AACE INTERVIEW: Antonio Javiniar / Webjoint

Antonio Javiniar is the Head of Marketing for WebJoint. Antonio and WebJoint take pride in offering a platform for businesses to become self-sufficient, maintain compliance within state cannabis regulations, and bring a business’ vision into reality from behind-the-scenes. And it has been confirmed that Antonio is 100% Filipino and we are proud to have him on AACE!

How have your views on cannabis changed?

My views on cannabis haven’t really changed. I’m thankful for having been raised by a fairly progressive family that gave me enough freedom to interact with the world and draw conclusions for myself.

Cannabis education was weird for me growing up. What I learned from my family compared to what I learned in school about cannabis was strikingly different. In school, I was taught to stay away from cannabis to keep myself from doing the “harder” drugs and “falling victim to a life of drug abuse/crime.” All the while, at home, my family would consume both recreationally and to treat their general ailments, which improved their quality of life.

I think over time, I’ve just become a more passionate advocate and conscious consumer. With my experiences with cannabis and the knowledge that I have from working in the industry, I think cannabis is an overall net-positive to anyone who’s ready to take that next step and introduce it into their daily lives - whether it be medically or recreationally.

What was the impetus of that change?

I first experimented with cannabis in high school and fell in love with it. At first, it was truly a social tool for me. I was the last person people expected to not only be consuming but rolling the joints/blunts for the group. Cannabis was a great way for me to dispel anyone’s expectation of who I was supposed to be as a first-generation Asian American, break those stereotypes, and just be myself.

This extended into my college years at UCLA, where I began using cannabis as a medicine for my mental health. As I was getting my B.A. in Political Science, I was learning more about the injustices of overall cannabis policy and the ramifications of the War on Drugs. I concluded that our one-dimensional socio-political approach to cannabis was severely flawed and dangerous to communities of color. I became more passionate about the nuances of cannabis and the potential for a legal market to provide economic opportunity and increased access to medicine for communities like mine, and I wanted to be a part of it.

How did you enter the cannabis industry?

While I was living in Chicago back in November of 2017, I was approached by one of my closest friends and now COO, Hilart Abrahamian, to join WebJoint and lead the marketing efforts for the company. It’s pretty incredible how things fell into place. Christopher Dell’olio (CEO), Hilart, Alvaro Wong (Assoc. Marketing Manager), and I all went to high school together in Palmdale, CA, and have known each other for over a decade. I now have the opportunity to come into work every day with my best friends and build towards a shared vision to make cannabis more accessible to consumers through technology.

It’s been a rollercoaster. It’s been a dream. I literally still can’t get over it.

Did you do research into the cannabis before entering?

Absolutely! The research was (and still is) especially important, as our software manages compliance for retailers. As soon as I hopped on a plane to move back to LA, I began reading up on BCC regulations, METRC, and studied the supply-chain extensively. Research is an ongoing thing as the industry matures. I love learning something new about cannabis policy and technology every day.

How does your family feel about your cannabis businesses?

They love it and they’re super supportive! My grandma is still my #1 fan of the blunts I roll for her. My dad is absolutely floored by the variety of products on the market now and always asks me to get him products specifically for certain ailments he deals with on a day-to-day (shoutout to Papa & Barkley for being his favorite)

What is the most frequent question you are asked about cannabis?

“Do you get free weed?”

-       To which I respond, “Sadly, no. That’s technically illegal now.”

What is your favorite way of ingesting cannabis?

The ritual of rolling your own blunt and enjoying it with your friends is definitely my favorite consumption experience. Other than blunts, I always have my vape on me to use throughout the day. My body never took too well to edibles, though I’ll have a gummy every now and then!

Where do you see the cannabis industry in five years?

From a market standpoint, with cannabis becoming a more accessible commodity, I definitely see a proliferation of brands coming into the market that cater to specific customer types (age groups, cultures, consumption preferences) - even more than what we see in the California market today. I think the only way brands can breakthrough into the market and be successful today is to uncover an untapped demographic and build a product just for them. The biggest differentiator for any commodity is the brand behind the product. So, who knows? Maybe we’ll see an AAPI-specific cannabis brand that can bridge the gap between cannabis and the AAPI community in the near future.

I definitely see federal legalization coming within 5 years. When that happens, I can imagine both a mass consolidation and/or mass extinction of cannabis operators as businesses try to expand on a national scale.

Most importantly, I hope we see a truly equitable system to remediate the harm the War on Drugs has imposed on communities of color across generations - especially before federal legalization takes place. It’s great to see more equity programs being implemented as more states legalize but, there’s still more work to do to ensure people of color have the opportunities and resources to flourish in this industry. I think it’s important to understand that equality and equity are not the same. Equality doesn’t solve this problem, equity does.

Why do you think some Asians are against cannabis?

I think it’s a byproduct of a culture that simply lacks education on cannabis. When there aren’t many resources that educate and speak directly to the AAPI community about cannabis, all the community has to rely on is what they see on mainstream outlets and what their elders have taught them about it. Unfortunately, as most of us in the industry know, mainstream media is pretty unforgiving to cannabis - even today.

I had the opportunity to study theories of the model minority myth and racial triangulation of Asian Americans during my time at UCLA and these theories can explain a lot about AAPI attitudes towards cannabis. If the sociopolitical status quo is that cannabis is bad, AAPIs will generally assume the same as a means to fit in and assimilate into society, despite overwhelming evidence proving otherwise.

That’s why I think platforms like AACE are crucial to fighting that stigma within our communities. We definitely need to see more AAPIs normalizing cannabis consumption and sharing their experiences. AAPIs that want to experiment with cannabis need to see people that look like them consuming cannabis and proving that it’s okay.

Thanks for sharing this platform with me and allowing me to share my experiences!

I’d love to connect with other folks in the industry.

You can find Antonio Javiniar on LinkedIn or catch me on Instagram (@holamikoo).

“It’s been a rollercoaster. It’s been a dream. I literally still can’t get over it. -Antonio Javiniar”