While sitting in his backyard treehouse in the spring of 2020, entrepreneur and “unexpected hippie” Chris Fagan of Rowlett got an idea.
Fagan, who has a background working in the hemp markets and experience in woodworking, decided to occupy his time during the COVID-19 pandemic by building a tiny house with his family. But instead of living in the house, Fagan decided to use it as a dispensary on wheels to sell hemp-based products at local farmers markets.
After 55 days of working on the project for 12 hours a day, Fagan said he brought the tiny house trailer — which they call the Beehive — to the Firewheel Farmers Market and Garland’s Urban Market in March.
Customers’ interest led Fagan to sign a lease to turn a vacant gas station at 701 Main St. into Bee Hippy, a shop that opened in June selling cannabidiol (CBD) and hemp-derived products for humans and pets.
Fagan, 40, said he’s an Army veteran turned entrepreneur and an unlikely hippie who never dreamed of doing business related to hemp or cannabis. When the father of three daughters was in his 20s, he was straight-laced and serious, he said. He also never tried cannabis products until he was 35.
“It was literally the furthest thing from my mind,” he said.
Bee Hippy is the third cannabis-related business he’s started, following a CBD manufacturing facility in Grand Junction, Colo., and Elevated Softgels, which sells wholesale hemp products.
Fagan said Bee Hippy will donate a portion of its profits to Washington State University’s honey bee and pollinator research lab to fulfill his goal of “conscious capitalism,” which he defined as giving back to your community while making a profit.
The store’s name and branding pay tribute to the blue calamintha bee. The rare species’ conservation status was unknown until it was rediscovered in Florida last spring.
Fagan, who received a Paycheck Protection Program loan last year, said he felt like a blue bee making a comeback when he had the idea to start Bee Hippy.
“I’m going to be successful, hell or high water,” he said. “The blue bee is going to be part of that story.”
