His Leap of Faith Brought Him Cannabis Industry Success
Employee Spotlight
Nicholas Aaron Hunt
His Leap of Faith Brought Him Cannabis Industry Success
by Rocco Scarcello , contributing writer
While the Missouri cannabis industry has been one of the most successful adultuse markets in the United States , the industry ’ s workers had to bear many of the impacts of instability during the early medicinal-use period as the Show-Me State proved itself to be sturdy and worth the upgrade to adult use . Yet even so , for Raytown ’ s own Nicholas Aaron Hunt , the challenges were well worth the gamble on himself .
“ Three years later , I ’ m beyond blown away at where we are as an industry and a company ,” Hunt , now the production manager for Elevate Missouri , says . “ Coming from the service / hospitality industry to the cannabis industry has brought an unfathomable level of stability to my life .”
40 February 2024
Despite achieving a respectable amount of stability in his past work life ( career cook , leading kitchens for one of Kansas City ’ s leading barbecue chains , as well as a radio technician for Carter Broadcast Group , Kansas City ’ s oldest black-owned and family-operated radio station in the United States ), future stability was worth the risks of leaving .
“ It was the perfect opportunity . I was experiencing burnout at my last job and decided it was time for a career change ,” Hunt says . “ You hear all the stories about how great the cannabis industry is .”
But despite a world of confidence and the qualifications to back it up , not even Hunt — Nycko to his friends and many of his peers — saw himself rising through the ranks QUITE as quickly as he did .
“ Initially , I applied to be a part-time harvester . After interviewing with a recruiter for a major cannabis brand [ Terrapin Care Station , which eventually rebranded under new , localized ownership as Elevate Missouri ], she forwarded my resume on to a national director , which landed me on a call with the COO ,” Hunt explains .
After quickly landing the packaging manager job , it was apparent that Hunt made the right choice to abandon the comfort of baked beans and slamming microwave doors . But even if he stuck with the part-time harvest job , it doesn ’ t seem like he would have had many regrets .
“ The opportunity to attain work / life balance combined with the chance to be with such a phenomenal company and to share this oncein-a-lifetime experience with such an excellent team sounded like something I would regret passing up ,” says Hunt .
While he is obviously a fan of cannabis , transitioning to its status as a mainstream
product like alcohol and other like products in the marketplace , Hunt sees the same issues many of us see in the handling of past cannabis-related criminal charges and longs for the day non-violent offenders see their freedom again .
“ I think it ’ s ludicrous that there are men and women , disproportionately of color , still in the criminal justice system in one way or another for cannabis-related offenses in states where the drug is decriminalized ,” Hunt explains . “ There has been awareness brought forward , much more so in recent years , but the work in that field is far from done .”
Many folks who hope to see a shift in cannabis-related incarcerations are also generally aware of hiring inadequacies in cannabis industries across the country ( not limited to or pinpointing Missouri ). Hunt finds himself in that same group of well-wishers , noting , “ I ’ d love to see more women and minorities in leadership roles . As the industry grows , the representation of those demographics should grow proportionately within the state .”
While the typical cannabis worker ’ s resume could have anything from high school geometry teacher to horticulture lead to lab