Jill Cohen has opened a female-centered CBD store in Maplewood called the Cannaboss Lady, selling beauty, health, and cannabis wellness products.
TheCannaBossLady was first an online platform built to help people make informed decisions about hemp and CBD products while creating a community of empowered women in the cannabis space.
Since October 2019, she has been the Canna Boss lady on Instagram. She used it for her eCommerce and retail brands. Cohen has been working with Emerald magazine, which Heady NJ has collaborated with to put on events.
Opening Up in Maplewood
“It’s risky opening up a retail shop in the middle of a pandemic,” she admitted.
“There’s a huge educational component to buying CBD. I wanted to create a safe place for women to come to me and talk. Some of their ailments are personal. I wanted them to come to a place that’s comfortable and cozy and identifying the best method of care for them,” Cohen explained.
She has an array of products, including some for pets. The CannaBoss Lady offers an intimacy product, gummies, chocolate, tea, honey, coffee, and CBD cocktail mixers. Cohen also offers a line of beauty products. However, she is primarily focused on a Wellness line. She offers full spectrum products and isolates that include edibles, haircare, intimacy, spirituality, and wellness products.
“I believe in the whole plant,” Cohen said. Some parents have found success in treating childhood ADD with CBD isolate tinctures or oils, she noted.
Selling Delta 8 Products
Cohen is also exploiting a recently developed federal loophole. While the previously isolated Delta 9 THC products are illegal, the newly isolated Delta 8 THC products are not yet. Many in the CBD industry are coming out with legal Delta 8 gummies and cartridges now. Cohen explained she offers Delta 8 Belgian and peppermint chocolate edibles. For now, she does not sell smoking products.
“I’m finding that my clientele is not interested in smoking, and I just don’t want to push it for health reasons,” Cohen said.
“Many people are looking for healthier alternatives or natural solutions to de-stress, enhance sleep, replenish skin, support healthy sensuality, and help people live their best lives. We have tested, evaluated, and curated a collection of the best cannabis products so that our clients don’t have to,” Cohen said.
Canna-curious shoppers can learn from TheCannaBossLady’s educational information, which includes the endocannabinoid system and CBD levels.
“I did extensive research on the brands that I sell,” Cohen said. “Some of the farms I physically visited. I’ve met with the women founders of each of the brands. I make sure that their farms are organic, and they use third-party testing.”
Cohen noted she has tried the products herself and shared them with close friends for their approval.
Social Impact
Looking to make a deeper impact, TheCannaBossLady will donate a portion of proceeds to Dressember, which funds vital anti-trafficking work, and Supernova Woman empowers people of color to become self-sufficient shareholders in the cannabis industry.
I wanted to find a woman-centered charity that focused on women and cannabis, and BIPOC and LGBTQ IA communities are very important to me.”
Coen said while she is focused on CBD now, “I am planning on getting a license to sell marijuana, and I’m hoping that will happen in less than three years,” she said regarding an adult-use license.
New CBD Store
Cohen’s CannaBoss Lady CBD Store is on Highland Place in Maplewood.
“I live in South Orange, and so I knew that I wanted to be in Essex County, and I started my search in Milburn, South Orange. and Maplewood. I love the village vibe,” Cohen said about her decision to locate there.
“It’s a very cute, quaint, cozy train village with a lot of walking traffic, and they have a huge BIPOC LGBTQ IA community, so it just seemed like a natural fit,” she added.
Maplewood is a progressive town that is likely to see more cannabis companies open soon. A previous hemp market was held in Maplewood too.
“I’m really excited. I love it, and it’s kind of fun to have a place to go. It’s really fun to have a shop, and I have a little office in the back,” Cohen explained. “It’s just really rewarding to have a vision come to fruition.
She noted in Maplewood is a nice town with good shops and great restaurants.
The CannaBoss Lady’s hours are Tuesday to Saturday, 11 am to 6 pm, Sundays 11 to 4, and Mondays closed. There will also be online ordering for either shipping and curbside pickup.
