Meet Tammy Puyear of Ashland

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tammy Puyear.

Hi Tammy, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I grew up in a family where cannabis use was therapeutic and an alternative to hanging out in bars. However, I had never consumed myself, instead, my aunts and uncle taught me to roll their joints when I was a teen and made me their cannabis slave.

As I grew up, it was frustrating to me that although I wasn’t a consumer that the government could make a plant illegal and seeing the stigma helped shape my advocacy. As a healthcare executive, I decided I would have a long term goal to work in the cannabis industry once I retired from traditional corporate America. I started investing in some early cannabis back in 1998 and was a huge part of Canada’s legalization journey. Timing is everything, and when efforts to legalize medical cannabis in Missouri paid off with Amendment 2’s passage, I was disillusioned with my ability to impact healthcare and took a giant leap into cannabis “earlier” than the grand plan I had laid out.

Since then, Missouri has grown to become the 5th largest cannabis market in the US and the passage of Amendment 3 legalizing adult-use has brought tax dollars, veterans’ fund contributions, and thousands of jobs to our state as a result of the cannabis legalization.

During the time I’ve spent since 2019 working in cannabis in Missouri, I’ve been fortunate to work in so many aspects of the business. My own firm specializes in sourcing of supplies and inputs for the cannabis industry, including packaging and merchandise, as well as cultivation supplies. I was a part of a group of women who founded WeAreJAINE, a women in cannabis organization born in Missouri in 2020 and served as the co-President through 2025. Today, in addition to my own work, I’m the Director of Sales and Marketing for EmmaLeaf, a female-owned manufacturing company in Ashland, Missouri.

I co-host a YouTube channel with Douglas Hall and we review cannabis gadgets and accessories and generally just hang out and have fun talking about our work and industry. Among the hats I wear in my work, I’m also a board member for the Veterinary Cannabis Society, which is a non-profit that advocates for the use of cannabis medicine in pets.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
There is NOTHING about the cannabis industry that is a smooth road. When you work in an industry that has largely lived in the shadows and hid from law enforcement for decades, it’s hard for everyone to easily adapt to a professional business environment, and women are rarely respected by their peers without extensive effort to prove ourselves.

Believe it or not, many of the struggles are hugely outdated and irrelevant ideologies of another time. While people assume staffing in cannabis is a breeze, after all, “who doesn’t want to work in weed? Don’t you just get to be high at work all the time and get free product?” it’s difficult to find qualified candidates who can see beyond the stereotype of what people THINK it’s like to work in cannabis and get the opportunity to start a career path.

Perhaps the most frustrating thing from my perspective is the lack of professional behavior/courtesy. While it’s “normal” for people to avoid sales people, the complete lack of response to any and all communications and complete ghosting that is rampant, I’ve rarely seen such a lack of engagement in any other industry.

The last thing I would mention is that regardless of its now legality, there are many people who still stigmatize cannabis as a drug, so we have to work tirelessly to defy the stoner stereotypes and prove ourselves as legitimate business owners.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Those who know me well, understand that a huge part of my identity is one of my cats, Pip. Pip is a unique pet that loves people and frequently serves as a brand ambassador attending dispensary visits with me. He shows off for customers and retail staff and brings a bright spot to the visits and people’s lives.

What am I known for? Besides all of the above? One of my roles is managing registration for all of the MoCannTrade Member Meetups. While that sounds minor, these events can be upwards of 900 people and the logistics behind the scenes to pull off such a large scale events is challenging – so I’m frequently referred to as the Honey Badger by my industry peers.

If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
It takes a thick skin to survive in any business, but for me, the most important thing for my own success has always been to be myself – transparent, ethical, and genuine. Not everyone is going to like that person, but it’s important to be able to sleep with yourself at night knowing that you’re being true to who you are and that’s my #1 priority. I’m a UMKC Bloch Scholar mentor and being able to meet with MBA students and gain their perspectives and share experiences with is something that I’m very proud to be a part of and it makes me proud.

The other thing that I think is critical for success is realizing the importance of relationships and helping one another. It’s fine if you don’t want to purchase my products, but that doesn’t mean we have to sever ties, and with such a small market, you never know when you’ll need to find support. Helping others in the space by introducing them to people that can support their needs or find synergies is incredibly fulfilling. For the relationships that I put my time and effort into building and maintaining, the ROI is invaluable in terms of long term success. When you spend 80% of your time working, it’s important to surround yourself with a circle of peers that you can trust and that trust you.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.emmaleaf.com
• Instagram: @emmaleafbrands
• Facebook: @emmaleafbrands
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tammypuyear/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@therealrunthc