"So, what does your husband do for a living?"

The tragic comedy that plays out for female founders in fundraising and how their perseverance pays off.

At LiHT Capital we are focused on investing in diverse founders of exceptional businesses. While good ideas are not dependent on any demographic metric, funding for diverse founders has continued to decline over time in-spite of increased levels of 'front page coverage' on the issue.

To raise awareness, we asked one of our favourite founders, Sarah Ahrens, CEO and trailblazing founder of True Labs (TLC), about what inspired her to launch her own company and what the biggest hurdles have been in her experience.

What inspired you to become a founder?

Decisions need to make good business and financial sense, but it is really important to have purpose and passion.

The first reason is very extrinsic: outstanding business opportunity. Regulations require all legal cannabis products to be tested for safety and efficacy, and the timing was great to get into a new market from the ground floor and become one of the first labs to market. The other two reasons are intrinsic: health-conscious transparency and a lifelong love of science. I have a passion for eating healthy, buying organic, and knowing what's in the products I buy for myself and my family.

I have an MBA and a successful business background, but science and the corresponding research and innovation has always intrigued me so the prospect building a scientific entity thrilled me. TLC is the first certified woman-owned cannabis testing lab on the East Coast, which is something I’m very proud of, and carries a lot of intrinsic and extrinsic value.

What has been the biggest speed bump you have faced in launching TLC?

I refuse to become a statistic and strive to beat the odds.

Access to capital has been the most challenging aspect of starting True Labs. Several macro headwinds have created a huge barrier for women-owned (WBE) cannabis businesses to raise capital: financial market downturn, drastic drop in cannabis investments year over year, even lower percentage of investment going to WBEs (dropped to 2%, which is the smallest share since 2016). So while raising capital is tough, finding it is possible. True Labs has been very fortunate to have raised investment through great partners, such as LiHT Capital.

If you had not started True Labs you would be...

I would likely be stuck in a boring nine to five job, without nearly the amount of risk or reward, experiencing stifled talents, and without meeting all the interesting and passionate people I have come to know. I took a big, yet very calculated, risk which does not appeal to everyone, which is totally understandable. I thrive on challenges, and there certainly have been plenty of them in starting any business, let alone one in the cannabis industry.

What advice do you have for your younger self?

Be flexible enough to know that life does not follow a straight line, but has many twists, which can be really challenging, but can lead to many wonderful experiences.

Do not let anyone tell you that you are not capable, not experienced enough, or dissuade you from following your dreams and passions. Above all else, continue to believe in and love yourself. Always. This is how I have always lived my life, but having an older version of me tell me that would have been amazing! On the lighter side, I would also tell myself when to invest in certain stocks and when to sell them!