Spotlight Series: Maggie Tamo of Club Four20
Maggie Tamo is a cancer survivor, a mother, entrepreneur and a cannabis user. Through her own experiences utilizing cannabis to treat her cancer she came to realize that new consumers would benefit from simple kits containing all you need to get started. Whether her customers are opting to smoke, vaporize or infuse food or drink using cannabis, she can help take the guesswork out of making sure they have all the tools needed. Her kits are thoughtfully curated and beautifully packaged - all the customer needs to do is add the cannabis!
She has managed to build out Club Four20 while raising a young son and keeping a corporate job. ClubFour20 is active on Instagram, where they maintain a fun feed filled with helpful and encouraging posts.
How did you get involved in the cannabis industry?
I was diagnosed with Brain Cancer November 2011 and then Thyroid Cancer July 2012. I followed the lead from my medical team with the traditional treatment of surgery; awake craniotomy for my brain (removed 95% of my brain cancer), complete thyroidectomy and removal of 80 lymph nodes. Alongside the surgery we treated the brain cancer with Chemotherapy and radioactive Iodine treatment for my thyroid cancer. These treatments were over a course of 2.5 years. When my health and cancer was stable I went back to work. It was 2.5 years later when the remaining 5% of Brain Cancer started to grow back. The Doctor’s gave me the option to start Chemotherapy right away to treat it or we can wait 3 months and do another scan to measure the growth. I thought this would be an excellent time to try a more holistic natural approach to treat my cancer. There was a lot of talk surrounding Cannabis and Cancer and I wanted to give it a try. I started experimenting with vaping and ingestion of Cannabis with varying levels and THC and CBD…and when I went back for my 3 month Brain MRI it had stopped progressing. I continue with cannabis to this day and my cancer has been stable for several years. The world of cannabis I realized was a lot more complicated than the days where Cannabis was associated with getting high. There were several ways to consume cannabis and the 3 most popular ways were vaping, smoking and infusing it. I put together 3 everything you need kits in these areas that consist of high quality products…. and that is how Club Four20 was formed
Tell us a little bit about your product or service
It was through my experience that Club Four20 was founded with the fundamental goal to help people through simplification. We define the 3 realms of smoking, vaping and infusion. We customize the kits to include everything you need to fulfil the experience and we simplify it by placing them in a beautiful package and shipping it directly to your door.
What time does your day typically start and what does a normal day look like to you?
I typically wake up at 5:45am and hit the gym, get home at 7am and get my 9 year old son Hunter up and ready for school. I then put an hour of work into Club Four20 before I start my day in my Corporate Sales Career. I put in a full day usually spending lunches and spare time growing Club Four20. I get home around 5pm eat dinner and spend time with Hunter, putting him to bed at around 9pm and then invest the rest of the night in Club Four20 hitting my pillow at around 11:30pm and do it all over again the next day.
What is your vision for your company going forward?
My hope is that by making the process easier, providing top quality products with knowledge and know how, turning to cannabis won’t be so daunting. I stand with many who have gotten their health back through safely using cannabis, but not everyone has a Bachelor’s Degree in Biology. Club Four20 is that equalizer. We’ve been there and we can help. My hope is that Club Four20 will change lives and be a recognized name in health and wellness.
I would like Club Four20 to be a household brand in the medicinal and recreational cannabis communities. I have an excellent story to tell about how Cannabis has impacted my life, and also wanted to share my knowledge and experience with the products that I selected. That people that are going thru illness or are new to the world of cannabis, don’t feel intimidated with everything that is out there and that Club Four20 understands what you are going through and we are here to help.
What would an ideal post prohibition society look like to you?
It would look like a society where people are free to choose, choose wisely, and make choosing health above all.
What was your first experience with cannabis like?
I was in High School and at a house party….someone was passing around a joint and offered it to me. I took a few pulls, laughed my ass off and ate everything in sight 😊
Tell us about some of the challenges you face working in the cannabis industry
Some of my challenges have been:
1. Ignorance – old mentalities, that it’s a gate-way drug to get high. There is still so much education needed to erase old beliefs and show the benefits of cannabis and the differences between natural vs processed.
2. Advertising – I find that there are several limitations and restrictions when it comes to promoting anything cannabis related…my solution is to try and grow my business organically, by references and word of mouth. I also try and post and promote thru education as well as humor.
What is one thing you wish everyone knew about cannabis?
That in it’s vast complexities and uses, it changes lives for the better.
What is one thing you wish everyone knew about your product or service?
That our kits make discovering Cannabis ultra easy. Stylish too.
If you could go back in time and do it all over again, what (if anything) would you do differently?
Everything is new to me in this realm especially starting up your own business in a very new world…legalization and the surrounding rules and regulations seem to be changing all the time so I’m constantly remaining fluid to roll with things. I’m extremely happy with how everything is running at the moment, but I’m sure in the next year I’ll be able to look back once the dust settles and have a better answer for you. I’m just enjoying the ride right now with no time to look back.
What is your favorite way to consume cannabis?
That’s a tough one…Recreationally I prefer to vape cannabis in a social setting or when I’m looking to relax or have some fun. For my medical consumption I ingest CBD oil during the day and a higher concentration of THC oil before bed.
Do you think cannabis legalization will change the world for the better? Why?
Our lives are becoming more and more pressurized. Anxiety, internal and external stressors are diminishing our health. Whether you use Cannabis to destress, or to alleviate medical symptoms, Cannabis is a tremendous resource that deserves to be de-stigmatized and instead applauded.
I feel that it will change the world for the better. I think it legally provides a safer and healthier alternative to take the edge off and unwind. I find that the pressures of life seem to be greater these days and cannabis is a nice alternative to alcohol consumption to relax and also have a great time.