Sherita Buford with Euphoria Noir

Intro: [00:00:07] Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX studios in Atlanta, Georgia. It’s time for Buy a Business Near Me, brought to you by the Business RadioX Ambassador program, helping business brokers sell more local businesses. Now, here’s your host.

Stone Payton: [00:00:32] Welcome to another exciting and informative edition of Buy a Business near Me. Stone Payton here with you this morning. This is going to be a fantastic conversation. Please join me in welcoming to the broadcast with Euphoria Noir Ms.Sherita Buford. How are you?

Sherita Buford : [00:00:51] Oh, I am great. How are you guys?

Stone Payton: [00:00:53] Oh, we are doing well. And it’s such a pleasure to get a chance to visit with you today. You have so many irons in the fire, as my daddy would say. So many plates spinning. But today we’re going to get a chance to talk a little bit about the green rush. But before we dive into some specific questions and topics, maybe it would be a good idea to share with our listeners, You know, mission purpose, What are what are you and your team really out there trying to do for folks with this effort?

Sherita Buford : [00:01:22] Well, we’re just trying to make sure that everyone that’s getting into this green rush is properly informed on the policy and procedures and most of the laws and the guidelines. So we’re just trying to give them a starting point and make sure they’re educated and kind of, you know, cultivate what they’re doing. Kind of do a little mentorship and make sure that this green rush is what they call and it gets out to the right people, the right resources, the right banks, the right financial institutions, just basically some good old fashioned just starting it up from the ground up.

Stone Payton: [00:01:57] Well, I’ll tell you something else that would be helpful for me personally, and I think it would be good for the listeners as well. Maybe you can help us get a handle on some different terms, like hemp. Then there’s CBD and there’s these Delta nine strains. It’s all it’s a lot. So can you give us a little bit of an idea about those people?

Sherita Buford : [00:02:17] Label it different ways. I think that it’s all a derivative of hemp is sort of speak when you say the CBD, the Delta nine, the Delta eight and the few different strains they have. It’s all a derivative of the health. And so people have their choice on, you know, some people like the Delta eight because of the smoother taste or the way it makes you feel. Some people like the calming effects of the Delta nine, So it’s really a personal preference, but they’re all derived from one plant, which is the hemp. And so it’s just became a little bit more popular to say, Hey, I like the Delta eight strand versus the seven versus the nine, or there are a few additional new strands out. I mean, we really can’t keep up. These guys are very creative with these strands and and they’re healing properties and their medicinal and non medicinal reasons as well. So it’s basically it’s the same thing. People just have their preference on what they like.

Stone Payton: [00:03:12] Now it’s my understanding there are some regulatory things still in place. You got to jump through a few hoops and get some things organized before you can get into this business. Is that the case in Texas and what does it take to get your.

Sherita Buford : [00:03:28] Definitely, definitely. So what our group does is basically we sit you down with a consultation and we make sure, one, that you’re lawfully able to achieve the goals that you set forth. So there is like some legalities that you go over just to make sure that, you know, you’re in compliance. And then once we go through that, we basically develop a business plan starting from the basically the bottom bottom on getting their retail license, making sure there are spaces. We just basically go over a plan. And so once we do that, we start with the licensors for first. After we do that, then we just basically we follow the plan that we came in and they put together. So if they say, Hey, I’m looking to get into this business, we first go over the legalities with just checking the state website. I’m proud to say Mr. Miller and his team has a very mapped out on the website. They have YouTube videos, basic instructions. I mean, our Department of Agriculture really supports us when it comes to getting in this line of business. So that is a very good place to start. But if they don’t know how to start, even on those websites, they can come to us and we can walk them through the whole process.

Stone Payton: [00:04:34] So how in the world did you get started in this line of business? What’s the what’s the back story on you?

Sherita Buford : [00:04:43] Well, the back story is, as you can see, the name Euphoria in the war. It’s basically I started out doing brokering. And so I’m a very, very, very strong advocate of breast cancer and cancer survival survivalists. So now the new term that we use is warrior. So after going in some conversation with some warriors we were looking for, I guess you would say, a holistic approach to cancer treatments. And so what we came on was a lot of our holistic doctors were using CBD, hemp and THC to combat some of the symptoms before and after chemo treatments. And some of them they didn’t even receive chemo treatments. They also said that they received benefits. So after searching it for the. Answer. I found out that there was a lot more things as far as building materials, construction properties, just basic. It’s a sustainable resource for us as well. Not only does it have holistic approaches to alien symptoms, so that’s basically how I got into it, consulting with some of my warriors who were survivors and they they introduced me to this. And so we started out with taking shakes, edibles to naturals, oils, and it actually helped me as well. And I’m using it based off a holistic approach. So that’s how I got into it. Just basically looking for a healthy alternative.

