High Exposure Agency and the Future of Cannabis: An Interview on Equity, Advocacy, and Collaboration

High Exposure Agency was born out of a shared desire to create an inclusive and equitable cannabis market—one that prioritizes community, collaboration, and social equity over traditional capitalist models. 

The cannabis industry is undergoing rapid changes, and agencies like High Exposure are at the forefront, driving the conversation about equity, advocacy, and community engagement. 

We sat down with the managing partners of High Exposure—Annette Fernandez, Kassia Graham, and Amy Chin—to learn more about their journey, how small businesses can overcome challenges, and their commitment to reshaping the cannabis industry with a focus on collaboration and inclusivity.

High Herstory: Can you tell us about your backgrounds and the motivation behind starting High Exposure agency?

Annette Fernandez: I consider myself a corporate dropout after spending 19 years in specialty retail between Macy’s, The Gap and Victoria’s Secret. I didn't want to work in an environment with that kind of hierarchy and patriarchy. For a lot of people in corporate America, as a single mother, you really can't make it work. I mean, I couldn't. And I find that many single moms have to sacrifice a lot, their health, their mental health and their physical health.

We started this agency to help redefine capitalism and community inside of the cannabis industry. How can we change the constructs that we all believe about capitalism so that we can work together and drive a new kind of economics that work for people like us. 

Our mission is really to create the market we want to see. I think this is what's leading us here to this work and why we're holding on to it so fiercely despite how incredibly difficult and gut-wrenching it can be.

Kassia Graham: I got into the cannabis industry at the tail end of my stem cell transplant after two bouts of cancer in 2017. It’s one of the reasons why I got into the space, like a lot of people who get into cannabis after being afflicted with something, and it tends to be one of their healing methods. 

I cut my teeth in the industry by starting out at CannaClusive. We focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion in the space, making sure that folks of color were represented not only on social media, in front of a camera, and on dispensary floors, but also in the boardroom, and key positions. I also was the Chair for Cannabis for Black Lives, where we helped to raise money for cannabis and cannabis-adjacent organizations that were focused on justice-impacted people and communities. 

I've worked for a dot-com, I've worked nonprofit, I've worked corporate, also a dropout because of whistleblowing. But I was thankfully able to leave on my terms. For me, it’s about building a market where everyone has a fair chance.

Amy Chin: I was born in Chinatown, Manhattan, and now live in the Lower East Side. I’ve always been a downtown person. I started in product development at Macy's. I was there for about a decade until I realized that corporate is not for me. I left and went into restaurant management and did that for a few years. Then after becoming a mom, had my two kids, and realized a night schedule as a parent was not working. I fell into anxiety and postpartum depression.

At this time, I had already been a long-time THC consumer. And while going to therapy, it was at my therapist's suggestion to try CBD because she knew that I didn't want to use pharmaceutical drugs. When I did try the CBD, it was amazing for my mental health. That was when what drew me to working with this plant. I wanted everyone to know all the different healing properties about it and how it can help them. 

So in 2019, I started Calm Better Days and as a cannabis coach, I guide those new to plant medicine on how to consume effectively and customize treatment plans according to their lifetstyle needs. My e-commerce site,consists of a highly curated selection of mostly female-owned, small craft, BIPOC-owned brands because I wanted to represent the marginalized community. As legalization came to New York, I wanted to continue that mission, which is how Annette and I met. We had the same foundation of corporate not feeling right and capitalism and trying to make sure that the industry goes in a direction where we're trying to help the people that really needed the help and who were passionate about the plant and doing it for the right reasons.

High Herstory: It’s clear that each of you brings a wealth of experience and a strong commitment to equity and community. How does High Exposure incorporate these values into its everyday operations?

Annette Fernandez: For us, it's about understanding that no block is the same. No borough is the same, no neighborhood is the same. It's about going into these areas with an understanding of what your community really is. We are here to create the market we want to see and help companies understand that relationships and understanding local needs are important. It’s more than just putting up a storefront.

Considering that New York City has the greatest cannabis consumption in the entire world, we have always been leading in cannabis in one way or another. Though we may not be known to have the most fire genetics in terms of culture, we have contributed greatly.

High Herstory: Could you give an example of how this commitment to community has influenced a specific project or partnership?

Annette Fernandez: In our partnership with Terp Bros, we literally knocked door to door, with Jeremy, the founder. He approached opening his store with the philosophy of being a good neighbor. We created a campaign called 'Say Hi to Your New Neighbor,' where local businesses put signs up for Jeremy on their businesses, so we could cross-promote.

Many of them offered Jeremy's customers discounts, driving traffic to them. It was a beautiful way to open the store. This business has increased month over month and week over week. It’s a perfect example of how collaboration works—we know you have to build relationships to succeed.

