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TREEHOUSE CBD: CEO Kevin Mechigian knows about margins and sales tactics. Mechigian spent nearly 20 years as president of the family business, Bob Saks Automotive, before the recession and automakers brand realignment put them out of business. A serial entrepreneur now, he couldn't resist the "green rush" of cannabis. But slinging weed wasn't in his interests, so instead he settled on selling cannabidiol, the second most active ingredient behind THC. CBD is said to offer many of the benefits of THC — pain relief, relaxation, etc. — but without the psychochoactive effects.
Your dad founded Bob Saks car dealers — talk to me about that.
My dad founded it in 1969. I started selling cars when I was 16 and began working my way up the family business right out of college in 1988. We had eight franchises at the peak. I took over for my father around 2004-2005. Then in 2008-2009 when the Great Recession hit, everything changed. We had just built a brand-new building in Lyon Township, and then General Motors went bankrupt and Chrysler went bankrupt. GM canceled the Pontiac brand, so we lost our franchise, which was 70 percent of our business....