Editor's Note: Download the audio version below and click here to subscribe to our newsletter.
This week, Shane Breen, CEO of Silly Nice, joins the Cannabis Equipment News podcast to discuss the wild road that brought him into the industry, one fraught with betrayal and fraud.
Shane Breen has been in the media business for 16 years, running Stupid Dope, a lifestyle magazine and agency. A few years ago, he was introduced to a potential client who needed help moving from the legacy cannabis market to New York's upstart legal market.
Breen was introduced to Craig Sweat by a business partner who allegedly spent time with Sweat in prison. Breen and his husband are big prison reform advocates so they wanted to help Sweat, who claimed to own and operate 14 cannabis trucks around New York City.
Breen is really good at PR, marketing, and advertising, and he says the first few months working with Sweat were really exciting. He quickly got to work helping Sweat set up a legal license and gain exposure, including features in Rolling Stone, High Times, the New York Post, Forbes and Fortune—he even helped him become the subject of a documentary. But then, things started to go south, Breen says.
Breen admits that he saw "tons of red flags" along the way, but his business partners encouraged him to maintain the relationship. Breen and his husband even bought into the company, becoming 50% owners, so it was in their best interest to get Sweat over the finish line.
It started with a disturbing cease and desist letter. Breen found out that his business partner, didn't even own Uncle Budd. Rather, he was a former employee who was fired for stealing, Breen adds. The empire they were building came crashing down, leaving him broke and penniless, but undeterred.
As Breen continues to fight for justice, he launched Silly Nice, a cannabis brand built upon craftsmanship, sustainability, and unwavering community support, last March.
Please make sure to like, subscribe and share the podcast. You could also help us out by giving the podcast a positive review. Finally, to email the podcast or suggest a potential guest, you can reach David Mantey at [email protected].
