AACE: Interview with Amy Yamamura of Wildflower

I met Amy via my cousin Alfred Kee, who like me is in the cannabis industry. We are both enthusiastic boosters of the plant and the people; and that is were Amy comes in. I had the pleasure of meeting her online and asked if I could interview her for AACE. Amy is the creative director for Wildflower, which is based in Vancouver, Canada. I am a huge admirer of her and her work. She has to be one of the nicest people I've had the honor of meeting. Wildflower products can be found in Washington and Canada.

She is such a trooper that she answered the questions like an Asian kid doing homework, on time and handed in with a smile. I also have been  fortunate to have tried the Wildflower products and I am in love with their mission, to create sustainable product designs and healthy cannabis + CBD products. Amy's designs also blew me away, with the simplicity of design, "just enough", and not overwhelming with design elements that are only decorative not productive.

Amy Yamamura of Wildflower

What spurred you to enter the cannabis market?

I was at the right place at the right time. Shortly after moving from Tokyo to Vancouver in 2011, the Canadian government made the announcement that they will be issuing MMPR (Marijuana for Medical Purposes Regulations). This news inspired my partner at the time, William MacLean, who is the CEO of Wildflower and I to apply for the license. Whereas William saw the business opportunity and ingenious ways to put together a company, I saw the need and potential for a beautiful and strong brand. Together we formed Wildflower and in 2014 the company became public and here we are.

What is your favorite strain?

At the moment, I love Viper. Like the name says it, it “vipes" you up.

 How did you come out of the 'green closet" with your parents?

I’m kinda sorta still hanging in and out of the closet. At 40.  My Dad is Japanese and I grew up in Japan where marijuana possession is a serious criminal offence.  For that reason, my parents and I never really talked about me using cannabis.  Now that I am working as a creative director in a public company and everything is cannabis, the vibe is definitely lighter around the topic. I gave both my parents our vapes.  I have yet to have a toke with them though.

The Wildflower Mission: 

The Wildflower mission is to connect people with the healing power of plants.

We live to share and inspire holistic wellness by designing, developing and producing the world’s most innovative and best performing cannabis products.

We will achieve this mission through a commitment to our values of transparency, sustainability and freedom.

Interviewed by: Ophelia Chong