Finding Your Purpose with Puffco’s Roger Volodarsky

It’s like living the dream.

The best business people know that incorporating feedback into new projects can make your products even better than before. Roger Volodarsky, CEO of Puffco, contributes his entrepreneurial success to being a cannabis fan first, and an entrepreneur second. By targeting cannabis industry leaders and showing them their innovative products, they were able to gain traction and make a name for themselves. We recently chatted with him about what sets the Puffco Plus apart from other vapes and his thoughts staying ahead of the curve in the quickly moving cannabis industry.

What is your name and title?

Roger Volodarsky, founder and CEO at Puffco.

How did you get into the cannabis industry?

We made our break into cannabis by being fans first and entrepreneurs second. We were actually fans of cannabis and the emerging culture long before we were able to contribute innovation to it. Our first products were seeded to industry veterans that we only knew of through social media. Their feedback gave us the constructive criticism we needed to make products people love.

What sets the Puffco Plus apart from other vapes?

The Puffco Plus is our third generation device. We’ve been able to incorporate a lot of feedback, new engineering feats and design qualities into the Plus. Our patent-pending coil-less technology provides users with the purest and most authentic flavor experience possible outside of a desktop unit. Our ceramic chamber is heated through both conduction and convection methods while our innovative ceramic dart–situated perfectly on the underside of our mouthpiece–gives users the optimal dose and distance from the chamber floor. We’ve also included a ‘sesh mode’ making it easy to use or share the device without having to hold down the button.

What challenges have you seen?

 

The cannabis industry is moving very quickly and staying ahead of the curve is our focus. We need to continually lead this industry with our technology, our design and our understanding of the rapidly developing consumption habits around cannabis. When you are as committed to innovation as we are, there will be bumps in the road.

Earlier this year we launched our Puffco Plus and some users experienced issues where they weren’t getting the amount of vapor we intended. We used this opportunity to show how agile we can be when it comes to innovation. We fixed the minor issue and resolved it with all affected customers in a very short time at no cost to them. While working on different fixes we were actually able to increase vapor production so significantly, that we see that initial issue as a blessing for making the product the best it can be. Now we are back on track with a number of exciting new accessories and products launching in the next few months. We’re confident we will continue to make incremental improvements across the Puffco slate of products.

What do you like most about cannabis?

 
I’m someone who gets great anxiety relief from cannabis. It’s also a great way to connect with both people I love and strangers alike.  If I had to say what I like most about cannabis, it’s the calming ritual of consuming it.

What would you say is the best way to consume cannabis?

My preference is vaping cannabis oil (hash oil). Hash oil usually contains only the parts of cannabis that I am looking for, the cannabinoids and terpenes. I’m able to get the effects of smoking a full joint just by hitting my vaporizer. When at home and wanting to indulge, I’ll take a dab of hash oil to get an increased effect.

Do you prefer sativas or indicas?

I’ve found that in my younger years I LOVED sativas. I was a Sour Diesel guy and you couldn’t change my mind. But as I got older and matured, I’ve found the calming nature of indicas help keep me well balanced throughout my day.

What is your favorite strain of all time?

I want to say Sour Diesel because I’m a New Yorker, it is the strain of my youth, and the one I consumed most. But recently a new strain has come into my life that I love so much, it’s hard to imagine smoking anything else. The strain is Zkittlez and is bred by 3rd Gen Family. It’s so good it makes me want to hide it from people I love and I’m a pretty generous guy.

How has marijuana helped define who you are?

 
Cannabis has always been a part of my life, but recently it has become my life. Being tasked with making the best methods of cannabis consumption is like living a dream. Cannabis gives everyone relief or joy, but it gave me all that and purpose. I will forever be grateful for it.

How do you like to customize your marijuana experience?

I’m the person who usually is taking a dab and has their timer our waiting for the perfect temperature to consume at. Lately I’ve been adding cannabis derived terpenes to my hash oil for an extra punch of flavor. I’d recommend everyone try them as they’re THC free and fully legal to purchase online.

Where can people find your products?

You can find our products at many dispensaries and smoke shops alike. You can also find them on www.Puffco.com.

What are you working on next?

Our next product is an accessory for the Puffco Plus and we’re calling it the Prism. The Prism is a loading and cleaning stand, oil container and dosing tool. Puffco is tasked with providing users with the best experience and most innovative products in cannabis. We will always have new products released that satisfy that mission.

Is there anything else you would like to share?

Get your own Zkittlez!!

 

Photos: Roger’s head shot by Eduardo Whittington, Puffco, Toke Tank