High Herstory: How do you define the role of advocacy in building a successful cannabis industry and what strategies do you recommend for brands to engage with the community?

Kassia Graham: I think that everyone should be an advocate, whether you are a consumer, whether you're a retailer, processor, lawyer, if you're in the space, you should be serving as an advocate. Otherwise, I don't think that your reason for being here is genuine. I think that it's extremely important for folks who make it up that ladder to reach their hand back. We're seeing that sometimes people don't do that, and it's very detrimental to the industry and to people across the board.

It’s your duty to give back. You don't have to break the bank doing it. You can hire from within the community, purchase goods from the community, and make sure that when people are coming and putting that money into your dispensary, you are making sure that some of it gets back into the community. That could look like doing a book bag drive, aiding like a tiny library, a food panty, community fridges, doing those little things that really matter to the people in your community. 

It’s also showing up to meetings, virtually or if it's in person, to your community board, to your assembly person, to your senator. It’s signing petitions, making sure that if there's a comment period that you were there chiming in, even if it's a couple of sentences, doing your absolute best to give back, no matter what. That is of the utmost importance. And it's not hard to do. That's the thing. It's not hard to do. And if you don't have the words, find someone who can help you with the words.

Annette Fernandez: Advocacy is non-negotiable for us. If you're in the cannabis space, you should be advocating for fair policies and equitable practices... We've spent a lot of our free time, reading through regs, doing webinars, showing up at meetings, making commentary, organizing trips upstate to Albany, all of that for free. And at the end of the day, it's important work to me, and I'm not going to stop that.

There are 50 bills right now on the legislator floor in New York State that challenge the MRTA (Marihuana Regulation & Taxation Act)... At the end of the day, equity is under attack every single day in this market. If you’re a small business owner, whether you're Black, Brown, or white, you're still up against multi-state operator capital and lobbyists and litigation.

High Herstory: How can small businesses in New York City's cannabis market overcome these challenges and how is High Exposure preparing to address them?

Kassia Graham: Capital is a big challenge for small businesses, especially for those led by marginalized communities. The regulatory environment is also tough, with constant changes and challenges to equity provisions. We’re preparing by staying informed, engaged in advocacy, and building strong networks. It’s about resilience and making sure we’re not just surviving but thriving.

Amy Chin: There's also a disconnect of information around the whole supply chain, as well as people who are going from legacy to legal. A lot of the jobs and opportunities are being taken from out of state. Shopkeepers are overwhelmed and are also on a very, very tight budget as well. And I do think that for the ones that do hire, sometimes they are going to hire someone from out-of-state because they believe that because of that prior experience that they're going to have a bigger ROI on choosing that out-of-state person who's been in a mature market. And sometimes not seeing that actually having someone local who is plugged into the community in terms of the plant community and physical location might be a better option. Our thought at High Exposure is to build and encourage circular economy so we can all thrive. 

So we wanted to address that and be the connector within the community so that everyone has a better fighting chance. 

High Herstory: What do you believe makes an effective leader in the cannabis industry?

Annette Fernandez: Staying curious, asking versus telling is an important one. Just because you sold it on the block doesn't mean it's going to be the same as selling it in brick and mortar... Managing employees and leading employees is very different when you have labor laws and the EEOC to answer to.

I think wanting to develop other people and have people grow in your business is also another really important quality in a leader. And even before that, how they choose talent and who they are selecting to hire into their organizations, whether you're a dispensary or a processor or a cultivator. I think that's super important because it adds to the strength and health of your business. Turnover is expensive so employee retention is important. Our leadership training develops leaders who can ask questions, who can coach their employees, who can receive feedback, as well as give it and understand that this is important to create a great place to work. If you want to have a great place to shop and you want to treat your customers well, you've got to treat your employees well.

Kassia Graham: I will also add a willingness to learn and grow. Oftentimes there are people who are very stuck in their ways. And if you're going to be in cannabis, it's not solely about how good something smells or how high a customer can get. You also have to dig deep into the data. Is this a product that is resonating with who my intended audience is, who is my intended audience. Everything is not for everyone and that's okay. 

So being open to understanding what it is that's driving consumers, as opposed to just thinking that if you build it, they will come. You have a lot of competition, and the competition is not just coming from people who are in the licensed market. People are still going to their plug. People are still visiting these random shops that have popped up everywhere now and then.

Also being able to change with the times. Being able turn on a dime like that, because as we can see, it feels like every other day, there's some new sort of lawsuit that is looming. And anyone who doesn't have the capacity to cope with all of those consistent changes and those, you know, fits and starts that we have in the industry, unfortunately, are not going to have the best outcome.

High Herstory: You mentioned moving away from traditional models of capitalism. What does that look like for you?

