iAnthus Capital Holdings, which owns, operates, and partners with regulated cannabis operations across the United States, has announced a licensing agreement between its U.S. subsidiary and Blissiva, a women-owned, Ellicott City-based company specializing in producing and distributing medical cannabis products specifically formulated for females.

As per the licensing agreement, iAnthus will manufacture, market and sell a variety of Blissiva products in its markets, with initial launch in Maryland underway. Additionally, iAnthus has the exclusive right to launch Blissiva in its 10 other existing states and across the United States.

Blissiva was founded by obstetrician/gynecologist Dr. Leslie Apgar and entrepreneur Gina Dubbé, who have a mission to make medical cannabis more accessible and desirable to women. Blissiva’s first product, the Balance Pen, was formulated specifically to help women combat stress and anxiety. The pen first came to market in October 2018 and sold out in just six weeks (of what was intended as a three-month run). Blissiva is developing a line of additional products designed for female health, wellness and recreation.

“We are extremely proud to partner with Blissiva in launching female-focused cannabis products into the market. Women represent one of the largest and fastest growing demographics of consumers in this industry, and there is currently a lack of products specifically designed to address their health and wellness needs. We believe that women should be able to ‘have it all,’ and I’m excited to be working with Dr. Apgar, a groundbreaking expert in women’s health, to fill the gap in the industry,” said Beth Stavola, chief strategy officer of iAnthus.

iAnthus intends to initially launch the Blissiva Balance Pen in Health for Life dispensaries in Baltimore, Bethesda and White Marsh, as well as the Greenhouse Wellness dispensary in Ellicott City, where Dr. Apgar is the medical director. Additionally, iAnthus will leverage its distribution network to allow women to access Blissiva products throughout the state. Currently, this Maryland distribution network consists of 40 dispensaries where iAnthus is currently selling its MPX branded products.