Stone Payton: [00:06:08] Yeah. And with your background in brokerage, you probably have a pretty good handle on helping people even get funded. Yeah.

Sherita Buford : [00:06:20] Oh, definitely. So there are several. What people don’t understand is that it’s several different programs that they can go to that offer grants, sponsorships. There’s a lot. So when you deal with the help, it depends on what phase or what your plan is or what your goal is. I should sort of speak because we all start with the plan, but we have to have a goal. They have so many resources through the United States Department of Agriculture because you’re actually saying that you want to produce on the United States land. So they will help you. They will give you the resources that you need. You just have to know what you want because it’s such a broad area, but you’re actually cultivating soil. Our partner with some of the local colleges that do agriculture, and they’re always eager to help to send volunteers. So there’s there’s a lot of good stuff involved in it. It makes you feel good, too, because you’re actually growing. And I’m not a growing person. I like to go to the grocery store and it’s all done for.

Stone Payton: [00:07:18] Well, it does sound like very rewarding work. What do you enjoy the most about it?

Sherita Buford : [00:07:26] What I enjoy most is I get to be a cool kid. I never was the cool kid. I was a nerd kid. So when you start talking about CBD and THC with the kids, I have college kids that actually call me and say, Hey, you know, I want to know if I take this class. Will you be able to help me, you know, when I’m finished? So it kind of puts you on a cool rush with your college kids. If you have them or their friends, it gives you something different to talk about because not many people are easy with talking about it, but it’s something that they’re doing and, you know, pretty much every state. So now that Texas has taken a part in it, I think it’s actually an interesting conversation, which makes me kind of like the conversational piece now amongst my peers.

Stone Payton: [00:08:09] So as you’re sitting down with folks, some who may be very knowledgeable about the product in May or may not have a great deal of experience getting a business off the ground, I bet you see some patterns like some of the same things that are missing or the some of the same questions or misconceptions. Has that been the case where you where you see some things over and over and you’re like, Yep, I’ve heard this before and here are some things you need to think about.

Sherita Buford : [00:08:39] Yes. So we get a lot of people to come in and they come in like, hey, I seen about seven retail stores. You know, this is what we want to do. They have a misconception of just jumping in and putting it on your shelf. Like I said, there’s policy and procedures. We sit them down, we consult with them. They can come by our office, they can come by our location. We have a full staff that they do an intake interview and based upon their intake interview, then we, you know, like I said, we call them back in or real soon, and we’ll basically go over that plan and show them what they’re missing or basically how to put the pieces to the puzzle together so they can see their pathway on how to get started.

Stone Payton: [00:09:17] So in this business of yours and in consulting in the past with with other entrepreneurs and brokering businesses, did you have the benefit of a of a mentor or two that kind of helped you learn the terrain?

Sherita Buford : [00:09:34] Well, actually, not really. The mentors, I would say, would be probably my holistic guide. And these were just a group of ladies who have a group and they were basically we just got together and we self-taught. And by me having a background dealing with government services for procurement and brokering, it just kind of like fell into place. I just kind of start looking around. And maybe for the last two years I’ve just been doing my research, following up with my organizations, making sure I stay in the network with all of the groups. The advocates were actually on board. This month, we’re going to Austin for a two day training and sessions. So you just have to basically it’s self taught because it’s not really many people out here right now that can share the information or even have privy to knowing the information. And I’ve just been on this board for so long because I do do projects through the USDA that it just so happened to be that this was just maybe just a door I just had to open in the room that I was already in.

Stone Payton: [00:10:33] So how does the whole sales and marketing thing? It’s kind of a two part question. How does the whole sales and marketing process work for you in this business of helping launch these businesses? And then how does the sales and marketing thing work for for these businesses?

Sherita Buford : [00:10:56] Well, I’m not really a sales and marketing manager, but from what I’m hearing, word of mouth in social media is like 90% of how these people are taking like rocket into the top. So I think you have to have a really good social media presence and then you have to know your audience. And I think they just go after them because these places are I mean, if you’re in Texas and you’ve been here for a little while, you know, within the last year, there’s one at least every 90 days you’re seeing a new location open up. So the way that I believe, like I said, I’m not a marketing specialist, but I do know that social media and word of mouth is just it’s running rampant right now.

Stone Payton: [00:11:35] Well, it makes perfect other thing. Yeah, go ahead.

Sherita Buford : [00:11:38] You’re right. And so the second part of your question.

