis Still Breaks the Rules ft. Aubrey Amatelli
The largest payment processor in the world handles cannabis in Canada. In the U.S., they will not touch it. That’s the gap. Aubrey Amatelli left JP Morgan believing that if you followed the rules, aligned with card brand requirements, and structured things correctly, you could build a compliant, stable payment product. Then came Mastercard shutdowns, a failed tech partner that cost six figures, and a stretch where 5,000 dispensaries lost payment access in a matter of weeks. What came out of tha
#296
March 27 · 52 min
Gretchen Gailey: Cannabis Industry Has No Idea How DC Works, Why Rescheduling Is Delayed
Politics is a dirty business. Sometimes being feared is the influence you need because access is not the problem. Politicians say "we'll take care of this." Gretchen Gailey has a different approach: stab them in the back, push them down the stairs, and take credit for the fall. It's time to put fear behind cannabis. She spent 20 years on Capitol Hill. She's watched cannabis show up once a year for fly-ins, throw money at the wrong politicians, and wonder why nothing changes. This episode breaks
#295
March 19 · 39 min
15 Years of Cannabis Trading . Why I'll Sell Early (Unless This Happens) ft. Dan McDermitt
Investing in cannabis requires a split personality. Everyone thinks they're early. Dan McDermitt has been trading the sector for 15 years — through the Canadian boom, the Biden promise, and the slow bleed that followed. His take: if you've been through multiple pump-and-dump cycles, you're not early anymore. You're just still here. This is a masterclass in separating trader psychology from fundamental conviction. Dan explains why he keeps a small position just to stay seated, why he already kn
#294
March 13 · 50 min
Premium vs Scale in Cannabis: Inside Rubicon’s Strategy ft. Margaret Brodie
Most cannabis companies chased scale. Rubicon chased quality. What does it actually take to build a premium cannabis brand? Trust sits behind what “premium” really means, why consumers only give brands one chance, how Rubicon evaluates resource capacity and audits operations, and why Europe could become the next meaningful opportunity for their trusted brands. This week we sit down with Margaret Brodie, CEO of Rubicon Organics: • Why premium cannabis starts with flower• Consumers Trust• Inter
#293
March 6 · 53 min
Prop 64 Fine Print, Pesticide Drift, The Economics Behind Concentrates ft. Micah Anderson
When California legalized cannabis, did anyone see 70% of the state opting out. Retail access never recovered. The illicit market stayed durable. And taxes kept compounding pressure on operators. Micah Anderson, CEO of LEEF Brands, explains how local bans strengthened the illicit market, why pesticide drift can wipe out millions in product, and why he is rebuilding a recovery and wellness push with NBA player Jimmy Butler. This week we sit down with Micah Anderson: Pesticide drift killing mill
#292
February 27 · 45 min
JB (Cheech & Chong CEO): Building a National Cannabis Brand Through Trial, Error & Partnership
Everyone knows the Cheech & Chong name. Almost no one understands the infrastructure behind it. This isn’t a celebrity brand story. It’s a leverage story inside a fragmented, state-locked cannabis market that could shift overnight. While most operators vertically integrate and hope legislation cooperates, Cheech & Chong are building optionality. Reverse licensing, local partnerships, and asset-light expansion aren’t branding tactics , they’re positioning moves. This week we sit down with Jona
#291
February 19 · 46 min
Cannabis Beverages Are Bringing New Consumers Into Cannabis ft Kristin & Eric Rogers
Beverage may be the most approachable format in cannabis. Familiar ritual. Familiar packaging. Familiar context. Easily Sharable But familiarity creates comparison. Alcohol. That means safety, expectation, and education cannot be left to chance. This week we sit down with Kristin and Eric Rogers of Levia to discuss: • Beverage as a social format • The responsibility of education • Scaling experience across fragmented markets Chapters 00:00 Understanding Success in Cannabis Expansion 03:08 Brand Consistency Across State Lines 05:59 Targeting the Right Consumer Demographics 08:55 The Evolution of Cannabis Beverages 12:01 Navigating Dosage and Consumer Experience 15:02 Quality