Florida's cannabis industry attracts female entrepreneurs

LARGO, Fla. (FOX 13) - A few years ago, Stacey Pitts wouldn't have imagined herself being in the cannabis business. It started with a conversation with her husband.

"He said, 'Hey, have you ever heard of CBD?' And I was like, 'No, what is it?' And he said it was a derivative of cannabis and I'm like, 'No, not interested,'" Pitts remembers.

The mother of two changed her mind after doing some research. 

"It was changing lives. It was saving lives. It was doing amazing things, according to these testimonials and I thought, 'This is our future,'" said Pitts.

She and her husband started CBD Biocare, selling products for people and pets.

"As mothers, as nurturers, as caretakers, if you believe it can help then why wouldn't you give it to your family and give it to people you care about and tell people about it?" said Pitts.

Angela Ardolino had the same feeling.

"I watched children who were having seizures get drops put in their mouth of cannabis medicine and the seizures stop so it kind of became my mission," said Ardolino.

The former founder of Tampa Bay Parenting sold her magazine and threw herself into the cannabis industry. She created a line of products for pets called CBD Dog Health.

"[I went from] my senior dogs can't go up the stairs anymore, to giving them a dose and then becoming puppy-like again," said Ardolino.

Pitts and Ardolino say it's a business that's becoming more and more attractive for women. 

"Women are drawn to this industry because we're caretakers at heart. When you know you have a product that can help someone, it's in our nature and in our blood to share that," said Pitts.

"Because it's a brand new industry, we can be a pioneer and we can create something that will really make a difference," said Ardolino.