Prøhbtd raises $8 million to bring cannabis to the mainstream

cannabis

Media startup Prøhbtd has announced that it has raised $8 million in Series A funding. According to Drake Sutton-Shearer, CEO of Prøhbtd, the main purpose of its creation was to "build a bridge” between the cannabis industry and mainstream culture.

Drake said that Prøhbtd is not exclusively focusing on cannabis. Instead, the goal is to create a diverse slate of lifestyle and culture-related content, with cannabis as the hook. Thus, he argued that Prøhbtd is creating premium content with a unique voice.

The company said its video content logged 21 million views in May, with an average view time of 3 minutes and 45 seconds. The videos are available on both the Prøhbtd website and on devices like Apple TV and Roku as per a report.

The company works with more than 60 cannabis brands focusing more on product development, design and marketing. Forging “mainstream partnerships” like Prøhbtd’s deal with Advertising Week is one of his priorities, Sutton-Shearer said.

When asked about conflict of interest between editorial and business, he said, “Today’s younger consumer, I don’t think they really care that much whether something’s branded or not. They do want to know if it’s entertaining and thoughtful.”

Actor/musician Donald Glover was also amongst the investors in seed funding for Prøhbtd. The new round was commenced by Serruya Private Equity, The Delavaco Group and Cresco Capital. "We expect great things from the company and we’re excited to support the team’s global vision,” said Serruya Private Equity’s Aaron Serruya in the funding announcement.

About this vision, Sutton-Shearer said, "We are very strategically looking at the rest of the world, but there’s still a lot to be done in the U.S.” It is also exploring international opportunities in Canada, Australia and Latin America.