Grower Stories #77: Brandon Emmett

An Interview with Brandon Emmett, COO of Alaska-based Cannabis Brand Good Titrations

The state of Alaska has long been at the forefront of cannabis legalization. They were one of the first to decriminalize cannabis in 1975, establish a medical cannabis program in 1998, and legalize recreationally in 2014. It’s only natural that brands like Good Titrations have stepped up to provide top-notch products. AskGrowers sits down with Brandon Emmett, COO of Good Titrations, to learn more about their past, present, and future, sustainability in the industry, and their top-notch products. #growerstories

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Tia (AskGrowers) : Tell us your brand’s origin story!

Brandon Emmett : I’ve been a member of the cannabis community all my life. I grew up knowing marijuana was safer than alcohol and tobacco. As an adult I learned that prohibition had caused more personal and community harm than marijuana ever had. This had to change. My friends and I were determined to change it. And how cool would it be to work in an industry that we helped create? This desire for change sparked an idea that would become our business.

Like many businesses, Good Titrations had humble beginnings. A group of friends with a love for cannabis, political action, and entrepreneurship embarked on a journey to legalize marijuana in the State of Alaska and start a successful business. Our approach was twofold: Work to win the campaign by day and build the business by night. Our team inserted itself into the political arena by becoming grassroots organizers, campaign spokespersons and public officials. We also simultaneously built our business plan, gathered investors, and honed our skills at growing marijuana and crafting marijuana concentrates.

When the dust settled, our team had secured a position on the newly minted State of Alaska Marijuana Control Board, which crafted the initial framework and rules for the recreational marijuana industry. During this time, we had also secured a building and enough machinery to start a commercial scale manufacturing facility. We got our license, procured 250 lb. of marijuana, and turned on our machines.

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Tia : Why are you more interested in concentrates than any other cannabis product?

Brandon : Good Titrations entered the industry as a concentrated manufacturer because we determined that starting a manufacturing business provided the greatest return on investment and had the least amount of competition in the space at the time. We didn’t know much about manufacturing then but having a science background from university allowed me to figure it out very quickly. Cannabis and chemistry? Double cool! Now that our manufacturing facility is the largest in the state, we're getting back to our roots. We opened our first luxury retail in 2020. Complete with a show grow and our soon to open cannabis café.

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Tia : What is it like to be a cannabis brand in Alaska?

Brandon : It’s like being a cannabis brand anywhere else I’d imagine. Just colder.

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Tia : What share of your sales comes from tourists? How has this changed in 2020 due to the pandemic?

Brandon : Alaska usually hosts two million tourists a year. Half of those are brought here on cruise ships. Last year saw a significant decrease in tourism and had no cruise ships last year. I’d say we lost about 20 percent of our wholesale market during the months of June, July, and August. So not devastating but we felt it.

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Tia : What problems did you face at the beginning of your development and what is stopping you now?

Brandon : Capital. Raising money was, and still is, difficult in the space. We had to do a lot with very little. Now our biggest problem is supply. Alaska has a marijuana shortage due to how difficult and expensive it is to grow here. We need a lot more weed to grow our business.

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Tia : Have you encountered any prejudices from friends and society about working in the cannabis industry? If so, how did you handle this?

Brandon : My friends and family all supported our journey. Even when I worked in the emergency services I was open about my disdain for prohibition. Society? Now that’s a different story. When we became leaders in the movement we made some enemies. Some people still hate my guts. I made way more friends along the way though. I’m happy with my place in society.

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Tia : Tell us what sustainable methods you and your brand utilizes?

Brandon : Unfortunately the marijuana industry is one of the least environmentally friendly industries in the country. Massive electricity consumption. Ridiculous amounts of plastic used in the name of “child safety”. One of the biggest eye openers and pet peeves of mine is that it shouldn’t have to be this way. A transition to agriculturally grown, outdoor cannabis and sustainable packaging could go a long way. But for that to happen the nation’s leaders have to completely change their outlook on the plant and the industry.

We currently try to use as little plastic as possible and used many natural products in the construction of our retail. We plan to build LED supplemented greenhouses for our production going forward versus indoor HID facilities.

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Tia : What is your most popular product right now?

Brandon : Our most popular product is by far our blueberry distillate cartridge. Distillate cartridges make up over 50 percent of our wholesale business. The retail moves a ton of pre rolls from various cultivators. Those have been super popular during the pandemic.

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Tia : By what criterion do buyers choose a product? More THC or are they more interested in other metrics like terpenes? What is your opinion on this?

Brandon : Currently retailers purchase on price and availability alone. There is a vicious price war in the manufacturing sector right now. I think some people are going to find soon that its not sustainable. That said, when prices are equal, purchasers look at the THC result first. Is it above 75 percent? If so good deal. Next is flavor and dependability. We hear often from our retailers that our company consistently outperforms the competition in the flavor and hardware department. We use good hardware, so we get very little returns. That’s an X factor.

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Tia : Has the target audience and its preferences changed from legalization to the present? If so, how exactly?

Brandon : Our target audience has changed a bit. It’s surprising how many older people are now finding the benefits of cannabis. We still make products for our beloved dab bros but our percentage of infused joints and flowers has certainly increased due to the popularity with seniors who are looking for that old school hash vibe.

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Tia : Name five cannabis brands that you respect.

Brandon : Hard to put my finger on just 5. I’d like to give a shout-out to all the wonderful, smart, and gritty entrepreneurs who have helped build the Alaska Marijuana Industry association. It’s been a long haul.

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Tia : Do you personally use cannabis? Do you have any product and brand preferences?

Brandon : I do. At home I'm a kief smoker. On the go or on the river it's hard to beat a Good Titrations vape pen. When I purchase at a retail I look for flower prerolls from Tanana Herb Company. Cool peeps, great weed.

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Tia : What values does your company adhere to?

Brandon : We’re a lifestyle brand and an employee focused company. We pride ourselves on our dedication to customer service and work-life balance.

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Tia : Do you have delivery? How do you think the industry will change when delivering cannabis becomes as routine as ordering pizza?

Brandon : We do not have delivery here. It’s not permissible by our regulations. It will be interesting to see how many states adopt delivery. Maybe it will be like pizza. Maybe it will be regulated more like alcohol. Overall, I think delivery is a great model. Time will tell.

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Tia : Please share your wildest predictions for the Alaska cannabis industry for the next five years.

Brandon : Alaska becomes a mecca for cannabis tourism. Onsite consumption in the Greatland. Best of both worlds.

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Tia : Your top strains to smoke? Why?

Brandon : I’m on a Mandarin Cookies kick right now. That sharp citrus flavor is out of this world!

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Tia : If you could have a chance to smoke with anyone in this world, dead or alive, who'd that be and why? :)

Brandon : [tooltip title="Carl Edward Sagan" content="US astronomer, planetary scientist, cosmologist, astrophysicist, astrobiologist, known as an author of science books."]Carl Sagan[/tooltip]. Arguably one of the greatest astronomer-philosophers of our time. Get baked and watch Cosmos. You’ll know what I’m talking about.

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Tia : Are there any brands in your state you appreciate and follow? What about the USA top brands?

Brandon : I keep a close watch on GOOD Cannabis. They share our namesake, do the same things we do, are tough competitors, and all around great people. Top USA brands to follow are Select, Green Thumb, Curaleaf, and Harvest.

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Thank you for taking part in this interview, Brandon! 

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You can follow Good Titration at their website here.