Control and Supply Chain Management 17:50 The Future of Cannabis and Alcohol Beverages 21:04 Educating Consumers and Regulators 24:07 Navigating Cannabis Regulations in Massachusetts 27:24 Understanding Cannabis vs. Alcohol: Safety and Impairment 31:10 The Impact of Cannabis on Alcohol Consumption 33:43 Educating Consumers: The Importance of Responsible Consumption 36:11 Packaging and Communication: Bridging the Knowledge Gap 40:04 Challenges in the Cannabis Industry: Patience and Perseverance Summary In this conversation, Bryan Fields and Kristin and Eric Rogers discuss the complexities of the cannabis beverage industry, emphasizing the importance of brand consistency, understanding consumer demographics, and navigating regulatory challenges. They explore the science behind cannabis beverages, the significance of dosage, and the potential future of combining cannabis with alcohol. The discussion also highlights the need for education and awareness among consumers and regulators, as well as the perseverance required to succeed in this evolving industry. Guest Links https://levia.buzz/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-rogers12/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristinhrogers/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/leviabrands/ Our Links Bryan Fields on Twitter Kellan Finney on Twitter The Dime on Twitter Extraction Teams: Want to cut costs and get more out of every run? Unlock hidden revenue by extracting more from the same input—with Newton Insights. At Eighth Revolution (8th Rev), we provide services from capital to cannabinoid and everything in between in the cannabinoid industry. The Dime is a top 5% most shared global podcast The Dime is a top 10 Cannabis Podcast The Dime has a New Website. Shhhh its not finished. 🎥 YouTube: The Dime 📸 Instagram: The Dime https://www.newton-insights.com/ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
#290
February 13 · 46 min
Hidden Growth Unmasked: Rescheduling, the Farm Bill & What Comes Next ft Trent Woloveck
For the last 18–24 months, reported cannabis growth told an incomplete story. Demand did not plateau.It was fragmented — between hemp channels, illicit markets, and regulated operators. Now, with the Farm Bill loophole closing, Virginia coming online, and rescheduling potentially closer to execution, the numbers begin to look different. And feel different. This week we sit down with Trent Woloveck to discuss: • Why leading with retail first changes everything• The strategic tradeoffs of vert
#289
February 5 · 47 min
Most Cannabis Marketing Fails Because It Is Asked to Solve the Wrong Problems ft. John Shute
If you doubled your marketing spend tomorrow, would you double your sales? Most cannabis marketing does not fail because teams spend too little. It fails because marketing is asked to create success while known problems remain unfixed. That is why marketing is often the first thing cut when results stall. What has changed is that modern tracking makes attribution clearer and easier than ever. Attribution means understanding which actions actually drive revenue, not just traffic or activity. T
#288
January 29 · 43 min
How Top Teams Balance Art and Process in Extraction ft. Brian Adams
Exceptional extraction has long been treated as an art.What separates the best teams is not creativity.It is the ability to repeat quality, consistently. And it is not SOP alone. It is judgment applied consistently under real constraints. Constraints that define what is technically possible, operationally realistic, and economically viable. Those constraints tart with understanding your system and tracking the right operational parameters at a level of detail most teams never reach. That dep
#287
January 22 · 51 min
Robotics vs Automation in Cannabis Manufacturing ft. Nohtal Partansky
Most cannabis automation fails for a simple reason.It optimizes motion instead of understanding. Automation executes. Robotics adapts.That distinction matters in an industry where variability is unavoidable and capital is limited. This episode breaks down why feedback loops matter more than machines, why fully automated facilities are still far off, and how teams should think about constraints before investing. This week, we sit down with Nohtal Partansky to cover: Why automation breaks unde

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