Tag: James DeWitt

Michael Wilson, United American Hemp

Cannabis founder’s advice: Weed out the bad seeds; run green startups like real businesses

By Tommy Felts / October 29, 2019

Cannabis might seem like it presents a Wild West frontier for entrepreneurs looking to strike green, said Michael Wilson, but would-be founders must cultivate a plan grounded in common sense — and the law. “In the industrial hemp or marijuana space, if you want to build a successful business, run it like a real damn…

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Photo courtesy of United American Hemp

Two novice gardeners in an Olathe lab could harvest Kansas’ first legal hemp harvest

By Tommy Felts / July 23, 2019

Potential for a high-yield payoff grows with each day as Michael Wilson and James DeWitt inch closer to their first hemp harvest — likely the first in the state in modern times, they said. “It’s the jumping off point to create a repeatable process,” said DeWitt, co-founder and CEO at United American Hemp. “We’ve learned…

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Will CBD get me high? Plus three more burning FAQs about the cannabis cousins

By Tommy Felts / April 24, 2019

Selling CBD is about more than the bottom line, said Heather Steppe, co-owner of KC Hemp Co. “Ninety-percent of what we do is educate. We have people come in here and ask questions and they go home and think about it,” she said from her business’ Downtown Overland Park storefront, noting that the general public…

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Michael Wilson and James DeWitt, United American Hemp

Niall luxury watches founder, longtime friend: Time to harvest hemp potential in the heartland

By Tommy Felts / April 24, 2019

With a traditional business mindset and solid entrepreneurial track record, James DeWitt and Michael Wilson could have done just about anything they wanted in life. Uniquely bold, each in their own regard, the longtime friends didn’t want to stick to the status quo as they looked for new ventures after their former acts burned down,…

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cbd risks

Evolving attitudes, laws dissolving risks on mainstream CBD, hemp ventures, experts say

By Tommy Felts / April 24, 2019

The smoke is lifting on cannabis as a commodity, Heather Steppe said, grateful for the entrepreneurial opportunity a waning stigma has created for her family.   “Our farmers are finally getting an opportunity to grow this plant and, by God, we’re going to be some of the people who support them,” Steppe said, looking out…

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