Community Highlights: Meet Tara Joseph of Big Plan Holdings

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tara Joseph.

Hi Tara, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My journey began with a background in fashion design and event planning, focusing on the fundraising space. A pivotal experience was my involvement with Grassroots, a cannabis company in Illinois owned by my husband, Josh Joseph. In alignment with my husband’s involvement at Grassroots, I took the initiative to organize events aimed at educating and raising awareness about the plant and its medicinal properties.

As someone who has personally experienced the profound benefits of these medicines in managing my Lupus, I felt a strong drive to share this knowledge widely. This passion for spreading awareness ran parallel with the guys at Grassroots. In the early stages of Illinois’ medical cannabis program, I was hosting events that brought people together and provided education about medical cannabis. This was crucial due to the program’s novelty in Illinois and the general lack of understanding about the benefits of medical cannabis, its regulations, and its implications for users and the community.

I spearheaded cannabis events called CannaChats in Chicago, focusing mainly on patient advocacy and education. All the while, my husband and his partners were developing Grassroots Cannabis. Their business was comprehensive, encompassing everything from cultivation to creating and selling their products. Later my husband decided to sell Grassroots Cannabis to Cureleaf. Inspired by this, we aimed to start a family business that would be a legacy project for our children and the younger generation, with a big focus on mentorship.

So, we ventured into the music industry, initially lacking expertise but seeing it as a natural transition from our experiences in the cannabis space. We aligned with knowledgeable individuals in the music industry and set up a music publishing company in Nashville, chosen for its vibrant music scene and as a change from Chicago, especially during the Covid lockdown. Our entry into the music business followed the sale of our cannabis company, one of the largest privately held companies in the county.

Despite shifting our focus to music publishing, our reputation in the cannabis industry continued to attract attention. We realized our cannabis knowledge and resources were opening doors in the music industry and various other industries. We hadn’t planned to re-enter the cannabis space but decided to include it within our family holdings company, Big Plan Holdings. Our journey expanded from music publishing to other arenas, such as hospitality, music and entertainment, real estate, philanthropy, and fashion, with cannabis as the unifying element. Our strategy evolved to establish different verticals under Big Plan Holdings, attracting talented young professionals from diverse fields.

Big Plan Holdings became a confluence of “trendy” and “sexy” topics, with cannabis at its core.  We integrated it into our diverse business model. Today our family office involves not only our immediate family but extends to include those we regard as family, managing multiple ventures under one roof. Our strength lies in leveraging our business acumen to build and nurture unique businesses and growth opportunities.

We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Navigating our business journey hasn’t been smooth, especially since we launched our company in 2020. Fortunately, the sale of our cannabis company occurred during the Covid pandemic, providing us with a unique opportunity to build a new business during this period. Building businesses during a worldwide pandemic posed its own set of challenges. However, it also offered some advantages.

For instance, the slower pace initially helped us, but as Nashville was less affected by lockdowns compared to Illinois, our projects quickly gained momentum. Managing multiple verticals simultaneously is like juggling several balls in the air, inevitably some balls will drop.  We expect failure and view them as learning experiences.

For example, when we first entered the music publishing space, we had no prior knowledge of the industry. We owe a lot to Spencer Rabin, a key figure in guiding us through the nuances of the music business. Without his expertise, we would have been lost. Developing a business plan for the music publishing company was a learning curve. We had to navigate through various offers and partnerships, discerning who to trust and who might be taking advantage of us.  As people who generally say ‘yes’ to opportunities, we learned the hard way that being overly open can attract the good character and the bad.

This open approach wasn’t limited to the music industry. We applied it across all the industries we ventured into, which sometimes complicated our efforts to refine our business plan and focus on specific goals. In the early stages, we were stretched thin, trying to assist everyone who approached us. This led to us burning the candle at both ends. However, we’ve since better understood how to manage this. Largely thanks to the industry experts we’ve brought into our team. They’ve been instrumental in guiding us on who to engage with and how to protect our interests.

We’ve established a vetting process, a significant change from our initial approach when we met with every contact. After hearing someone’s life story, they often would unexpectedly ask for a million dollars, which was exhausting. This approach led to us overextending ourselves and struggling to manage the influx of requests and opportunities. Another challenge has been refining our focus across the various industries we’re involved in to create something truly unique, which is valuable but also complex to manage.

Meetings can be unpredictable, starting with one topic and rapidly shifting to another, making it challenging to keep up, but that’s what it takes to keep going. The journey has been a continuous learning process. Embracing failure has been crucial for us. Contrary to what many believe, failure and mistakes are vital for growth. They’ve been our greatest teachers, helping us understand our strengths and weaknesses. We’ve learned to acknowledge what we’re not good at and not overreach in those areas.

The reality of entrepreneurship is far from smooth. Missteps, challenges, and failures are essential for growth and success. We’ve certainly had our share and expect more as we continue to evolve.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
About Big Plan Holdings.

Big Plan Holdings (BPH) is a Nashville, Tennessee-based family-office, directed by Josh, Tara, Sydni, and Sophie Joseph, with diversified investments in cannabis, real estate, music, entertainment, professional sports, fashion, and hospitality, among myriad strategic investments across the United States and internationally.

Who else deserves credit for your story?
I must give credit to some incredible friends who have supported us tremendously. Their investment in our ventures has been pivotal, even surpassing the support we’ve received from our family.

A special mention goes to Marilyn Frank, my eighth-grade teacher, who has been like a second mother to us. She has maintained a lifelong relationship with us and invested in our companies from the beginning. Her unwavering support has been instrumental in our success, making her role in our lives extraordinary.

Another key supporter in our journey is my best friend, Michelle Greenwald. She has been a crucial part of my life since the beginning, sharing many personal milestones with me, such as being there for each other’s weddings and the births of our children. She and her husband believed in us from the outset, demonstrating a level of invaluable trust and support, particularly in contrast to those who only showed interest after our success became apparent.

Lastly, Jill Barber also deserves credit for her role in our journey. She has been a best friend throughout, supporting us through every change and challenge. Her encouragement and assistance have been invaluable from the very beginning.

Additionally, our Chicago family of chosen family and friends have been incredibly supportive. They’ve been our cheerleaders, always ready to offer help, advice, and support whenever needed. Their encouragement has been a constant source of strength for us.

As far as a mentor goes, from soup to nuts mentorship, I had to be self-taught because I didn’t have somebody to teach me that I fully looked up to. So, I had to find a way to inspire myself. What I found was that the most inspiring figures in my life are my husband and children. We’ve inspired and mentored each other, learning and growing together. This mutual support and inspiration within our family have been fundamental in our journey.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.bigplanholdings.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bigplanholdings/?hl=en
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/big-plan-holdings/

Image Credits
Katie Larson, Sara Kauss, and Britt Hart