Holly Cowden, Trim Force Staffing Solutions

Ellen Lee Scanlon (00:00):

This podcast discusses cannabis and is intended for audiences 21 and over. Welcome to How to do the Pot, a podcast demystifying cannabis for women. I’m Ellen Scanlon. Buying weed can still be an intimidating thing, and I hope these stories give you a boost of confidence that comes from knowing you have a friend to help you out with all you need to know before you go. We would love to hear your story. Send us a voice memo with your three to five minute story to high@dothepot.com. That’s hi@dothepot.com. Holly Cowden is the Nevada-based founder of Trim Force, the first staffing agency in Las Vegas to specialize in servicing the cannabis industry.

Holly Cowden (00:49):

The first time I bought legal weed was back in 2018. My beloved pit bull boxer, Star, was having a terrible time with arthritis and allergies like a lot of pit bulls have. My fiance and I, we had taken Star to the vet many times over the years to address her discomfort. Nothing seemed to work. We were growing frustrated with the medications that were costly and they just weren’t providing her any relief. A friend of mine had suggested that we try a CBD product made for pets. After my initial thoughts subsided, we thought, “What the heck do we have to lose?” Basically, I jumped in the car and I drove down to the nearest dispensary because I was excited and eager to figure something out. I remember when I walked into the dispensary feeling slightly awkward, walking in for the first time, I had no clue what to expect when I walked in. Honestly, I was blown away.

Holly Cowden (02:05):

The store was absolutely beautiful. It was decorated incredibly and I was just wowed over just how beautiful it was. Everyone from the security guards to the receptionist were super friendly and it made me feel like a longtime friend that had just walked in, which was really cool. As a first time customer, you kind of feel like a rookie and I definitely made a rookie mistake. I was unprepared and I didn’t think to bring cash. I just thought, “Who uses cash anymore?” But I immediately realized that they can’t take credit cards because that would be federally illegal. So, lucky for me and a very smart move by the dispensary, there was an ATM inside tucked away in the corner.

Holly Cowden (03:05):

The bud tender that was helping me, he was so kind. He reassured me that everyone forgets to bring cash at some point and not to sweat it although I was standing there just feeling like the whole world was watching me, but he definitely helped calm the nerves down a little bit. We just dove into talking about Star. I began to think to myself, I thought, “You know what? There’s got to be a product out there that could help me if there’s something there that could help my dog.” Like Star, I had trouble sleeping, suffered with achy joints, skin issues, all probably stress- related, but to name a few of my ailments at the time. But I was not very savvy when it came to the different strains of cannabis and the effectiveness of each product. I had to fully rely on the experience and knowledge of the bud tender. But thankfully for me, he was more than patient and happy to help me because the menu was massive and it really felt overwhelming to navigate, not going to lie.

Holly Cowden (04:18):

But again, the bud tender was amazing and he gave me a clear breakdown of each product and what each product was made to do and what it was proven to help with. He took the time to answer all my questions to help me ultimately make the best choice for myself and for Star. I walked out with CannaPaws CBD for my dog, Star, and just edible sour strip belts for me. The sour belts are still my favorite product of all time. I’ve tried all kinds of stuff and there’s a lot of great products out there, but the sour belts are my go-to that I seem to like every night because I fall asleep like a champ and I wake up feeling great. Star’s quality of life, I will say drastically improved while taking the CBD. We believe that it really helped us have four more happy years with her, so we’re thankful for that.

Ellen Lee Scanlon (05:16):

Thanks for listening to this episode of How to do the Pot. If you’d like to share your story about the first time you bought legal weed, please send a voice memo to hi@dothepot.com or DM us @dothepot. For lots more information and past episodes, visit dothepot.com, and that’s also where you can sign up for How to do the Pot’s newsletter, which comes out every other Friday. If you like How to do the Pot, please rate and review us on Apple Podcasts. It helps more people find the show. Thanks to Madi Fair, our brand manager, and our producer, Nick Patri. I’m Ellen Scanlon and we’ll be back soon with more of How to do the Pot.