Open Book Extracts
Website: www.openbookextracts.com

Headquartered in Roxboro, NC, Open Book Extracts (OBX) is a cGMP (current good manufacturing practice)-certified manufacturer of premium plant-based cannabinoid products, aiming to be the industry’s true north by delivering premium products, exceptional service and industry-leading transparency. With control of the entire supply chain, a state-of-the-art extraction campus near North Carolina’s Research Triangle, proprietary refinement and conversion methods backed by a growing IP portfolio, and a team of PhD chemists and seasoned business leaders, OBX is the trusted partner for global brands seeking to enter the marketplace. OBX Asia, with its headquarters in Hong Kong, provides strategic guidance and on-the-ground support for the company’s Asia customers.

Nicole Brown serves as chief innovation officer for OBX. As chief innovation officer, Brown channels data-driven consumer insights into a long-term course of action, delivering immediately usable innovation, and drives awareness and thought leadership by overseeing strategic marketing efforts, including PR, event marketing, advertising and partnerships.

Prior to joining OBX, Brown served as CMO for Citymaps—a social mapping technology platform optimized for travelers—culminating in the acquisition of Citymaps by TripAdvisor in 2016. After the acquisition, Brown served as senior director of global business development for TripAdvisor from 2016 to 2019. Previously, she held management roles at LVMH and Shiseido Cosmetics, focused on product development and commercialization in the beverage and beauty sectors, respectively. Brown graduated from Harvard University with an honors degree in French literature and a minor in organic chemistry.

NIE: In June, OBX announced that it raised $11.5 million Series B funding. How will the funding aid in the company’s growth?

Brown: The financing will be used to accelerate safety studies and efficacy research, build additional scale and support international distribution opportunities.

In particular, one strategic priority for the company is to accelerate safety, efficacy and application research.

• Safety Research: Safety is the foundation for this market. OBX is pleased to participate in Validcare’s large-scale human safety study that will provide the FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) with much-needed CBD safety data. This study will assess how long-term full- and broad-spectrum CBD use impacts liver safety, drowsiness, and testosterone levels, with results expected later this year. OBX further joined the European Industrial Hemp Association’s (EIHA) Novel Food Consortium to support the safety studies for hemp foods and extracts in the U.K. and European Union member states. Together with EIHA and other consortium members, we are creating safe and ready access to cannabinoid-based products throughout the U.K. and E.U.

• Efficacy Research: Consumers want products that work. The market is graduating from a one-size-fits-all approach to cannabinoids and is demanding function-specific therapeutics that focus on anxiety, pain, sleep, women’s health and skin conditions. As a company, OBX has made it to “base camp” with the broadest portfolio of pure, cGMP-certified cannabinoid products, and we’ve begun our summit push to need-state focused, R&D backed, proprietary formulations.

• Enhancement Research: We are building a toolset that can translate in-vitro study success into real-world applications by modifying cannabinoids at the molecular level or combining cannabinoids with other active or inactive compounds to enhance potency, bioavailability and stability, and enabling targeted delivery and controlled release.

• Exploratory Research: Can cannabinoids help treat depression, Alzheimer’s, cancer or metabolic disorders? University researchers with labs and teams focused on specific diseases are excited to find out, and we at OBX are excited to arm them with a cannabinoid care package for early in-vitro testing and analysis.

NIE: The company recently joined EIHA’s Novel Food Consortium. What was OBX’s motivation to join?

Brown: The EIHA Novel Food Consortium, officially launched in June 2020, is the Association’s project aimed at clearing the way for hemp foods and extracts—including CBD—in the U.K. and European Union member states. By joining the Consortium established by the EIHA, OBX is joining forces with other companies to pursue safety studies to provide safe and ready access to cannabinoid-based products throughout the U.K. and E.U.

NIE: Case Western Reserve University and OBX announced a research agreement. What does this entail and what will be researched?

Brown: Under the terms of the agreement, Case Western Reserve is being provided access to pure cannabinoid materials from OBX, including CBD, CBG, CBN, CBC, THCV and CBDV isolates and custom formulations. Specifically, Case Western Reserve scientists will assess the potential of pure cannabinoid isolates and precise ratios of specific cannabinoids in formulations, to understand the impact of cannabinoids on brain cell functions, with a focus on neuroinflammation.

Case Western Reserve will undertake a preclinical investigation of numerous therapeutic compounds selected from OBX’s extensive library of proprietary cannabinoid analogs. Using its validated cellular assays and assessment criteria, Case Western Reserve will also explore the therapeutic potential of specific compounds in selected disease models, including an evaluation of the impact of compounds on neuroinflammation.

NIE: The company has recently appointed a number of new executives to the OBX team. What do these hires mean for the future of the company?

Brown: OBX demands the highest quality products for our customers. The new executives emphasize that quality and operational excellence are core values in our system, and they bring knowledge and expertise in scaling world-class teams, capitalizing on changing market dynamics, and driving a customer-first mentality. The new executives are joining an already successful, energetic team at the perfect time to spearhead OBX’s growth and expansion, and we are thrilled to be able to grow our team to ensure our clients receive the highest possible level of product quality and service.