Page 36 - SFHN Dec 2020

CANNABIS

BUSINESS

DIRECTORY

page 31

December 2020

2019 Cannabis Business Award’s Publication of the Year

Family, Premium Product at the

Heart of The Flowery’s Success

BY VANESSA ORR
For almost 100 years, Stephanie Frohock’s family
has been heavily involved in agriculture in the
Homestead area of South Florida, so when the state
legalized the cultivation and sale of medicinal
cannabis, it only seemed fitting that they get
involved in this burgeoning industry. And while it
took more than six years to get a license and estab-
Jackie Rothman lish The Flowery, they are passionate about being Michael Liss
involved in providing products that help people.
COO Position: business that provides a wide variety of products, Do (Due)
“My dad and brothers run a very large nursery
from small plants to gigantic palm trees, to markets
A Perfect Fit for across the state,” said Frohock, who serves as The Stephanie Frohock Diligence
Flowery’s vice-president of marketing and sales.
Jackie Rothman “This experience means that we’re able to do things that other growers are not that BY MICHAEL LISS, ESQ.
help with the end product.
“But what really sets us apart is our drive,” she added. “I have three brothers, and
BY LOIS THOMSON my youngest brother was in the military and did two tours in Iraq. He had severe I’m a litigator, not a “corporate”
PTSD, and we saw first-hand how medical marijuana had a positive impact on him, lawyer. For the past 27 years I have filed
Jackie Rothman said she has "always and on other soldiers. Though he passed away three years ago, he was the family and defended lawsuits on behalf of busi-
believed in cannabis, I was raised to member fighting the most for us to get a license, so we do this for him.” nesses and business people, often ones
believe in cannabis as a medication." For Frohock’s family joined others in a suit against the state, and is now the only fam- which have not used corporate counsel.
that reason, her new position as Chief ily-run company holding a license that farms the product themselves. “Growing the I get to “Monday-morning-quarterback”
Operating Officer of DocMJ seems to be best flower possible is at the core of our company; it’s who we are,” said Frohock. everything after the fact. Most lawsuits
the perfect fit. Continued on page 34 would have been avoided had my client
Rothman had been the director of used counsel at any point up until the
operations at DocMJ since she joined the time my help was needed. I encourage
company about three years ago. In that business owners to utilize counsel early
capacity she said she was mainly Cannabis Spotlight and to be careful in decision making. Do
involved with the day-to-day operations, due diligence.
and the physicians and medical staff Let’s define due diligence as the exer-
themselves. As COO, she will be more Jenni Fried cise of care a reasonably prudent person
caught up with contracts and vendors, Regional Sales Manager would take before making a business
and "everything under the sun, so I'm decision. Few decisions of consequence
excited about that." MÜV should be made without corporate
Part of that effort will include further counsel. If my clients used corporate
input into an electronic medical records What benefits do you see for patients lawyers much earlier often, they would
system that is being made available to throughout Florida within this space? not use their litigation counsel so fre-
outside physicians who may be interest- We are incredibly fortunate to be able to offer quently.
ed in getting into medical cannabis. "We Florida patients a natural alternative to pharmaceu- Even a lawyer can’t anticipate all of
believe it's something that's good for ticals. Patients who have not been able to find the the stretches of imagination of another
everybody, so we want to make it easy for relief they are seeking from these more traditional party, so clients who use counsel some-
the single physician as well as a group of medicines or who were left with terrible side effects times find themselves in lawsuits,
physicians." Rothman said the system are now turning to cannabis, a natural plant grown despite due diligence. An example of
was created to work seamlessly with and harvested from nature for thousands of years. this is a suit I handled last year for one
Florida's regulations, and while it's only Now, the options have expanded for MÜV Jenni Fried of our MMTCs (cannabis companies)
been up and running for about six Patients from combusting whole flower to include which runs a dispensary out of an out-
months, some physicians have been 1:1, THC- or CBD-only formulation in routes that include oral, traditional topicals, parcel it rents outside a shopping center
working with it and it's been working and even transdermal topicals. All MÜV Products undergo rigorous testing both in- (the outparcel is owned separately, but
well. "So we're very pleased and we're house along the plant’s life cycle and at third-party labs per state guidelines, allowing shares management and a parking lot
going to push forward to making it more for safe access to medication Florida patients can trust. with the main center and other out-
available to even more physicians." In my role as Sales Manager, I have the opportunity to visit doctor’s offices and to parcels).
Rothman had been living in New participate in local patient-focused events. With each visit and event, it is evident A large tenant complained so much to
Jersey and working for the Division of that the cannabis plant has brought relief to many people throughout the state for a the management about the opening of a
Developmental Disabilities when DocMJ variety of different ailments. In particular, there is a tremendous opportunity and dispensary that the management filed a

Continued on page 35 Continued on page 32 Continued on page 33