How Women Are Taking Over the Cannabis Industry

When Laura Jaramillo Bernal tells people she used to produce Efecto Naím, an Emmy-winning TV show, before diving into the cannabis industry, she often gets double takes. Now, as Chief Operating Officer of nuEra Cannabis, she's bringing that same creative energy to one of Illinois' major independent cannabis companies.

Back in 2019, when Illinois was gearing up to legalize recreational cannabis, Laura's story took an unexpected turn. Her father-in-law's existing medical cannabis business needed someone who could navigate the upcoming changes. What was supposed to be a few months of "helping out" turned into something much bigger. "My husband knew my background in managing complex media productions and startups would be valuable," Laura mentions, "though I don't think any of us expected how transformative this journey would become.

Today, Laura's imprint on nuEra goes far beyond just growing the business. She's reshaping what a cannabis company can look like from the inside out. Walk into nuEra, and you'll notice something unusual for the cannabis industry – women are running the show. From the C-suite down to store management, female leadership is the norm, not the exception. But Laura's vision for diversity goes deeper, with the company actively hiring from communities most impacted by the war on drugs and partnering with minority- and women-owned businesses.

The company's community work speaks volumes too. Each month brings a new initiative – sometimes it's a one-day event donating a percentage of house brand profits to local causes, other times it's month-long campaigns during Pride or Breast Cancer Awareness Month, complete with special edition products that help fund their charitable efforts.

Drawing from her media background and Harvard education, Laura brings a fresh perspective to the cannabis industry. "Creativity requires doing what's never been done or doing something that's been done differently," she explains. It's this thinking that led to innovations like nuEra's free consultation service, where medical advisors help patients find the right products for their needs.

Of course, the road hasn't been smooth. Laura remembers one particularly wild episode during the pandemic – a frantic race to build what they jokingly called a "minimum viable dispensary" to secure a prime Chicago location. "We were literally competing with another company across the street," she recalls. "It was like something out of a TV show, but it taught us just how unpredictable cannabis regulations can be."

As a Colombian immigrant who came to the U.S. seeking asylum, Laura brings a unique perspective to cannabis reform. "They went from being worried about what to tell their friends to proudly showing off videos of our operations," she says. "In a way, it mirrors how society's views on cannabis are evolving."

Under Laura's watch, nuEra is proving that success in cannabis isn't just about the bottom line. It's about building an industry that takes care of its community, provides genuine medical care, and creates opportunities for those who need them most. And she's doing it all with the kind of creative flair you'd expect from someone who once called a TV studio home.