Certified Ganjier (cannabis sommelier) Angelique Zerillo, and Lynn Wachtler, MSN, RN, FNP-BC, are the Co-Founders of The North Bloom, aka Bloom, an educational cannabis magazine published by Bloom Multimedia LLC and printed in the Midwest. The publication is a free and distributed quarterly throughout the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area in dispensaries, grocery stores, and other local businesses. Bloom, launched in February 2025 as an age 21+ publication serving as Minnesota’s first print publication, connects consumers with comprehensive plant education, wellness practices, and community-based stories.
The Mag’s Mission
The magazine’s commitment to education extends beyond cannabis. It embraces a holistic approach, including evergreen content that educates on alternative healing practices and complementary modalities. A debut, women-owned-and-led cannabis health and lifestyle print magazine in the Twin Cities, Minnesota. Bloom’s Winter 2025 Edition focused on the themes of Cancer and Love. Bloom recently won Greenstate’s Consumer Choice Award in the Books & Periodicals category.
For a hyperlocal publication, in a nation that continues to dumb down literacy, basic penmanship, and even punctuation, Bloom stands out as a benchmark publication for intelligent people who still read. What makes the content erudite are the contributors who power it. Wachtler has a professional certification in Cannabis Science and Medicine.
Top Contributors
“Most of our contributors have multiple acronym credentials after their names,” Zerillo said. “They are registered nurses, health practitioners, plant scientists, certified ganjiers, and sector-based small business and brand owners. Bloom is a community-based effort,” said Angelique Zerillo, Editor-in-Chief of The North Bloom Magazine.
Among Bloom’s thirteen inaugural Fall 2024 contributors, the magazine featured twelve female writers —credentialed in traditional health fields and cannabis education— reflecting the publication’s commitment to highlighting expert voices and diverse perspectives in the cannabis industry.
Also read: Last Week in Weed: December 23-30, 2025
Highly Credentialed
Before co-founding Bloom, Zerillo was a principal and co-founder of Sinter Group, Inc., a product design and development consultancy founded in 2007.
As a writer and researcher, Zerillo has served clients ranging from Nike to NASA. She has rolled up her sleeves in classrooms, boardrooms, newsrooms, and nonprofit organizations for the past 30 years.
Zerillo is keen on flipping the script on cannabis and psychedelic consumption; addressing stigmas, expanding education and mindsets, increasing equitable access, and most importantly, protecting consumer and patient rights as they turn to plant-based inputs to manage their well-being gently and mindfully.
The North Bloom (not to be confused with cannabis codger Steve Bloom, no relation) intends to guide consumers to a healthier state of being. Bloom is fostering growth at the corner of Main Street and the regulated plant industry, elevating health, expanding hearts, and building community one local story at a time.
As co-host of Great Lakes Bake Club, a bi-weekly online learning series featuring female founders in the cannabis sector, Zerillo is keen on educating and connecting.
As a Certified Ganjier, she has judged competitive cups, including the Legacy Cup, MN, and Herban Legends, IL.
Zerillo has a penchant for highlighting Midwest home cultivation expertise and has participated on stages at NECANN, Illinois Women in Cannabis, Midwest Hemp Fest, and Lucky Leaf Expo to advocate for and educate on the economic, health, and societal benefits of intentional hemp and cannabis use.
Operating under the motto “Plants, People, Purpose,” Bloom serves as an essential educational bridge between the regulated cannabis industry and novice consumers who are finding their way to newly legal, plant-based health options.
The magazine’s thoughtful creative direction prioritizes accessibility, with ADA-friendly visual elements explicitly crafted for its core readership of adults, primarily female, aged 35-75. This demographic is currently the fastest-growing consumer segment of hemp-derived and cannabis consumer packaged goods (CPG) products.
Bloom’s comprehensive coverage, spanning “Listening, Learning, and Living” content categories, mindfully includes first-person voices and features, profiles of veteran-owned and women’s businesses, BIPOC and Indigenous entrepreneurs, and local family-run cannabis businesses. It also features clinical perspectives on cannabis integration and best practices, step-by-step guides for home cultivation, and legal and financial perspectives for cannabis businesses.
“We’re not just reporting on an industry. We’re helping Minnesotans write a new chapter in their wellness journey,” says Zerillo. “Our platform amplifies the voices of consumers, patients, clinicians, and entrepreneurs at the forefront of building the brands, guiding patients, and running the brick-and-mortar shops that both support and fuel the local cannabis industry in their respective Minnesota zip codes.”
Additional topics include parenting resources and other plant-based lifestyle coverage, culinary explorations through original recipes, highlighting alcohol alternatives, and complementary wellness practices, including somatic healing arts.
“Our local restaurants, grocery stores, salons, and barber shops are all invaluable to our local economies, and cannabis businesses will be no different in the years to come,” said Zerillo. “It’s vital to keep as many dollars as possible close to home to support the economic health of your zip code, and we’re here to help consumers learn about and care for these new owners and their offerings. We’re curating the stories of these diverse voices and facing consumers at the cusp of learning what a well-lived life can look like when they consider implementing a few more plant-based solutions in their health and happiness toolkits.”
It faces a root-cause, lifestyle-modification approach to reframing the health and wellness conversation. Through thoughtful storytelling and expert guidance, Bloom empowers readers to make informed decisions about their health while supporting Minnesota’s diverse cannabis business community.
Minnesota adult-use application licensees included and referenced Bloom in their state
applications, mentioning the magazine as an “ecosystem of trust” and “support” in their efforts.
Businesses interested in becoming stockists can sign up through the website at www.thenorthbloom.com. The magazine is supported by advertising partners and sponsors, making it freely accessible to all readers interested in cannabis wellness and education.
