Savvy Jane is an underground entrepreneur who loves making cannabis edibles for people and wants to go legitimate.
In the vein of Ed “NJWeedman” Forchion and others, Savvy Jane wants a license to make edibles along with a café.
“My oldest daughter’s name is Savannah Jane, so I kind of took it from there,” she said, noting it was a play on “Mary Jane.”
Savvy Jane is her business name/pen name. Her real name is Jennifer Kaden. She is a resident of Randolph, NJ, in Morris County near cannabis activist Sanjay Chaudhari. However, she grew up in West Milford and went to high school in Wayne, both of which are in Passaic County.
Despite adult-use legalization of dispensary cannabis and possession decriminalization, Savvy Jane is an underground hustler taking a massive risk.
“I mean, I know that there’s a chance I could get in a lot of trouble, and you know I’m going to take that chance, and that’s just how I feel,” Savvy Jane said.
A Patient First
Savvy Jane is treating her own back pain from degenerative disc disease and PTSD with medical cannabis.
“It’s made such a huge difference in my life because of it. I’m a better mom. I just, it does something magical for me,” she said.
“I started making edibles probably about seven years ago when I got my medical card,” Savvy Jane explained. “Then I started making edibles literally in my closet. I had my Magical Butter set up in there; I had my Ardent set up in there. And whenever the kids would go to my in-laws or whatnot, the first thing I would do is I would just start making edibles.”
Savvy Jane began joining groups on Facebook to learn more about cannabis and the community and recipes. People were lamenting a dearth of cannabis edibles at dispensaries.
“I wanted to be doing something that I really had passion and joy for. It just kind of turned into a business without me really intending for it to be a business,” Savvy Jane said.
Being a chef for almost 25 years made it a natural course.
“My husband and I have actually owned a couple little bit of businesses,” she said, noting they have owned private catering companies and a café.
“My husband’s more of a chef. I’m more of a baker,” Savvy Jane added.
“Things really kind of snowballed and took off at the beginning of the pandemic,” she explained.
Helping People Cope with the Pandemic
Savvy Jane is not the only entrepreneur who has been prospering in the pandemic, helping people cope.
“It’s really busy. Every day, I’m working; holidays, Saturdays, Sundays. No rest for the weary,” Savvy Jane said. “Sometimes customers will text you at like 10:00 a.m., and I don’t mind.”
Despite the long hours, she is enjoying it.
“I talk to all my customers all the time, and I’ve become really good friends with a lot of them,” Savvy Jane said. “That’s the best part about doing this for a living.”
“I do a lot of texting with people, and usually I meet them someplace, or I will mail it to them for an additional fee,” she added. “I also do infusion instruction.”
She said has “patients that are all over the place, mostly in New Jersey, but we do have some out-of-state people.”
“With the legalization having passed for adult-use, it’s it makes me breathe easier, makes me realize that there is a light at the end of the tunnel for people who do want to pursue, you know, some business like this,” Savvy Jane said.
Going Legit
“My ultimate goal would be to open like a little coffee consumption lounge,” she said.
Savvy Jane has spoken to a couple investors who can help her.
“I just started looking into it,” she said.
While currently working from her home kitchen, Savvy Jane is looking for a commercial rental space.
“It’s a little difficult, especially with the product that we’re dealing with, but I do have some leads on some kitchens that are available,” she explained.
Savvy Jane is in the process of looking for a good location for a business.
“Having a business in the town of Dover would be ideal. Staying close to Morris County is definitely a must,” Savvy Jane explained.
Dover might be a cannabis-friendly town.
Making Cannabis Edibles and Infused Dinners
On her website, a variety of gummies, muffins, and cookies are for sale.
“I can make them sugar-free. I can make kosher,” Savvy Jane said regarding her treats, noting those who are especially sick don’t want a lot of sugar.
“My gummies, they’re my babies,” she added. Her hexagon-shaped gummies are big sellers.
Cannabis edibles take a while to feel. However, if you keep a gummy in your mouth, the chemicals get into the body via saliva quicker than the digestive system where food is broken down, Savvy Jane explained. CBD is supposed to work in the same manner.
While the law seeks to limit the amount of THC in a cannabis edible, no limit exists on the underground market currently benefits Savvy Jane.
“Everybody is different,” Savvy Jane said, noting that metabolism speeds, how you’ve eaten, time of day, and your activity all factor in how it hits.
One of Savvy Jane’s specialties is cooking an infused dinner. People can choose as many courses as they want, which can be made with dietary concerns in mind.
Cooking with Weed
“If you can eat it, I can make it with a lot of love and little weed,” Savvy Jane said. She said that with her husband, they had designed menus for a five-course infused meal.
“There’s a million ways to infuse things. Simple syrup is a nice way to make beverages. You can infuse the simple syrups with THC,” she explained.
For dinner, they often serve a light THC appetizer first.
“Then we’ll do an intermezzo of an infuse, just lightly infused mango sorbet,” she explained.
Given that cannabis usually consumers hungry, an infused dinner might seem counter-intuitive.
“If you’re still hungry, I’ll send you home with a little to-go basket,” she said.
Chili is her entrée specialty.
“I’m having so much fun doing it, and that’s what gets me going,” she said. “The fact that it’s an adult-use market now, it eases my fears.”
