Friendly Farms is one of the fastest growing cannabis concentrate brands that offers some of the most exciting cannabis collaborations throughout California. Their yellow and black branding is easy to spot in stores across the state, and their vape cartridges are available in plenty of iconic flavors.
Getting to this point took work, though. When Friendly Farms was first taking off it was a boot strapped operation but quickly realized they needed a source of funding to support their rapid growth but did not want to dilute their hard earned equity. Here’s how Friendly Farms went from a legacy brand to a rapidly scaling and thriving business, with a little help along the way.
The History of Friendly Farms
Friendly Farms is one of the oldest companies in the cannabis business. It was first founded in the traditional market by a group of self-funded friends in 2006. Cannabis was officially legalized in California in 2016, and Friendly Farms seized the opportunity to expand into the newly legal market.
The founders focused on frugality and innovation to fuel their expansion. However, keeping costs low will only carry any company so far. Eventually, Friendly Farms discovered that it was going to take more money to make more money.
Funding Friendly Farms
Startups like Friendly Farms often run into cash flow problems as they scale and expand. Cannabis companies typically don’t have access to the same reserves as businesses in more traditional industries. In the case of Friendly Farms, the supply chain quickly became a limiting factor.
The problem was simple. There was plenty of demand for their products, but Friendly Farms didn’t have the cash on hand to purchase more inventory while properly serving their existing customers. Buying more biomass was their largest expense and, without the ability to purchase enough inventory, the brand’s growth was hindered.
Getting a loan from a traditional lender was out of the question because most large banks refuse to work with cannabis businesses.
Bespoke and Friendly Farms
That’s where we entered the Friendly Farms story. A business line of credit from Bespoke allowed the company to buy additional equipment it needed to increase production and access the working capital it required to purchase more biomass. Unlike lenders who ignore cannabis business loans, we are dedicated to helping companies like Friendly Farms obtain the funding they need.
With our line of credit, Friendly Farms had the additional capital to continue their rapid growth. As their founder Chaz Smith puts it, “We have come up against capital constraints due to our swift growth. The additional capital has allowed us to procure enough biomass and packaging to double our sales. Once this happened we again leaned on bespoke to increase our inventory and double again. Bespoke’s credit facilities allow us to purchase in larger amounts meaning we get better pricing.” In just a few months, Friendly Farms grew beyond even their most optimistic projections.
The secret was the quick access to additional cannabis financing we offered. Since we prioritize simple onboarding and easy applications, Friendly Farms was able to access their funds almost immediately. The ability to take advantage of sales and bulk purchasing helped them expand and become the major brand they are today.
Friendly Farms is just getting started. If you want to follow Friendly Farm’s journey, you can find out more here:
Let Us Help You
Friendly Farms is an excellent model for other cannabis businesses to follow. If you’re considering starting your own cannabis company, we can help.
With a line of credit or purchase money financing, you can rely on our team at Bespoke to provide friendly, convenient financial solutions that will help your company grow.
