I interviewed Jon Outram, Co-Founder of e-commerce startup CBD OIL Base.
Why has CBD Become so Popular?
In today’s culture, people have grown to become fans of natural products, feeling that it is a healthier alternative to all the synthetic chemical products in the market. CBD also comes from cannabis, and even though it doesn’t have THC component in it, consumers have become much more open-minded about using products from this plant with the rise of it becoming legal in more places. There are many forms of CBD, but the two most popular are oils and liquids for vaping devices.
Who are Your Biggest Competitors?
At the moment there isn’t a single dominant competitor out there. So many businesses, both retailers, and manufacturers have just exploded between 2016 and 2018 according to the Cannabis Trade Association. Over the next few years, we expect to see even more CBD companies come out of the woodwork because of its growing popularity, which is a blessing and a curse when it comes to building a business in the industry. The demand will be there, we just plan to be the best of the best.
What are Your Challenges?
One of our biggest challenges is educating consumers according to FDA and MHRA guidelines. It is important for us to be factual and accurate when it comes to information regarding CBD because people take these facts to heart and we don’t want to be misleading. There are many competitors out there that give false claims and aren’t selling their CBD products in the right light, which is something we work very hard to be honest about. Consumers should be really careful where they get their facts due to all the misinformation concerning CBD.
What are Your Goals?
My top goal is to make our company the number one source of honest and reliable information regarding CBD in the UK and give customers an experience that they keep wanting to repeat over and again. We strive to educate as many people as we can about the many benefits of CBD and provide them with the best quality products as well as the fairest prices on the market. Basically, we want to be the number one CBD provider in the UK and become a household name for CBD in the process.
Finally, Where do You See the Market in 3 Years?
Well, it’s really hard to say, but according to our research, the strong market growth is on track to be three times bigger than it is today, giving us plenty of opportunities to expand in all directions. In addition to that, many of the western markets are legalizing cannabis and THC which is leading to more people using CBD products and incorporating cannabis derivatives into their lifestyle with regular consumption. Even though it’s being regulated, lots of stores on the street are known to be high sellers of CBD oils and vapes and that is only likely to become more frequent in the years to come.
