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Five Questions with Codie Sanchez

Five Questions with Codie Sanchez

Posted: May 18th, 2020



A conversation to encourage entrepreneurs coloring outside the lines

When we met Codie Sanchez, she was a breath of fresh air and fresh ideas in the uniform landscape of cannabis private equity investors. Once a journalist, she knows the value of building a good story for those seeking capital—which may offer a sneak peek behind the curtain when it comes to her philosophy of contrarian investing. Pushing the boundaries, most recently as a cannabis private equity fund partner at Entourage Effect Capital, Codie maintains the pulse of the industry while continuing her ongoing work to empower women and underserved communities. We’re honored to have Codie as part of the Garden Society family of investors as we work toward destigmatizing cannabis and sharing the joy with women everywhere.


Thanks so much for joining us today Codie. Reading through your resume and watching you on the news, we’re fortunate that we could grab you for a few moments to join us today. As a self described “contrarian investor” you’re no stranger to risk and reward, what brings you joy when you aren’t getting pitched or flipping through investor decks?

You mean besides a bite of delicious artisan chocolate with a twist. In this crazy world of corona-virus and quarantines I find myself remembering all those terribly hard and hot yoga classes and actually wanting to go sweat and workout. How about that? So joy equals dripping with sweat on my mat.

Right? Sweaty Zoom yoga just isn’t quite the same, and neither are our floors. We miss all those personal connections that we took for granted just weeks ago. While it feels like the business and economic landscape is changing daily, what is it like to be a female leader in today’s climate?

I lucked out with a team of partners at Entourage Effect Capital that couldn’t value our two female partners, Tiffany Liff and I, more. That is mission critical. I was at a firm before that was so astounding some of my stories could have been on Wolf of Wall Street. Being with a firm that values women and diversity feels like coming home. Besides that, it’s a delicate balance on one side. It’s relentless to succeed in this at times cutthroat business, and knowing you’ll piss off a fair share of people. On the other side it’s a community that is steeped in wellness, sustainability, anti-corporation and grassroots organizing. All of which feel to me like a very communal and feminine foundation.

Having the perfect partner is invaluable, whether it’s in life or business. Touching a bit more on the feminine foundation that you mentioned, what lessons did you learn from your mother, a mother-like figure, or notable woman in your life?

My mother’s nickname was the bulldog. Which, if you’ve met me, probably makes some sense about apples and trees and all that. She taught me when you want something in life, when you believe in something, you need to bite onto it and not let go. Since they say that persistence or “grit” is the greatest determinant of success I suppose my mother might have taught me just about everything I needed to know.

You don’t get where you’re at without determination and persistence! Unfortunately as women we can get judged negatively for this tenacity. Your mom sounds like a lady we would have loved to have in our social circle. Could you share a valuable lesson or gift from girlfriends or a girlfriend (it’s ok to shout her name out here!)?

“I wonder if any man will ever be able to keep up with us? Actually, their loss if they don’t.” – Amy Brothers. We both found men that do that… times ten. But the sentiment always stuck with me, permission that it was ok to be a bit too much, a bit too fast and furious. That all we need are the women around us who become our family and then our man becomes a beautiful thing we want, but can stand on our own two feet without.

Once we learn that we can stand on our own two feet the world suddenly opens up and nothing is out of reach. We don’t need permission to grow, just the seed of strength. At the end of the day, what matters most to you?

I want to show up at the end of my days with every drop of life wrung out of me, with having given all I could to this incredibly shortened life and leave nothing on the table. That means truly living a life worth dying for.


Thanks so much for joining us today Cody, we genuinely appreciate your time, words of wisdom, and support. We know you’re very active on social media as well and if our audience would like to follow along they can join you on your journey here: Instagram @codiesanchez | Twitter @codie_sanchez | Linkedin