Amy Chin: I think another great thing about High Exposure is that we love to amplify: amplify good messages, and amplify companies that are doing good. The saying “collaboration over competition” has become popular but it’s not always practiced. Competition is so cutthroat right now. I think that at High Exposure, we want to lead by example and are very intentional about the work that we do. We are showing the industry that it can be possible to live by this phrase. 

Annette Fernandez: It goes back to like this whole notion of like, can we be good capitalists? How can we model what it means to be equitable? And equitable means like, for example, in this partnership, we'll be very clear, we're all third owners of this organization, that everything that we do gets broken out like that. No matter what it is. And sometimes that's difficult, right? When one partner brings in something and another partner brings in something, it doesn't matter. It all goes into the pot and we're all a third owners of the organization. 

It means we're co-creating. Co-creating doesn't mean you're going to tell me what I'm going to do because you're the lead on this gig. It's like, no, we're going to sit down and we're going to work out what this means for all of us. So I think that's incredibly challenging and makes it harder to move things quickly. But I think it's worth the time, because if you can get great deals for everyone, then everybody’s doing well. 

That's the way this market should be. Everybody should be able to do well. There are billions of dollars at stake and we're not just talking about retail, we're talking about the entire industry: cannabis tourism, micro licenses, the ancillary businesses, the 60,000 jobs it's creating. I mean, this is a huge industry, and this is only like chapter one of the Grapes of Wrath here.

High Herstory: With the importance of social media and business development, what are the key elements of a successful social media strategy that you advocate for?

Kassia Graham: This last week, I cannot tell you how many accounts with huge followings have just been permanently banned from meta platforms. It sucks to have to play the game and to play by their rules. I don't agree with their rules at all, but it is their platform. A lot of it has to do with the government basically putting these restrictions on people. Even if it's legal in your state, even if it's legal in the majority of the States in the United States. How you market yourself in space is important. That means that you're gonna have to go above and beyond with regards to using playful cannabis-related words. You are going to actually have to think and act and create content that people are going to gravitate towards. In order to create that content, that means that you need to know your audience. A lot of people don't know their audience. It takes time to figure out who is going to be interested in purchasing your products or who is going to come into your dispensary to purchase anything. The person who follows you on social media is not always the person who is going to be your client in the dispensary. And you have to figure out how to cater towards both of those people. And while the person who may like you on social media may not be the person buying from you in the dispensary, though sometimes they're one and the same, if you create content that is appealing, and not stagnant. 

Quite often people end up being shadow-banned or it's just hard to find cannabis accounts for all sorts of random reasons. Consistency is absolutely key. Now, that doesn't mean you have to post every single day, but if you're going to post If you say you're going to post three times a week, post three times a week. If you say that you are going to interact with people X amount of times out of the week, continue doing that. Where is it that you can stand out? Some great examples: Session Goods is popular on Cleaning Tok. Chill Steel Pipes, I love all of their user-generated content. I actually just saw them do one with a bunch of Stanley Cups in the background, and they pull the Stanley Cup to the side, and the Chill comes out. It’s perfect because the color is right and everything just fit in. And I feel that appeals to a certain audience that they're trying to pull in. Whether you're on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, et cetera, all of those places can kick you off whenever it is that they feel like it. So having a robust newsletter is very important.

High Herstory: Can you tell us about your upcoming events and how people can get involved?

High Exposure is redefining what it means to be a leader in the cannabis industry by prioritizing collaboration, community engagement, and unwavering advocacy. In an industry often characterized by instability, fierce competition and rapid expansion, High Exposure is choosing a different path—one that values partnership over rivalry, and community impact over mere profit margins. Their innovative approach serves as a blueprint for how cannabis businesses can thrive through cooperative efforts rather than cutthroat tactics.

By fostering strong, mutually beneficial relationships with local businesses, policymakers, and community organizations, High Exposure demonstrates that the true strength of a business lies in its ability to lift others up. They have embraced the idea that success is not a zero-sum game but rather a collective endeavor where everyone can benefit. This philosophy is particularly relevant in a sector like cannabis, where collaboration can drive sustainable growth, ensure regulatory compliance, and enhance social equity.

Recent research from the Harvard Business Review supports this approach, revealing that organizations which prioritize collaboration over competition are more likely to achieve long-term success. High Exposure embodies this insight, creating an inclusive environment that encourages sharing resources, knowledge, and opportunities. They understand that by working together, businesses can not only enhance their own success but also contribute to a more equitable and just industry.

High Exposure’s commitment to these principles sets a new standard for what it means to be successful in the cannabis world, proving that businesses that prioritize people and partnerships are not only more resilient but also better positioned to navigate the challenges and opportunities of a rapidly evolving market. Check out their upcoming community events and learn more about High Exposure here.