“Our Academy is one of the best accelerator programs in the Cannabis industry. Their bi-weekly 15-week mentorship workshops taught me how to start-up and run a successful cannabis business. As a social equity recipient there is little guidance and resources out there that can help you start or build a successful business. Most investors are predatory and make you give them control over the day-to-day operations for a pay check. Without the OA program Queen Mary would not be a brand on shelves today. They helped me turn an idea into an actual business. Not only did they help me learn every aspect of what I needed to do from the importance of good partnerships to having an actual business plan and pro forma. I learned the importance of filing a trademark and how to structure my business in terms of different entities. We have workshops with lawyers, consultants and people who work in every aspect of the cannabis industry, we even had a workshop on learning the basics of Metric. As an organization they are changing the policies of Social Equity programs to ensure a clear and accessible path for BIPOC owners in the industry. "

Tiana Woodruff