What makes a marketing maven stand out? Someone who is a creative genius, who orchestrates buzzworthy brand activations, executes impactful product drops, and makes a brand a household name. Often creating behind the scenes, it’s time to give credit where it is due.
Jes Feuer, VP of Marketing, Eaton Botanicals
Jes Feuer is an accomplished Marketing and Communications leader with a proven track record of driving meaningful growth for brands. As the former Director of Marketing for New York’s only women-founded medical cannabis registered organization, she led the brand’s expansion across the state, overseeing retail growth, brand development, and strategic partnerships.
Jes, former marketing director of Etain, now serves as VP of Marketing at Eaton Botanicals, a New York-based cannabis brand making low-dose, functional gummies. She leads the brand’s positioning and consumer strategy, bringing Eaton’s unique formulations—blending THC with adaptogens, functional mushrooms, and targeted supplements for sleep, energy, recovery, and hormone balance—to life through impactful storytelling, strategic campaigns, and retail partnerships.
Before entering the cannabis space, Jes built her career in Fashion PR and Communications, leading U.S. expansion efforts and high-profile collaborations for globally recognized fashion brands.
Natalia Kaminskaya, Co-Founder and Head of Brand & Culture, MFNY
Natalia Kaminskaya leads brand marketing, strategic partnerships, and the cultivation of MFNY, a New York State-based single-source, certified cannabis cultivator, processor, and distributor.
Managing a creative ecosystem of collaborators, budtenders, and retailers. Her vision is rooted in a belief that cannabis has the power to elevate everything New Yorkers do, including encouraging connection, creativity, and community.
She conceptualized the packaging design featuring the MFNY brandmark that is distinguishable from the larger landscape of iconic New York brands. Rather than leaning into typical New York visual tropes such as apples or the Statue of Liberty, the building blocks, shapes, and simple graphics do the storytelling.
“The curves evoke the Hudson River flowing through the Hudson Valley, where our farm is located, while the overall shape echoes the New York City skyline where the river meets the bay,” said Natalia.
The ‘M’ of the brandmark or “the Riverbend” became the foundation of their entire packaging system. Natalia designed the brand’s packaging with a nod to Bauhaus, a “form follows function” principle, which feels modern and customer-centric. Still, it is more than just a vessel — it’s a canvas for artistic expression.
Natalia has creatively placed MFNY into mainstream venues, including the New Museum and New York Fashion Week, leveraging her expertise in high-end hospitality and real estate.
Emilie Lewis, Senior Vice President and Brand Leader, MJBiz
Emilie Lewis is a seasoned brand strategist and marketing leader with over 20 years of experience across fashion, lifestyle, and CPG industries. She has worked with iconic global brands including Nike, Levi’s, and Adidas. She has led the growth and creative direction of significant cultural and B2B events, including Project, Coterie, ComplexCon, and BeautyCon.
Currently, she serves as Senior Vice President and Brand Leader at MJBiz, where she drives marketing strategy, content, and brand evolution for the cannabis industry’s premier annual event. Under her direction, the expo has expanded to include regional events.
When Emilie took over MJBizCon after Emerald acquired the tradeshow, she ushered in a new era of innovation and inclusivity. Under her leadership, the event introduced new neighborhoods on the expo floor, such as The Vault (highlighting genetics) and The Indigenous Village (showcasing brands, manufacturing, and distribution). She also helped launch the Women’s Awards, expanded opportunities for continued networking and exhibiting through the NuWu Takeover after-hours, and spearheaded new initiatives that strengthened the show.
Also Read: Last Week in Weed: October 14- 21, 2025
Elise McDonough, Marketing Director, Grön
Elise McDonough has been a quiet and humble master of edibles and a marketing powerhouse throughout her storied career. She originally started in the art department of High Times magazine and worked her way up to Production Director. She could often be found quietly and gently cradling seedlings in the kitchen of the O.G. High Times office in 2006, and kindly making stellar pot brownies and other edibles for her coworkers. She contributed articles on edibles for the first cannabis media publication of its kind, continuing her career trajectory to become the mag’s first Edibles Editor and authoring The High Times Cannabis Cookbook.
For her stellar follow-up book, Bong Appetite, she worked with editors at Vice Munchies, Viceland, and Ten Speed Press to create a cannabis cookbook that tied in to the hit Viceland TV show of the same name.
She then went on to craft and launch the early-stage cannabev brand Gem + Jane, before landing at edibles brand Grön as its Marketing Director. Elise is instrumental and brilliant at making things work. From logo-branded, complimentary water bottles at On The Revel to pastel-colored ice cream pens, she takes the ordinary and makes it extraordinary.
