PHOTOS COURTESY OF // ORIGINAL CANNABIS CAFÉ
research, but her sincerity suggests she also
loves listening to people. They talk about
vapes. The woman is very much into traveling
with one, as it helps her with anxiety. Lee
is smiling and nodding, very supportive in
acknowledging the woman. Lee advises against
vaping, concerned for the woman’s health.
They discuss the various cannabis pills that are
now on the market.
Lee’s foray into the business started in
the black market, too. She was a fashion model
in NYC, where her luxury delivery business
employed other fashion models as couriers.
After she became pregnant, she decided it
wasn’t worth the risk, so she shuttered. Then
she moved to Los Angeles, resurrected Green
Angels and, because this is Tinseltown, scored
a movie deal, too.
“I think that’s one reason why I’m
really sticking to our business model,” she
says. “We’re playing the regulations game,
but we’re also trying to bring it back to a
little bit old school, where you still get that
kind of relationship with your weed person,
your angel. Hopefully for those ten minutes,
when you’re able just to look at the weed,
it can be fun. You don’t have to feel this
pressure of checking my ID, standing in line,
doing everything through a glass barrier.”
Lee credits this commitment to transparency
and customer service as pivotal to the Green
Angels success. This is also true for boutique
dispensaries, like Grace. In fact, the Detamores
used that same honest approach to talking to
their son, Jordan, about cannabis. Jordan, 22,
is currently learning how to run his parents’
business. He only started using cannabis
recently, despite being around it his entire life.
“My dad told me when I was 16 that it was
pretty harmless, but that it wasn’t healthy for
younger people to use.” He abstained, deciding
to focus on school and sports instead.
Turns out that honesty and trust make
for good parenting, and they’re beneficial
qualities for successful businesses and society.
It’s these kinder intentions that are hopefully
taking root in California’s greenest market.
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