Stone Payton: [00:11:43] Yeah. I was just wondering how how the sales and marketing worked for you. Like, how do you get to have conversations with these people and, and maybe it’s the same way.

Sherita Buford : [00:11:53] Yeah, it is. And then too, like I say, I stay in the emails, I stay in the network, I stay in the know how or, you know, I, I consult them once my peers, basic email texts, group chats, the group chats and the social media are awesome. So basically I don’t do any promoting, so to speak, because everybody that I know is is really pretty much a heavy social media presence and they kind of do the promoting for me or say, Hey, if you’re looking into this industry, you know, go holler at my girl over here in Missouri City or Sugarland, Texas, and she can help you guys. You know, she’s offering consulting this week or they’ll pretty much they’ll just give me the I guess, the marketing ploy so I need so I really don’t do anything. What then? It’s guys like yourself that are opening up people as well.

Stone Payton: [00:12:43] What a fantastic strategy. And it’s you know, I know for me, if I’m shopping for anything, I’m going to go to my circle and I’m going to ask their recommendations. So, I mean, that sounds like a solid approach to me.

Sherita Buford : [00:12:57] Yeah, you have to. You have to look to your team and look to your inner your inner circle for your Zen, because, you know, you might have somebody that you think like, hey, you know, they’re just a manager over here, but they might know ten people that actually, you know, might have something to offer. So you have to just basically take stock of your inventory because sometimes your biggest network are your peers.

Stone Payton: [00:13:19] So we touched on this formal process and I would certainly advocate, look, if you’re going to go through any kind of process that involves regulation and credentialing work with with someone like Sarita who has the the experience base and the skill set to help you navigate that, It’s just a that makes all the sense in the world. Now, is there as part of that, is there a a pre-approval piece to this at all where you can at least sort of stack the deck in your favor a little bit?

Sherita Buford : [00:13:50] Yes. If you come in or if you call or if you email, there’s a criteria based list. What I was telling you about where it’s some standard things that are government regulated, where you have to meet that criteria for us to even accept you. And we also involve that in our in our intake interview as well. We let them know, hey, if you guys can get past this point, then we’re welcome to accept you as a client. But we can’t do anything about the government regulated part. But should I say, it’s not that hard? I mean, this program is actually open to a lot of people who think like, hey, you know, I’ve done something in my teenage life or, you know, we’ve all had those college nights up and, you know, we’re saying, oh, God, you know, we don’t care about 20 years in the future. Now we’re about 20 years in the future. Hey, it’s nothing to worry about. It’s just a basic guideline. If you are like someone like me and had a good time and you’re, you know, five or six years in college, don’t worry about it. I’m pretty sure we’re grandparents and we’re, you know, we’re grown at this point. So I tell people, don’t get discouraged. Just let me send you the criteria list.

Sherita Buford : [00:14:57] And so far, we’ve had maybe like two out of ten that didn’t meet the criteria. I mean, it’s really, really easy. The state of Texas wants people to get involved. The Department of Agriculture wants you to get involved because we’re sustaining ourself on American soil. So that’s like if you’re somebody like me who, you know, we love making products that we make on our on our own soil and we manufacture, we sell, then you would love this. And like I said, the criteria are basic. We’ll send you a list of all the government rules and regulations and what the do’s and don’ts were in your intake interview. And like I said, maybe two out of ten. So I always tell people, Hey, give it a shot. It doesn’t cost you anything but an email or a phone call and we’ll send you what they have on the website so you don’t have to look for it. We have it all downloaded for you. You can send us an email or book an appointment and we’ll give it to you. And like I said, as long as they can pass the criteria, they’re pretty much good to go. We’ll hold their hand through the whole process.

Stone Payton: [00:16:01] So are there opportunities evolving for someone like me maybe, who may want to invest in a startup like that? Because I see the market potential, but I don’t really want to run my own chopper or anything. Is there a platform or a channel or a way to invest in some of these startups? Have you have you seen that?

Sherita Buford : [00:16:24] Yes, Yes. We have a lot of people who have representatives that approach us and they just want to know how could they be? How could they get involved? We have an affiliation program. We’re not franchising because of the industry that it is. You have to be careful. But we do offer an affiliation program which allows you to come in and speak with our team. They will show you the legalities of it. They’ll sit down and they’ll strategize. They’ll show you the funding that you have available. They’ll show you basically, we’ll give you the structure set up so you’ll know what your risk is, whether it’s on the low end or the high end, or show you the financial institutions that get involved with us will show you all the regulations, because what a lot of people don’t know is when you get into this industry and you’re on it on the medical side, there are split spending accounts that will cover your bills. There’s also insurance plans that will cover your bill. But you have to know how to go into the system. You have to know the doctors and the network. So we show them all the back end so they’ll know the risk coming in. And then we also show them the people that have already been set up by the government who can consult, pass what our knowledge is.

