The Southern Maryland Experience still carries the name of the place where it started, even though the company now calls Erwin, North Carolina, home. Founded in 2022, the independent cannabis and hemp brand specializes in premium THCA flower and concentrates, including solventless hash rosin. Today it runs a retail storefront in Erwin alongside an online shop and a wholesale business, led by Founder and CEO Stevieontay Burnz and his business partner, Crackle Kapone.
The move south was not part of the original plan. As Maryland’s cannabis laws evolved, regulatory changes limited the company’s ability to keep operating in the THCA market there. Rather than abandon what it had built, the team looked to North Carolina for a fresh start.
That fresh start came with zoning and regulatory hurdles of its own, and working through them is what eventually led the company to a permanent home in Erwin. The name made the trip with it. “We chose to keep The Southern Maryland Experience name because it’s more than just a location,” Burnz said. “It’s our identity, our history, and a reminder of where we started.”
The Founder Behind the Brand
Burnz works in two industries at once. He is also a DMV-born, North Carolina-based recording artist whose upcoming album, Burnz and Beyond, draws on his experience building the company. His business partner, Crackle Kapone, is part of that music world as well.
Together, the partners also develop Kult Waxxx, the company’s premium concentrate brand. Settling in Erwin let them bring both brands under one roof.
That overlap between music and cannabis shapes how the company reaches new audiences. Its partnerships bring the two worlds together through artist appearances, promotional collaborations and events, including collaborations with North Carolina rap legend Petey Pablo and Houston rapper Sauce Walka. “As both a business owner and recording artist, I’ve always believed cannabis culture and music have a natural connection,” Burnz said.
The Southern Maryland Experience describes itself as a disability-owned and neurodivergent-led business. Burnz, an entrepreneur on the autism spectrum, says he has learned to approach business with a unique perspective, a strong attention to detail and an unwavering commitment to his vision. He also sees accessibility as part of the mission. “I believe entrepreneurship should be accessible to everyone, regardless of disability or background,” he said.
“Building this company has been about more than selling products,” Burnz added. “It’s about challenging expectations, creating opportunities, and showing that neurodivergent individuals can build successful businesses and become leaders in their industries.”
From Partner Farms to Full-Panel Testing
The company sources its THCA flower from cultivation partners that meet its standards for quality, consistency, and cannabinoid profile. It favors premium genetics and terpene-rich flower, sorted into tiers from boutique selections to budget-friendly options. Across the lineup, the company positions itself as premium cannabis without an unnecessary premium price tag.
Hash rosin is handled closer to home. The company presses its own in-house, which gives it more control over both the process and the finished product. Its Tier 1 cold cure hash rosin, a solventless concentrate made using only ice water, heat and pressure, leads a concentrate menu that also includes THCA live resin.
A recent addition is a 30mg Delta 9 hash rosin taffy. Looking ahead, the company is working to expand its cultivation and production capabilities, with a long-term goal of greater control over its products from seed to sale.
The Southern Maryland Experience does not carry Delta-8, HHC, THCP or other chemically converted cannabinoids, a standard its own materials sum up in two words: no synthetics. Its focus stays on naturally derived products.
The company emphasizes third-party, full-panel lab testing and products without cutting agents, and it shares certificates of analysis so customers can check the results for themselves, a practice Burnz ties to a simple belief that customers “deserve access to accurate laboratory testing information.”
Room for Independent Operators
Outside the store, the company advocates for fair competition, responsible cannabis policy and consumer education, with a focus on opening doors for independent and disability-owned businesses. Burnz describes the goal plainly. “Cannabis gave independent people an opportunity to build something,” he said. “I want to make sure there’s still room for those people when this industry gets bigger.”
That advocacy arrives at a moment of change for hemp. Federal and state rules for hemp-derived THC are shifting, including a new federal definition of hemp scheduled to take effect Dec. 11, 2026, that counts THCA toward the legal THC limit.
The rule reaches down to seeds as well. Under the new definition, a viable seed counts as hemp only if the plant it would grow stays within that same total THC limit. That standard could complicate how seeds are shipped and sold and put added pressure on small breeders and home growers.
The company says its long-term vision has never depended on a single cannabinoid or product category. “We’re building The Southern Maryland Experience into a recognizable cannabis lifestyle brand with the flexibility to adapt as laws and markets evolve,” Burnz said. From its roots in Southern Maryland to its storefront in Erwin, the company’s stated goal is to build The Southern Maryland Experience and Kult Waxxx into nationally recognized names.
Images courtesy of The Southern Maryland Experience.
Sponsored Content Disclaimer: This article is sponsored by The Southern Maryland Experience. Information about the company’s history, product sourcing, in-house hash rosin production, laboratory testing, the absence of synthetic or chemically converted cannabinoids, partnerships and future plans was provided by The Southern Maryland Experience. Products are intended for adults 21 and older. Hemp-derived THC laws vary by state and are subject to change.
