In the first of a what will be an ongoing series giving you the behind-the-scenes access to Carmel, we check in with our two co-founders, shedding light on where everything started.
Well guys, let’s start out with introductions and what you do at Carmel?
Dustin (co-founder): I head up business development at Carmel, and as a small company that title is really just a catch-all.
Roey (co-founder):I manage the operations side of the business, which really means trying to make things as smooth as possible for our incredible grow team to execute on their vision.
Before we get into how Carmel came about, when did you guys first come to know each other?
Dustin: We met each other in grade 9, and funny enough our teacher designated Roey to keep me in-check although I think he wound up getting me into more trouble than anything. Since then we’ve been involved in a few entrepreneurial pursuits but after college we went in different paths. I stepped into the family business and he started working as a lawyer.
How did things get to where they are today, when did you guys link back up?
Roey: after a few years of practice in law, I was really getting burnt out and wasn’t sure I was ready to continue down that path for the foreseeable future. I ended up resigning with a game plan of taking some personal time to travel. Dustin and I had always been close friends, but in early 2017 we started to focus in on all the opportunity surrounding legalization in Canada.
Dustin: For us though, we really saw opportunity in a different light. All you heard leading up to legalization and even for a period of time after legalization was square footage and stock price. ‘Bigger is better’ was pretty much the only narrative out there, and we were disappointed in the lack of companies actually focusing on the consumer, on delivering unique and memorable experiences. Brands didn’t seem to stand for anything and everyone was peddling the same generic, mass produced product.
So it seems like you were pretty dialed in on an issue in the industry, how did you come to the solution?
Roey: We met with a ton of different teams across the industry, from retailers to growers to ancillary services. Everything really crystallized when we met Drew. We wanted to do something special, something different and Drew’s vision was perfectly aligned to that. He’s really put in his time and honed in his craft of delivering a product of exceptional quality, along with unique genetics that were at the forefront of consumer tastes. When we saw his product, heard him talk about his growing philosophy and begun to get an appreciation of the incredible seed bank he was sitting on, it all made sense.
Dustin: I remember opening one of Drew’s bags in our office and honestly, neighbouring offices started a que to see what was going on. When they saw the product, smelled it and were lucky enough to try it, everyone was just blown away. We wanted to replicate that feeling, something this good deserved to be shared and we’ve been focused on recreating that same excitement and fanfare ever since.
Roey: We really can’t wait to see the product on shelf. We’re confident the market is desperately looking for higher quality and greater variety, so everyone reading this stay tuned for updates when we’ll be in market. Right now we’re looking at a September launch, but give us a follow on Instagram (@carmel.cannabis) for the most up-to-date information. Thanks for reading.
