Willy Vlasic and Vlasic Labs From Pickles to Pot >>>

As cannabis legalization and other related reforms sweep across the nation, the diversity of business owners and employees within the industry will surely increase, as well. People who have found employment come from all walks of life and have joined the industry for a variety of reasons.

With 428,000 people employed in the industry, all likely have a personally unique story as to why they decided to seek a role in the industry. Willy Vlasic’s story is certainly one of a kind and goes back over 100 years.

When Frank Vlasic immigrated to Michigan from Croatia in 1912, he started the company that would become synonymous with pickles originally as a creamery business. While they initially specialized in dairy products, Frank’s son, Joe Vlasic, ended up expanding the family business into selling Polish pickles. Eventually, the brand became so successful following World War 2 that Vlasic Pickles received the distinct honor of being recognized as the number one pickle brand in America.

Campbell’s Soup bought Vlasic Pickles in 1978 and the Vlasic family members and future generations transitioned into other fields of work. Interestingly, Frank’s great-great-grandson, Willy Vlasic, had the entrepreneurial spirit to join the hemp and cannabis business.

Where other people saw simply a plant that made them feel funny, Willy Vlasic clearly inherited the business acumen of his ancestors as he saw the true viability and potential of a cannabis business.

This professionalism surrounding working in the cannabis industry clearly paid off four years ago. Soon after The Great Lake State legalized adult-use cannabis via the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marijuana Act in 2018, Willy Vlasic became one of the youngest commercial cultivation license holders in Michigan, with the ability to grow up to 6,000 plants.

“I definitely had to earn my stripes in the Michigan market.” Vlasic recollected. “Getting in so young, there were a lot of folks that didn’t believe in me. So, I had to work ten times as hard to make a splash.”

While the large-scale cultivation facility was being constructed, Willy relocated out to Washington to receive extensive first-hand experience at Mama J’s commercial facility.

The knowledge and experience gained in Washington helped springboard Willy into founding a hemp business in Michigan with his father Rick. In 3 years, Vlasic Labs has evolved from extraction to conversions to now offering an extensive line-up of alternative wellness products. Rick’s 35 years of experience running health

BY JOSH KASOFF

and safety businesses have created a stable growth environment at Vlasic Labs.

While family businesses are more commonplace in other industries, there are some cannabis and hemp companies that are entirely family-run and operated. Willy is a co-owner of Vlasic Labs with his father, Rick Vlasic, and brothers, Jack and Joe.

“It’s a lot of fun.” Vlasic recollected. “My brother, Jack, who worked in the sports business for 10 years, works with my dad and I now. So the three of us are partners and I love working with them. My brother and I run the marketing and sales and do a lot of different things for the company. It’s nice having that family dynamic because we’re all working towards the same goals. The Vlasic name means quality and it means safety. For all three of us to put our name on a product, we have to fully support and believe in it."

Vlasic Labs has been a pioneer in the utilization of cannabinol aka CBN. CBN is the primary ingredient in their first product.

Vlasic shared that their flagship product, the 1000 Mg 1:1 CBN and CBD Sleep Spray, had been one of the first cannabinoid-based sleep spray products on the national market. They also offer a catalog of everything from gummies to tinctures and bath bombs in a number of flavors, and even CBD Dog Chews for your furry best friends.

Outside of the Vlasic Labs hemp business, Willy’s cannabis partners have grown for numerous high-profile and multi-award winning companies, most notably Cookies in Washington, Michigan, and Oregon, as well as Seed Junky. Willy Vlasic has even grown cannabis for certain celebrity brands, with the best example being the brand Gkua, owned by Lil’ Wayne.

As Las Vegas is becoming the epicenter of cannabis industry evolution, Willy Vlasic and his partners will be expanding here in April with both a 50,000 foot cultivation facility in North Las Vegas and optimistic spirits about working in the Silver State. His partners include Mama J's and Rainbow, award winning brands owned by Conduit.

“The people in Nevada just seem to want the best for the community and for the market, which reminds me of Missouri. I’ve felt very welcome so far in the Nevada market," says Willy.

The Vlasics will be introducing flower products which should hit the Nevada markets around August and they’ll be just as philanthropic as several cannabis companies across the Las Vegas Valley. Willy informed us that he will be partnering with The Last Prisoner Project, a non-profit organization raising awareness of unjust cannabis sentences. The name of the collaboration product with LPP is Schedule One, a reference to how unfairly cannabis has been legislated in the past.

Through a meeting between Vlasic Bioscience President Adam Rosenberg, legendary activist Andrew DeAngelo, and Willy, this philanthropic partnership was born.

“Schedule One is our partnership brand with LPP. So, we donate a portion of the sales back to LPP and the whole mission to helping cannabis ‘criminals’ get out of prison. If you smoke a Schedule One joint, we want it to actually do something besides get you high. We want to help these wrongfully incarcerated prisoners get out of jail.

By naming the brand Schedule One, it was kind of an homage to where this industry is from and hopefully one day people will look at it in 20 years and not be able to believe that it was Schedule I (on the Controlled Substances list) back in the day. We’re hoping to get this legalized federally eventually and get everyone out of prison.”

Along with Schedule One and Vlasic, they’ll also be launching Mama Js and Rainbow Cannabis out of the facility. Both are powerhouse brands from our partner in Washington State. We have all four flower brands coming out and hopefully some extract and concentrate products coming soon.

Taking their philanthropic efforts to another level, Vlasic will be hosting a charity golf tournament with LPP in Missouri at The Ozarks. Titled the Vlasic Classic, all funds raised will go toward the lifechanging work that LPP does. Hosted on July 7th-9th, every single dollar of proceeds raised will be donated to LPP and their continuing efforts in getting victimless “offenders” out of prison and given a well-deserved second chance at life.

Other future plans for Vlasic Labs include a partnership on their CBD Dog Chews with The Humane Society and further advocating to make cannabis more accessible for the greater public.

The transition from pickles to hemp may be unique, but Willy, Jack, Joe, and Rick Vlasic are sure to grow their legacy as they venture further into the American cannabis industry.