Dahlia Mertens, Founder of Mary Jane’s Medicinals
Name: Dahlia Mertens
Founder: Mary Jane’s Medicinals
Who is Dahlia Mertens?
I started my business in 2009 when cannabis was newly legalized. I began making topicals at a time when most people did not know cannabis could be used topically. We are now one of the most popular cannabis topicals brands in the space.
In less than three sentences tell us about your company and what you do.
We make cannabis-infused topicals for pain relief and healing.
What does BEING a FoundHer mean to you?
It has been very empowering to create a business from the ground up, be my own boss, and create a culture that is supportive and collaborative at my business.
How do you support other female founders and women in business?
I partner with women-owned businesses whenever possible. I talk positively about what other women are doing, and lots of networking and collaboration.
At what point did you make your company a full time gig? How did you know the time was right?
I transitioned to working full-time on my business once my business could support me financially. that took about two years.
What lesson or skill did you take with you from a prior job to help you succeed in your role today?
I got my degree in theater and worked on film and television sets for several years. My education in theater taught me about the creative process and teamwork. My business is very collaborative and creative in coming up with new products, branding, marketing, and sales. So these skills have been very helpful over the years.
Let’s talk social media—who handles it for your company (you, an internal team member, an outsourced solution?) and what is the secret to making it successful? What is the biggest challenge?
I run our social media. In cannabis SM is more tricky because they do not allow advertising and often shut down our accounts. Also, we can not sell products directly online so the ROI on investing big spends on SM in cannabis is typically not done. But I post regularly and interact with our followers.
How did you land your first client?
Knocking on doors and cold calling accounts.
What is something you do differently from the industry standard?
We are completely self-funded by the revenue my company generates. I started my business with $1500 and grew it completely off of its own earnings.
What would you do differently if you were starting your business today?
I would have invested in a more robust sales team early on. I started my business with very little money and have always operated on a lean budget. I was one of the first brands to market in the cannabis infused topicals space so that helped me out early on. When large well funded companies saw my success they entered the market with big budgets for sales and marketing. I lost market share as a result. If I had invested in a robust sales team early on I could have controlled more of the market and been more competitive with the larger companies.
What are three strategies you use to market your business, grow brand awareness and generate bottom line growth?
The education of the salespeople is key in cannabis. They are the front lines and if you get the budtenders on your side they will sell your product.
Heavy sampling.
Promotional events, competitions, and some print ads.
What was an obstacle you overcame to get your business where it is today?
Competing with the large well-funded corporations that have entered our market in the past 6 or 7 years has been my biggest challenge. A lot of smaller operators have not been able to compete with the big guys and have shut down.
The cannabis space is also very dynamic and the market goes through big fluctuations. Big swings between good years and bad years. I have been able to stay in the game because I run a lean ship that is agile in these turbulent waters.
I have seen a lot of businesses get too top-heavy, raise a ton of money, blow through it, and then shut down.
I like to call my company "The Little Brand That Could!" because we have managed to stay in the game over the past 13 years in an industry that has gone through so many changes in that time period, and is drastically different than it was when I entered the space back in 2009.
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