Business Partners, Dark Horse Medicinals and Speakeasy Dispensary
Casey Flippo and Sean Clarkson first met in the Kappa Sigma fraternity house at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. In being great friends, Flippo and Clarkson crossed the threshold by becoming great business partners. As co-founders of Dark Horse Medicinals, Arkansas’ first cannabis processor, Flippo has the title of CEO, and Clarkson serves as chief strategy officer. Together, this duo has been able to take their team to new heights with the consumer in mind above all else.
How do your working styles complement each other?
Casey is the gas, and Sean is the brakes of the business. Casey’s mindset is focused on operational and revenue growth, while Sean spends his time working to reduce both legal and financial risk. We have the self-awareness to understand that neither extreme is the best way to accomplish those goals and it will require a balance of both styles to be successful.
What lessons have you learned from working together?
We learn new lessons every day. For example, disagreement is natural, but you need to maintain a level of respect. We have healthy disagreements on a regular basis. At the end of the day, we have respect for each other’s working style and thought process. If you lose that respect, the business partnership can’t move forward. Also, you can’t run a business by yourself. The solo-entrepreneur-led company is not a reality for the majority of businesses and definitely not for ours.
What is your strategy for keeping business and your friendship with each other separate?
If you don’t pay attention, business partnerships can end friendships. The transition from friends to business partners is difficult to navigate. Conversations quickly veer towards business updates. We have to be cognizant of this and take a break from the business-only relationship every once in a while. Frankly, it is still a work in progress but one that we are aware of and are working toward balancing.
What is the secret to collaboration and compromise in business and in life?
Collaboration and compromise are all about filling in the gaps. Collaboration requires self-awareness about your and your partner’s strengths and limitations while doing what you can to supplement those. Compromise comes when you can address each other’s biggest pain points while still accomplishing the mutual goal.
What is the best thing about working as part of a “Dynamic Duo”?
The trust that is built over time. At this point, we both know the stance the other would take on any issue, even without having to communicate. This allows us to move our respective parts of the business forward with full confidence that the other is doing the same. That level of trust is invaluable when growing quickly.
