Last year, Kansas City-based Clovr began creating quality cannabis products for Missouri’s medical marijuana patients—everything from gummies and vape pens to concentrates and beverages. One thing that was missing in their cannabis-infused collection was chocolate. And Clovr didn’t want to feature any chocolatier, they wanted Christopher Elbow to helm their efforts.

As is typically the case in Kansas City, introductions weren’t that difficult. “Our attorney knew his attorney,” says Bethanie White, the director of marketing at Clovr. “It was a no-brainer that his name came up in the first place.”

That was nearly two years ago.

Coincidentally, Elbow had been quietly snooping around for a collaborative chocolate/cannabis consortium. “When Missouri had passed marijuana for medicinal purposes, my door was being beaten down by lots of suitors who wanted my expertise in some way,” says Elbow with a laugh. “I had done a bit of consulting experience in Colorado, and it allowed me to understand what kind of partner I wanted to be associated with.

Elbow adds that whatever partner he ultimately chose would need to check quite a few boxes. “To really reach an audience that knows my brand was ultimately the goal on my end,” he says. “I wanted a company that had a level of expertise and that was very, very important. And they needed to have the right team together—experts on their staff who knew their industry. Clovr was the clear frontrunner with all of those items— which made my job a lot easier.”

The only problem was what would Elbow and his team create. The options were endless…