Amir Bey: CPR420
“I told you so”. Those are the few short words you are going to hear from the lips of Amir Bey, CEO of CPR420, when the green rush is in full effect and we are recognizing him and his team as the movers and shakers of the cannabis industry. But despite his mind being revolutionary, he is still tangible, still relatable; He is a father, he makes mistakes and adapts, and he has a dream that he’s geared up for and ready to chase. There is no room for failure in his future in this business, the only thing possible is success. From the books he’s read, to the situations he’s faced, to the advice he’s gotten to ‘keep honest people honest and crooked people crooked’, he’s at the forefront of the industry and he’s ready to keep going.
Tell me about what was the deciding factor for you to join this particular industry?
CPR420 is an acronym that stands for “Cypher Rules 420”. A cypher is a circle we make with friends to medicate and discuss various topics ranging from popular culture, world issues, or even music. My partners and I have been in the culture for the last 15 years and have been organizing these cyphers for conversations. That’s honestly where the conversation arose about starting CPR420. We wanted to be in, what will be, the next trillion dollar industry and we wanted to promote the healing and beneficial effects of cannabis.
What were you doing before?
You know, I was doing a lot before the point we launched CPR420. I am a very entrepreneurial-minded person. I’m a master barber by trade, I’ve owned a barber shop before, I’ve been a mentor in the community and neighborhoods, I do artist development and I’ve managed numerous musical talents, I’ve owned a detailing shop, a marketing company, the list goes on. I’ve owned several businesses, but CPR420 is currently the next on the horizon for me.
Tell me about the point in the time you realized the coming of the ‘green rush’?
Probably a little bit after my partners came back from Colorado about 2 years ago. They went up there on a recreational vacation and were amazed at how much money the 420 industry was generating and how much money dispensaries were generating; the amount of cash that was coming through the hands of those that were at the forefront of the industry was amazing. We decided right then that we weren’t going to let this next trillion dollar industry pass by us without getting a piece of that next trillion dollar market. So, it was soon after when my partners came back with all this positive information that we decided to see how we could get in and fit in and be leaders and pioneers in the industry. We were and still are very excited.
Right now, where are you guiding your passion and energy towards?
We are guiding all of our energy towards CPR420’s products and services. One of those products that we have is CBD oil, cannabis oil, which is also known as the cancer cure. Now that CBD oil is legal in all 50 states, we are focusing on trying to be one of the biggest producers and wholesalers of this life-saving serum. We have found one of the most potent plants with all the medicinal properties to maximize effects. We are in the process of acquiring a network marketing company to distribute the product and we are also working on private labeling for our products as well. We are going to be hands-in all the way from the product distribution to the sales of this CBD oil. I’m really excited about it. Just yesterday we had one of our spokespersons, Daniel Soligny, who further validated that we are doing something great here at CPR420. He was at work yesterday and just happened to have some of our e-liquid on him and when one of his coworkers went into convulsions and had a seizure this past week, he took our oil that I sent him, which is very potent, and he gave it to him and it stopped the seizure and saved his life. So, we are very very excited about the healing and life-saving properties of this serum and also about getting people involved and making their own profits by buying our products wholesale and retailing them themselves.
Describe your work ethic to me in one word.
Everyday.
Tell me about a time in your career that didn’t go as planned and what you did you do about that? How did you handle it?
Well, just more recently, CPR420 does marketing; we have a lot of marketing companies and also do affiliate marketing for a couple of companies. When we went out to the Cannabis Cup this year in Denver, we took 18 people with us to do gorilla marketing. A lot of people don’t know what that is, but it’s basically ‘in your face’ marketing. There are no flyers on your door, it’s actually giving you the flyer, making a connection with the potential customer, and making sure that they actually purchase from the website or that we have some sort of contact information from that actual customer. So, we were planning to do gorilla marketing in Denver, but when we got to the Cup, we realized we had shown up with a lot of products that everyone else already had. So, it was like bringing sand to the beach. We thought we were going to go up there and have a $50,000 weekend and it didn’t work out like that because we didn’t bring the right products. So now, we are focusing on the exclusive products that we can market and sell wholesale to other retailers and consumers. There is definitely enough money in this industry for everyone to be involved. You just have to have a good product that you know well and are able to sell… it’s beneficial to everybody.
What book have you read that you’ve been inspired by? Any particular read we should put on our list?
I haven’t read too many books on the 420 industry specifically, to be honest, but I have read some inspiring self-help books like Think and Grow Rich by Napolean Hill and The Twelve Essential Laws for Becoming Indespensible by Zig Ziglar. Another excellent read is How to Hustle and Win by Supreme Understanding.
Tell me about an esteemed achievement of yours.
Probably the biggest achievement is being a father. I don’t think a lot of people understand how important that role really is. The father is the one who instructs and he is the one who sets the guidelines as far as how you set your goals in your mind. If you’ve noticed, successful people often have a father or father figure to really push them and get them to be the best that they can be. We love our mothers, but there is something about that father, that patriarch, that inspires you and helps you set your guidelines for success. I have four beautiful sons and my greatest achievement to-date is being a father and being able to see my sons and raise them and give them the right guidance and make sure that this world doesn’t take advantage of them because that’s what it’s setup to do. So, being a father is definitely what I credit to be my highest achievement.
What’s the best advice you’ve ever gotten?
Best advice I’ve ever gotten would be, I have to say, is that business isn’t personal. We have to have the two separate entities: personal life and business life. A lot of people in this industry, I’ve been noticing, start out strong and kind of fall off their path and stop doing what they’re supposed to be doing and they blame it on the marijuana effect. ‘Oh I was high and I just forgot’. We just have to be more conscious of what’s personal hours and what are business hours working in the 420 industry. Another great bit of advice that parallels with that, as far as business goes, is to put everybody in contracts. Contracts don’t necessarily have to be damaging, but it’s something that people agree upon. It keeps honest people honest and crooked people crooked.
What is the most important thing for us to know now about the legal marijuana industry?
You have to know that there is a fine line that you have to walk as far as promoting, as far as certain words that you’re using, as far as claims that you’re making, and as far as staying out of the way of federal regulations. It may be legal in certain states but it is still illegal by federal law and that could get you in trouble. So, be smart. Keep your business as legal as possible. As in legal being lawful. Lawful meaning going by the letter of the law. You just want to make sure that everything you’re doing is right, upright, and positive and I think the universe will award you in a positive way.
If we are sitting across from each other a year from now, how will our conversation about the ‘green rush’ be going?
I’m doing this interview with you so that I could say, “I told you so”. I told you that we were going to be one of the top pioneers of this industry and I know this because we are going into this with a fearless mind state. I have four boys, which means that I have four children to feed. I am going into this with the mindset that we have to make this happen. This is the time that the pioneers have to step up; this is the time where you’ll see the leaders of the industry emerge because we know it’s going to get to the point when big farms are going to come in and buy up many of these companies. We just want to be in the right position to have a nice number on that if they are trying to buy us out as a company. We understand how the game works. We understand that nothing lasts forever and that companies evolve and that if you aren’t evolving as a person or a company, you’re losing.
