Stephanie Thomas is a Cannabis Industry Consultant with thirteen years of experience guiding startup, application process, site acquisition, buildout and ongoing operations support for state-legal dispensaries and cultivation facilities in multiple states. Stephanie is also a Real Estate and Project Management professional with over seventeen years’ experience in commercial property development, management, and leasing. She has a resourceful and efficient approach to completing projects in a wide array of disciplines.
Stephanie’s cannabis consulting career began in October 2004 when she was invited to assist with the planning for a medical cannabis dispensary to be located in Oakland, CA. Though based in Philadelphia, she leaped at the opportunity to help develop the facility and quickly began evaluating rental agreements and zoning documents to identify real estate opportunities. Once the perfect site had been secured, Stephanie reviewed and commented on construction documents, and provided advice on construction management during the buildout process. The facility opened and began serving California cannabis patients in October 2006, and has since become the largest and most well-regarded medical cannabis dispensary in the world: Harborside Health Center, Oakland CA.
Since the opening of Harborside, Stephanie has frequently provided consulting services to its executive team. She has taken on various assignments for HHC over the past 10+ years, including financial analyses, writing projects, application support, and facility design guidance. In recent years, Stephanie’s consulting work in the cannabis industry has expanded to include clients in multiple states. She has written application sections for hopeful applicants in California, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Arkansas. She has also provided financial and management consulting for cannabis companies and ancillary cannabis companies operating in the US. Stephanie holds an undergraduate degree from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania (Bachelor of Science in Economics, concentration in Real Estate). Stephanie is also a member of Mensa and is the Founder of Women Grow Philadelphia.
