In early 2020, HempLab’s CEO John Herring was about to retire from his 25+ year career as the Chief of Police in Holly Springs, NC.
He was looking forward to joining his co-founders; CMO David Claassen and COO Ken Weeks, who had just started selling in-house THC testing equipment to drug testing labs and law enforcement agencies. Once the pandemic shutdowns occurred, the local tax revenues that funded these equipment purchases quickly came to an immediate stop.
Retired Chief Herring explained, “Long before any of us had heard of COVID-19, HempLab was already selling a product called ‘Marly Skin Guard’ and drug-resistant chemo-rated gloves to drug testing labs and LEA’s.”
“Don’t call it a comeback,” CMO David Claassen told his team after meeting with PPE manufacturers in Chicago. “The nationwide shortage of PPE brought our attention back to where we originally began back in summer of 2019.”
With a refreshed business plan and even stronger mission than before, HempLab has since partnered with SC Health a brick-and-mortar medical supply company in Columbia, SC.
“Our partnership with SC Health has allowed us to maintain a reliable supply chain of the PPE that LEA’s and drug-testing labs desperately need, in particular the chemo-rated drug-resistant gloves that are nearly impossible to obtain,” said Ken Weeks, HempLab’s COO. “SC Health’s direct access to the glove manufacturers in Asia is basically the Golden Goose in a business full of Unicorn chasers and PPE scammers”.
“The message we’d like to share with others in this industry is that you can’t allow a pandemic to derail your business plan. Look at what your existing customers really NEED and look for ways to fulfill those needs” Ret. Chief Herring added.
For more information visit HempLab’s website.
This post sponsored by HempLab. Header image courtesy of Michael Dunaway.
