Ben Koppel
Age: 32
Company: Audacious
Title: Director of Marketing
When Ben Koppel took his first job in the cannabis industry, he thought he was applying for a marketing position. Instead, he found out, the company was looking to fill a packaging job in the warehouse.
But as Koppel worked his way up from the literal ground floor of the industry, he absorbed knowledge and experience every step of the way.
By the time he was ready to launch his own brand, he had spoken to countless consumers and professionals across the industry and realized there was a definite gap in the market.
“People were scared to talk to the legacy cannabis consumers,” he says. “A lot of these companies that were started around legalization were really focused on the ‘new’ cannabis consumer.”
Koppel and co-founder Anthony Bendana developed LOOS, a high-potency infused beverage designed for the legacy consumer. Each 2-ounce shot had 100 milligrams of THC.
“We saw an opportunity to speak to those consumers through that brand,” Koppel says.
The new company enjoyed almost immediate success in the California market, attracting the interest of Audacious, which acquired LOOS in the summer of 2021 and brought Koppel on board as a marketing executive.
“Anytime you can successfully exit a startup is very validating that people see the intention of what you set out to do,” Koppel says.