StaffSeptember 25, 2019
Michael Christopher overcame debilitating childhood lung ailments (double pneumonia) and adult-asthma to become a full scholarship collegiate athlete who went on to launch multiple startup businesses across entertainment, media, mobile software and CPG industries. He served as former Activations Director and the third hire for BreadcrumbPro Point-of-Sale (acquired by Groupon, Inc. in 2012) where he led product activations from beta launch to serving over 5000 active mobile payments and point-of-sale merchants across the nation, processing thousands of orders and hundreds of millions of dollars of payments for restaurants, cafes, bars and nightclubs. He then went on to serve as Business Development Director at Rodawg (renamed BUREAU) – a child-resistant cannabis packaging manufacturing startup serving licensed medical cannabis company clients in Colorado, Washington, Oregon, Canada, and Uruguay. More recently he served as digital advisor and Managing Partner of CH3 Ventures – a Manhattan based cannabis technology startup incubator and investment firm focused on early stage technology, compliance and media companies.
Michael also co-founded NYC based new media production agency Sonic Platforms, with brand clients including BMW, Urban Outfitters, MoMA, Champion Sportswear and The Crated. During that time, Michael launched LOFT Infusions in 2014 – a first-to-market NY-based hemp CBD-infused beverage company along with his co-founding partner and healthy beverage pioneer, Eric Schnell. They both went on to co-create and launch the mood33 cannabis infused sparkling tonics brand, where Michael now serves full-time as Chief Mood Officer based in Santa Monica, California. mood33 cannabis infused beverages are sold throughout the state of California and can be found at leading licensed cannabis retailers like MedMen, Harborside, Harvest, Caliva, ShowGrow, among others.
Title: Co-Founder and CEO
Company: mood33
Years at current company: 2018 to present
GMR Executive Spotlight Q&A:
Most successful professional accomplishment before cannabis: Before entering the legal cannabis industry, Michael began his career in business development as part of a four-person point-of-sale (iPad) and mobile payments software startup, BreadcrumbPro, which was acquired by Groupon, Inc. in 2012 during its first year of launch in New York City. Michael managed keystone B2B client relationships for the entire Eastern half of the United States with some of the nation’s top hospitality management groups; EMM Group, Dinex group, Thomas Keller Restaurant Group, Atera, Linea/Next, Dovetail (John Fraser), WD50 (Wylie Dufresne), Alder and Top Chef Kitchen New York for Bravo TV. He lead the east coast hardware/software implementation from the first beta clients to over 2000 brick and mortar cafes, restaurants, bars and clubs in two years under the new Groupon business unit, generating $5.9M in hardware and software sales in it’s first year after acquisition, where he spent countless morning and late evening hours in some of nation’s best kitchens, bars and cafe’s; implementing mobile management and payment solutions for leading hospitality groups. It was during this time that he was inspired by molecular gastronomists like Wylie Dufresne, and decided to start brewing cannabinoid infused teas and cocktails using modern techniques for his friends and colleagues.
Company Mission: mood33 offers people an ability to connect with themselves and each other in more meaningful ways. We invigorate local communities and empower people to increase their levels of happiness and sense of well-being. We infuse the world with compassionate cannabis products, created by compassionate people. We protect nature’s gifts to mankind by activating sustainable sourcing and manufacturing practices across our hubs of operation.
Company’s most successful achievement: This June we announced a distribution agreement with the most trusted name in cannabis, and one of the leading vertically integrated cannabis companies in California, Caliva. The partnership will expand the availability of mood33 across California, making it one of the most widely available cannabis-based drinks in the state. We expect to double its store count by the end of 2019 fueled by this new partnership, in addition to growing a robust online and direct-to-consumer sales channel for the brand.
Has the company raised any capital (yes or no): Yes
if so, how much?: We do not wish to disclose at this time, stay tuned for an announcement of our Series A closing, targeting for Q4 of 2019.
Any plans on raising capital in the future? Yes, our first institutional funding round will commence in September of 2019.
Most important company 5 year goal: We aim to grow the mood33 family of products to top 3 category leaders in our core regions of operation, thereby increasing consumer access to trustworthy and consistent, smoke-free cannabis products for consumers seeking the health and wellness benefits of the cannabis plant and alternatives to alcohol, addictive prescription pharmaceuticals, and OTC medications. We seek to grow an operational footprint and strong revenues to allow the company to support mental health initiatives, environmental sustainability efforts and plant-based lifestyle education for communities in need with innovative profit sharing and social impact programs as we extend the mood33 brand into all major cannabis and hemp marketplaces in North America over the next five years.
