The CEO of a cannabis edibles company is facing backlash on Twitter that could end up costing her her business. The outrage against Alison Ettel, the CEO of TreatWell Health, a company that makes cannabis for pets, began after a video posted online went viral.
In the video, Ettel can be seen calling the San Francisco police on an 8-year-old child selling water outside her apartment building. The video, captured by the young girl’s mother, has already prompted one TreatWell vendor to drop their contract with the company.
Edibles Company CEO Calls Cops on 8-Year-Old Entrepreneur
Alison Ettel, who runs a popular edibles company for pets, is well on her way to becoming the next #permitpatty.
Complex reported on a video posted to Instagram on Saturday that captures Ettel on the phone with San Franciso police, reporting on someone for “illegally selling water without a permit.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BkXWMlWguex/?utm_source=ig_embed
But that someone, we learn from the video, is a young black girl. The eight-year-old is just doing what children often do on hot summer days. Set up a sidewalk beverage stand to sell water or lemonade to parched passersby.
Ettel, an entrepreneur herself, did not take kindly to the business initiative of the young child outside her apartment complex. And the girl’s mother caught Ettel on video in the act of calling the police on her daughter.
The video is not flattering. When Ettel notices that the girl’s mother is filming her, she attempts to duck behind a wall, out of sight. But it doesn’t take much for the woman to move Ettel back into the frame. “You can hide all you want. The whole world gonna see you, boo.”
That’s when we get the clip of Ettel telling police about the girl she says is illegally selling water without a permit “on her property”—a busy SF sidewalk. Both Ettel and the young girl’s family live in the same apartment building.
Dispensaries Drop Pet Weed Brand After CEO’s BBQ Becky 2.0 Video
The video brings to mind March’s viral “BBQ Becky” video, in which a white woman calls the Oakland police on a black family having a barbecue for some perceived rule violation.
In fact, the young girl’s mother makes the association herself. “Make this bitch go viral like #bbqbecky,” she wrote in the caption to her post.
“Would you rather my daughter be out here getting into shit Fr cuz an 8 year old selling water in front of her apartment building where she’s lived her whole life is NOT a reason to call the Police,” she wrote.
And San Francisco retailers who carried TreatWell products seem to agree. Despite the reported popularity of Ettel’s products, companies are dropping them.
A day after the video went viral, an Oakland dispensary, Magnolia Wellness, announced it would no longer offer TreatWell products.
“After seeing this video of their CEO, calling the police on an 8 year old entrepreneur selling water on a hot day, we decided without hesitation that we could no longer patronize her company.” Magnolia had carried TreatWell products for three years.
But the company is selling off remaining TreatWell inventory at a deep discount. And they’re also planning to donate all profits to a local organization benefiting young entrepreneurs of color. “To us, integrity is always before profits,” Magnolia wrote on Instagram.
TreatWell Health’s Twitter account, @TreatWellHealth, is getting pummeled by angry mentions. And customers are vowing never to purchase TreatWell products again.