Sherita Buford : [00:17:35] We also give them referrals to those as well. We show you the financial institutions that will offer you services like delayed page or payment plans because there’s a lot of people, you know, like let’s just say the average guy goes out, he’s a maybe a garbage collector, he’s jumping on it off that truck. He didn’t realize that, you know, after 40, you know, your bones don’t work the same as they did ten years ago when he started. So he may want some CBD oil, but hey, he doesn’t have the extra, but he has an insurance plan that might cover some of them. And that’s what we have people in our office to sit down and go over insurance policies until those as well. So a lot of investors get in on the medical or the wellness side and they find it very lucrative to what they’ve already been doing. And that’s what we offer you guys. Like it’s it’s so it’s so many ways that you can go down this avenue for the green rush. That’s why we always do an intake interview and we find out if you’re on the investor side or if you’re just looking to, like you say, just put a little money up to see what turns out.

Stone Payton: [00:18:35] Before we wrap, this question is a little more about entrepreneurship in general. So many of our listeners on the business radio network are early stage entrepreneurs, aspiring entrepreneurs. So my question really, it’s about inspiration. When you I mean, you’re obviously a very upbeat person, you’re very passionate about what you’re doing. But but I know you’re human. And when when it’s time to recharge the batteries, where do you go? How do you how do you sort of rekindle the fire when it’s time to do that?

Sherita Buford : [00:19:08] Well, I looked at the statistics, so if I look at something, um, I look at the statistics and I look at what it can do. So a lot of people have a misconception. So when I look at something, I say, Hey, let me find out for myself. Let me see what good this can do. Let me see how it makes me feel. And, you know, honestly speaking, what’s the minimum cost to get involved? So that’s the big thing, too. You say, hey, to invest in this product, it might take 25,000 or to invest in CBD and help. You know, I can start out with under $5,000 while, you know, or it may be something that someone said to me like they say, hey, you know, I had a you know, one of euphoria shakes, which is a dragon fruit, immune boosting shake. And it was, you know, line with CBD that’ll give me like, hey, well, maybe it was a CBD or maybe it was the dragon fruit. It’s just self interest. How much sweat equity you’re willing to pour into something that you have. And I just tell people just, you know, go for your dream, find something that you like. I’ve never been anywhere that they didn’t say we have any CBD products.

Sherita Buford : [00:20:16] You can walk into your gas station, your Walmart, your your massage parlor, you know, everywhere, it said. And so that sparks my interest. And that’s the stuff that keeps me going. Like, Hey, I want to know what’s going on. It’s everywhere. But I don’t hear it talked about a lot. So that’s something that I go after. I don’t know if that answers the question, but, you know, that’s the way that I go after it. I’ve seen it. It’s, you know, my kids come home from college, Hey, we want a CBD bath bomb to take a better bath. You know, I’m interested. I’m actually investing in a product that I don’t know about. And, you know, my from my kids to my peers, they’re like, hey, you know, you should try the shampoo or, you know, there’s hemp clothing. You know, it’s just something that you have to have a self interest in. And it’s not a heavy startup. So that makes it enticing. And it’s just something that you you know, like I said, it’s very interesting to go into it and find out that it has so many medical properties as well as the medicinal as well.

Stone Payton: [00:21:16] Oh, no, it absolutely answers the question. Okay, let’s make sure that our listeners have a way to learn more, get in touch with you or somebody on your team. So let’s let’s leave them with some coordinates. Whatever you feel like is appropriate, whether it’s email or website or LinkedIn. I just want to make sure that folks can connect with you and learn more.

Sherita Buford : [00:21:36] Yes, yes, yes. So actually, I do have a LinkedIn and I have all the social media platforms and we have people that activate them. So if you guys want to go ahead and follow it, sink pink, hot shot service on every platform, you can also search for Sarita Buford on LinkedIn or you can look for a think tank hot shot service across all boards LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook as well.

Stone Payton: [00:22:09] Well, Sarita, it has been an absolute delight having you on the show today. Thank you so much for investing the time and energy.

Sherita Buford : [00:22:19] Thank you so much for having me. And like I said, thank you so much and I really enjoyed it.

Stone Payton: [00:22:25] All right. Until next time, this is Stone Payton for our guest today, Sarita Buford with Euphoria and and everyone here at the business Radio X family saying we’ll see you next time on Buy a Business near me.