Ben Herbstman, CEO of Jiraffe Joint – Interview Series

Even though they never touch or sell actual flower, smoking accessory brands still face steep logistical and advertising hurdles simply by association with cannabis consumption. From major glass manufacturers to boutique brands selling convenience accessories, the operational friction can be relentless. Even businesses headquartered in fully legal adult-use markets frequently run into unexpected roadblocks.

To better understand the realities of navigating this space—and the unique challenges accessory brands face, even with cannabis legal in nearly half the country—mycannabis.com spoke with Ben Herbstman, CEO of Jiraffe Joint.

What courses did you study at Purdue and what student organizations were you involved with? How did those organizations better prepare you for your career?

I received a bachelor’s in Industrial Engineering and a minor in economics from Purdue University but my favorite courses were the ones that I took about industrial psychology and philosophy. Engineering and economics courses taught me the technical side. I learned all about problem solving and ways to critically think about issues and coming up with different ways to approach or breakdown problems to make them solvable. My industrial psychology and philosophy courses helped me better understand the human side. I learned about how people think and behave. When you are working in a professional environment you need to not only think about solutions to problems but how people interact and your solution as well as what their mindset, drives and motivations are in their position. The combination of these two sets of skills set me up very well in my career to manage not just the work I was doing but how it would interact and I would interact with my colleagues.

What roles did you hold with Newell Rubbermaid, and how did your many duties there give you a better understanding of the logistics that go into running a smoking accessories brand?

I was incredibly fortunate to be part of Newell’s Supply Chain Management Development program, which was a multi-year rotational program that allowed me to work in several supply chain roles for 6-18 months at a time. I was able to get deep experience in manufacturing, quality control, purchasing, supply planning and new product launches in a very short amount of time. I learned from people who had been doing these jobs for decades and were generous in teaching me what they knew. This experience at Newell Rubbermaid is what allowed me to actually get a product like this off the ground. I knew how complicated and involved a product launch would be and the steps I needed to follow to get it into production.

What were your normal duties and responsibilities as part of your role with Syncron? How did you have to change your duties and the services offered by Syncron depending on the industry that you’re working with?

The customers that I worked with at Syncron were my favorite part of my job. I got to work with customers in Construction equipment, aerospace, automotive, trucking, furniture makers, electronic manufacturers and many more. It was so fun to learn about the nuance of each industry and what their needs were in the aftermarket space were like. They each had a lot more similarities than they would all like to admit. The reality is that they are all trying to provide good customer experience after a customer buys their equipment and not have it be a financial burden to the company. My job was running the consulting branch of our software company to implement our software to help them run their aftermarket programs. Often our customers had legacy software that we replaced or a very complicated excel spreadsheet, so they were usually very happy to have us come in and help.

What are some successful lessons about supply chain logistics you learned during your time with Newell Rubbermaid and Syncron that cannabis businesses can apply to their own operations?

The most important lesson that I learned was that the companies that built a good relationship with their suppliers did their best. Making sure that everyone knows what is happening and has the same expectations helps everyone work together without endless meetings and negotiations. I learned this lesson over and over again at Newell working with suppliers as well as at Syncron working with my customers. The supplier customer relationship strength drove flexibility and joint goal management to help everyone achieve their desired goals.

I also learned all the key steps in setting up a supply chain from how to run the quoting process, negotiated terms and contracts, as well as manage risk. This was a big focus at Newell in the Supply Chain Management Development program that I was a part of. I also had some amazing leaders and mentors that gave me incredible insight that my day-to-day work didn’t expose me to.

The last lesson that I will say has really helped me is the ability to build my own systems to support me where I am in this business. I am running a very lean company and have built most of the internal systems I can instead of purchasing tools because I know what is important today, and what can run very simply to support a small business. Many people overcomplicate their process to account for all the possible scenarios but since this company is still small, I can just handle exceptions myself and let everything else be simple.

What in particular interested you about creating a smoking accessories brand and founding Jiraffe Joint? Did you have any professional concerns about creating the brand?

I have long held the opinion that marijuana is a better alternative to both alcohol and tobacco as a recreational activity. My opinion is that it should be embraced for its medicinal properties for mind and body have dramatically improved over the last decade. I want to support people’s ability to use this plant and develop a relationship with it, in a safe way. I started Jiraffe with that mindset and it is now becoming my profession. If people are going to look down on me because of what I am doing, then I don’t know that I want to work with them. So, I would say it doesn’t concern me a great deal.

What made you decide to use giraffes as a central part of the brand and name? What is special about their inclusion in the brand name?

I love puns and alliteration, so when the idea of calling it “Giraffe” originally came up, my mind exploded with ideas.  I refined with name to be Jiraffe to help with it being an “adult” product as well as getting to use the alliteration of Jiraffe Joint because that just makes me happy. I also love animals personally and so while Giraffes are not my favorite animal, I do rather like them.

What all goes into the production of Jiraffe Joints’ accessories and why are they a perfect addition for joint smokers in particular? How were the products designed with joint smokers in mind?

I put in an enormous amount of time and effort into each product. My process for each product I design, and launch is unique because each product has its own set of challenges. I spend time talking to people who consume in the manner that I am working with and give out some prototypes and samples to get feedback from real world users. I do an enormous amount of testing and reworking. I made 40+ different prototypes of the roller before I even made manufacturing drawings.

I had versions that didn’t work at all, ones that worked but had too many parts, ones that were too complicated, and each one taught me something that I would bring along to the next version.  I think that listening to the customer and consumer is the most important part, and so while have products that are launched, I don’t consider them “done”. I still want to improve each one and a version 2 or 3 or 4 might come out that improves on what I see with my customers experience.

What have been some meaningful reviews you’ve received about the products? Why do consumers enjoy using Jiraffe Joint products?

I have a few people who have given the best compliment possible, which is they have recommended my products to other people, or bought them for their friends or family. That is so encouraging to me, because it means that what I am providing to people is something they actually like, and are excited to share. I also have had some repeat customers for the filters, who say they can’t smoke joints without the filters now, because it is just such a better experience with the Jiraffe filter that they won’t use a rolled crutch anymore.

What are some exciting future plans you have for Jiraffe Joint? Any new product launches in the future?

I have several new products that I am working on right now. One is a wider diameter filter that will let people roll bigger joints and still use the Jiraffe Filter. The larger filter will also come with a larger roller, which will use king size papers instead of the 1 ¼ size rolling papers the current roller uses. I also have a really neat night out travel case that will be your go to carry for when you want to duck out of the bar or restaurant and smoke a J discreetly. This will let people smoke a joint instead of having to vape to be discreet.

Thank you for joining us, Ben! For more information on Jiraffe Joint, please visit its website.