Women to Watch: Ashley Osburn
Ashley Osburn, a mother of three amazing children and wife, she juggles her roles as a “boss lady” while contending with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE).
Having entered the workforce at the age of 14, she primarily navigated male-dominated environments. In her twenties, she successfully managed an auto parts store and a bar while pursuing a degree in psychology. Eventually, she transitioned into the entertainment industry, starting Missouri’s first escape room and managing a trampoline park up until the Covid pandemic. Adapting to the circumstances, she shifted gears once more during the shutdown, becoming the Chief Operating Officer and Director of Human Resources at a psychological clinic in Springfield. Her journey took another turn when she received an offer from Greenlight in April 2021.
“SLE causes a lot of inflammation, nausea, and pain that I deal with daily. Cannabis has given me my life back. I have been able to keep my lupus flares and symptoms in check while cutting my pharmaceutical use in half. I’m so lucky to be in the industry so I get to see and try all the newest products.”
After accepting an offer to become the director of a domestic violence shelter in Springfield, Ashley Osburn was faced with an unexpected opportunity. On the very same day, she received a call from Greenlight for a second interview. Impressed by John and Jim Mueller’s vision for Greenlight and intrigued by the excitement of diving into a new industry, she quickly accepted the offer. Just five days later, she met John Mueller, who greeted her with the words, “Welcome to the rest of your life.” Since then, she hasn’t looked back.
“Greenlight is such a happy laid-back company and we have many women running the show here at Greenlight. Everyone in the corporate world is extremely approachable and welcoming to entry-level workers. I have seen a lot of higher ups in my past that would ignore lower-level workers and that would never happen at Greenlight. John visits the stores regularly and asks the budtenders to tell him all the problems they have. He doesn’t want to hear what he’s doing correctly; he wants to know the pain points so he can fix them. He even made an internal email that goes directly to him for any ideas for things we think should be at Greenlight.
The Garage itself even came from a discussion I had with John. I floated the idea of getting the building behind my main store after a MoCann Event to use for our Underground and 2 months later he texted me saying that he did get it and I would be getting keys the next day.”
Let us take a peek into the day-to-day life of your role at Greenlight.
My Day-to-Day Life in Greenlight: As the GM, everything in store lands in my lap. I have a staff of 28 currently including the best team of female managers. I oversee inventory, scheduling, customer service, training, etc. My most important personal rule for managing is “manage people first.” I look at each employee as a person first and employee second. Everyone has a life outside of work that they are working to provide for and I want them to enjoy and prioritize that.
What advice would you give to other women wanting to get into the cannabis industry?
My advice to women getting into the industry: Dive in! Cannabis is growing and we have plenty of space available to take up.
How has Missouri gone above and beyond for women in the cannabis industry?
Luckily, Missouri has been very welcoming to women in my experience, and since we have such a successful program other states should be looking to us as an example. From CEOs to growers and manufacturers I’ve not had anyone treat me differently because I am a woman. So many of the men in the industry here in Missouri are more than happy to save space for women. I can promise the auto parts industry is not as welcoming to women. There are so many successful, high-achieving women in cannabis in this state to look to.
How could the industry improve its relationship with minorities and women?
I feel like every state has a different hiccup when it comes to minorities and women. Some of the older operating states still really focus on male customers and try to use sex to sell. I think opening the market to women and realizing how many women use cannabis will open a lot more doors in those other states. Minorities in all the states need more footing for sure.