When it comes to consuming cannabis, what works for you is intensely personal. But there are overlaps between customers’ preferences, and a large segment of the consumer market is yet untapped – because they’re scared to get high.
Many brands believe that demand for high-potency products is driven by consumers, not brands. But Jenna Goldring, the founder of edibles brand High Confectionary, is challenging that assumption by proving just how many people out there want low-dose products.
High Confectionary gummies are vegan and low-dose. And when I say low-dose, I mean it. When I first heard of High Confectionary, I was amazed: 1 mg of THC per gummy. Their sleep gummies also have 1 mg of CBD and CBN, for a total of just 3 mg of cannabinoids per gummy.
The point, as Jenna says, is not to get high – it’s to get relaxed.
“If you want to get high, take more than one. But for me, 2.5mg is still too high of a dose – I will get high.”
Not that there’s anything wrong with getting high! But there’s a time and place for it, and as a mom and entrepreneur, Jenna leans into THC to help her relax and sleep better, not get lifted away into the clouds.
If she’s out with friends at a restaurant or party, she may take two or three of her Uplift gummies and lean into the high feeling. But if it’s 9 pm on a Tuesday night and her son is up early the next morning, she just wants to relax enough to fall asleep.
If the low dose of THC wasn’t enough to make these edibles stand out, the ingredients list certainly will. Jenna took a year to formulate the Uplift gummies, her first product line, and during that time she focused heavily on finding the right ingredients to get a delicious gummy with a good texture – and no added preservatives, food dyes, or artificial flavors.
I sat down with Jenna to talk about how High Confectionary came to be and what’s coming up next.
10 Questions with Jenna Goldring, Founder of High Confectionary
What was the catalyst for High Confectionery?
Jenna: I’d had this idea for a while, just ruminating on it for months. I love edibles and I was eating them every night to sleep – but I was getting so annoyed with cutting them into halves and quarters. They didn’t always taste good, and a lot of them had poor ingredients.
But I had another job and I went back and forth for a long time wondering if I should just quit and follow this. I ended up essentially working two jobs – my day job and then coming home and working on this. Once I started telling people about it, I had a few people offer me investments in the company. Their belief in me made me believe in myself and jump into this 100%.
How long did it take you to come up with the formula for Uplift gummies?
Jenna: It took a year. That sounds like a long time, but it’s not when you consider what it takes to create a product from scratch. We didn’t take any shortcuts with artificial coloring or things like that, and it can take longer to develop the right colors naturally.
Texture was really important to me – I love candy, but I don’t like the texture of a lot of candies and edibles. So we spent a lot of time developing that. Picking the right strains for a curated experience takes trial and error.
You were pregnant when formulating your sleep gummies – what was it like when you first tried one? How long did it take after coming home with your son?
Jenna: It was weird developing a product and not being able to try it fully! I tried the unmedicated version so I could test the color, texture, and taste, but I had no idea what the experience was like with the THC and CBD.
I was very cautious with consuming when breastfeeding my son. It took probably four months before I tried one – but I just needed some sleep! I took one and had the best night’s sleep ever. Now that my son is older, I take them every night and I’m glad to have a great team who could test them and give me feedback.
What do you wish people understood about microdosing THC?
Jenna: There’s a misconception around what a microdose truly is. Dispensaries carry edibles with 30 mg, 50 mg of THC, so people think 5 mg is a microdose – but that’s still a really powerful dose for a lot of people. So they hear microdose and are still scared of being high – we get emails about it!
High Confectionary gummies are a true microdose: 1 mg. I know how 99% of people will react to this – it will not get you high. Now everyone is different and how this affects me may be different than how it affects you – you have to learn your own body.
For me, 2.5 mg is not a microdose – I still get high. High Confectionary has the lowest dose of THC you can buy.
What is your favorite part of being in the cannabis industry?
Jenna: It’s still so new – that’s my favorite and my least favorite part about it. Cannabis and hemp have come such a long way in the past 10 years, but there’s so much growth ahead in the next 10.
My friends ask why I would get into such a highly regulated CPG space, and it does make it challenging, but in my opinion, the most uncharted waters have the biggest likelihood for returns and growth. There’s so much room to do awesome things.
What’s your favorite way to consume?
Jenna: Gummies. I love candy so I love gummies. They’re a social way to consume and easy to share.
I enjoy a vape or a joint now and then, but I don’t like to inhale smoke nearly as much.
Name one brand outside of your own that you love
Jenna: Cann, the beverage company. They pioneered low dose in the consumable space. I admire their marketing team and the partnership they created with Total Wine and Spirits. They’ve proven that cannabis and hemp can go toe-to-toe with alcohol and should be sold alongside it.
What did you do before becoming an entrepreneur?
Jenna: I worked in digital media for a long time. I was one of the first employees at Vistar Media and I worked at Fyllo Media, which is how I got my foot in the door for cannabis.
How do you feel about the title of canna-mom?
Jenna: I don’t really care one way or another. I don’t know why it’s such a big deal for moms to consume cannabis.
I get the good intention behind it and that it makes moms consuming cannabis more acceptable, but it also calls out a segment that’s just a normal cannabis consumer – why does it have to be different for moms?
What’s coming up for High Confectionary?
Jenna: We recently started a new Creative Director, Whitney Port. It’s amazing working with her.
Like me, she’s a mom who consumes cannabis to help deal with stress and sleep better. It’s inspirational to see her bring this into the public eye because there’s so many influencers and celebrities who won’t touch cannabis brands. We talked about it on her podcast, With Whit.
With her, High Confectionary is out there in a different way – she’s the force behind the vision and we have some amazing things coming up. We have an accessory line launch in at the end of June: handmade bowls blown in Los Angeles. They’re perfect to display your gummies for guests at parties or events, and they’re the cannabis equivalent of a nice bottle of wine.
We’re also expanding our product lines with more candies and working on a few things I can’t say yet!
