Wy Livingston, knows a thing or two about product development, marketing and business. With a BA in Political Science from the University of Denver and over 30 years of experience in business management, operations, and strategic planning. Wy founded Wystone’s World Teas in 2008. She has won numerous awards during this time and counts notable companies in her client portfolio.
Wy was also responsible for the innovative Purple Monkey THC and Wise Hemp CBD line of products, thru her professional food and beverage company and continues to work with numerous companies on their product marketing and product portfolios.
Ms. Livingston held senior level executive positions at various national and international companies, including FedEx, Jackson National Life Insurance, and AIG SunAmerica. She is a natural team builder with a knack for public speaking and communication. Wy is very passionate about helping entrepreneurs and startups, as well as the chance to help people experience a whole world of evolutionary nutrition from bold, flavorful drinkables and whole plant, full spectrum product lines.
She has been a speaker at Regional cannabis symposiums, Arcview presentations and for private clients such as the Chamber of Commerce of South Carolina and the New Jersey ACLU.
When building the cannabis industry from the ground up, why is gender parity (having at least 50% women) so important?
It is important to have gender parity in the cannabis industry for the same reasons it’s important to have parity in any industry. Cannabis is a legitimate business and will positively change the lives of many. Women constitute at least 50% of sales of the product and this is the last industry where any discriminatory practices should be allowed or adopted. In addition, studies have overwhelmingly found that in a diverse and inclusive industry, profits increase and better decision making is at hand. To tackle this new and growing frontier, we need our best and brightest…and that certainly should include the proper representation of women.
Why are environmentally sustainable business practices essential to the future of the cannabis industry?
It is essential that we, in the cannabis business, have environmentally sustainable practices for any number of reasons. As a food and beverage product developer for Licensed products, first and foremost, let’s do honor to this natural, all-encompassing plant and limit our environmental footprint appropriately. Secondly, it’s important that regulations come in line to allow reasonable and safe packaging that does not require the level of wasted materials as seen in the marketplace today. There must be a balance between regulation and sensibility. We, in the industry, need to address this but I’ve been a part of conversations where there is real fear to engage in dialogue with state regulators on the issues of packaging reasonableness versus so-called “public safety”. We do not want to add to the enormous waste in landfills today. The impact of this level of packaging alone will add millions of metric tons of unneeded waste to the environment.
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To learn more about Wy and Wystone’s World Teas, visit her website or follow her on Social Media:
Facebook: @wystonestea
Twitter: @wystones
Instagram: @wystonestea
