Live backstage at the Canadian Cannabis Awards with Darren Bondar and Mona Pinette from Spirit Leaf, Mimi Lam and Drummond Munro from Superette, and Kelly Green from Kelly's Green Lounge

Welcome to The Voice of Retail, I’m your host Michael LeBlanc, and this podcast is brought to you in conjunction with Retail Council of Canada and sponsored by Environics Analytics. Environics Analytics helps companies in Retail, CPG and the Cannabis industry turn data and analytics into insight, strategy and results. EA produces CannabisInsights – the market leading source of neighborhood level insights for the Cannabis industry.

I thought this episode would be a great capstone to 2019, and also a great leading indicator of better and better days for the retail cannabis industry in Canada in 2020 and beyond.  Recorded live backstage at the Lift & Co. Canadian Cannabis Awards in Toronto, I interview  finalists, winners and industry advocates and chat about all things retail cannabis.

First up Darren Bondar, President and CEO of Inner Spirit Holdings, which we would experience as Spirit Leaf, one of the biggest retail chains with 42 retail cannabis stores and ten more in the pipeline.  We talk about the importance of awards to this young industry, and the path ahead for Spirit Leaf.   Darren was a finalist in the ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR category.

Next, Spirit Leaf bud tender Mona Pinette, Lift & Co nominee for Budtender of the year.  Mona Won Spiritleafs Cannabis Concierge of the year award. At Spiritleaf she is the manager of our Chinook location.  We talk about her personal journey in the profession, and what it takes to be a great bud tender on the front lines.

Next Mimi Lam and Drummond Munro founders of Superette stop by just after taking home the hardware for Startup of the Year, WOMXN IN WEED - TRAILBLAZER, and top retail store (single location, Ottawa) as well as being finalists in the Employer of the Year and Entrepreneur of the Year categories.  We talk briefly about what it takes to get a single brand concept developed and off the ground, and the path ahead for Superette.

Lastly  I connect with Kelly Green, from Kelly’s Green Lounge in Orno Ontario.  We talk about what its like to be both a fellow podcaster and retail entrepreneur.   But first, let’s jump into my interview with Darren from Spirit Leaf.

Thanks to Darren, Mona, Mimi, Drummond and Kelly for being my guests on this special episode sponsored by Environics Analytics cannabis practice.   2020 is going to be an important year in the retail cannabis space as Cannabis 2.0 products hit the shelves across the country and finally Ontario has re-opened up their market to retail cannabis stores.  I’ll continue to cover this new industry and bring thought leaders on the podcast to share insights, best practices and stories from the front lines.

That’s a wrap on this edition of The Voice of Retail.  If you liked this podcast you can subscribe on Apple iTunes or your favourite podcast platform, please rate and review, and be sure and recommend to a friend or colleague in the retail industry.

I’m Michael LeBlanc, Founder and President of M.E. LeBlanc and Company Inc. and you can learn more about me on www.meleblanc.co or of course on LinkedIn

Until next time, have a great week!

Michael LeBlanc is the president and founder of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc, a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and now, media entrepreneur.  He has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. 

Michael has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions and participated worldwide in thought leadership panels, most recently on the main stage in Toronto at Retail Council of Canada’s Retail Marketing conference with leaders from Walmart & Google.  He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience with Levi's, Black & Decker, Hudson's Bay, CanWest Media, Pandora Jewellery, The Shopping Channel and Retail Council of Canada to his advisory, speaking and media practice.

Michael produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including the award-winning No.1 independent retail industry podcast in America, Remarkable Retail with his partner, Dallas-based best-selling author Steve Dennis; Canada's top retail industry podcast The Voice of Retail and Canada's top food industry and one of the top Canadian-produced management independent podcasts in the country, The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois from Dalhousie University in Halifax.

Rethink Retail has recognized Michael as one of the top global retail experts for the fifth year in a row, the National Retail Federation has designated Michael as on their Top Retail Voices for 2025, Thinkers 360 has named him on of the Top 50 global thought leaders in retail, RTIH has named him a top 100 global though leader in retail technology and Coresight Research has named Michael a Retail AI Influencer.  If you are a BBQ fan, you can tune into Michael’s cooking show, Last Request BBQ, on YouTube, Instagram, X and yes, TikTok.

Michael is available for keynote presentations helping retailers, brands and retail industry insiders explaining the current state and future of the retail industry in North America and around the world.