Day Seven: Lume Cannabis Co.

This Q&A is part of a daily series highlighting the many medical and recreational marijuana dispensaries across Greater Lansing. Check back for a new post every day this week. And stay tuned for our 420 print edition, which publishes on April 14.

How long has your company been in business?  

Lume Cannabis Company was only founded in 2019, believe it or not! We currently have 15 retail stores in operation, including locations in Owosso, Lowell and Jackson. 

Briefly walk us through the story of how (and why) your company got started. 

Our founder and CEO, Dave Morrow, previously founded Warrior Sports and wanted to create a similar experience-minded approach to cannabis. Lume’s model is based on convenience and quality — constantly growing the number of retail locations to ensure accessibility, building out the store design of each location to ensure an enjoyable shopping experience and providing locally grown, high quality cannabis products that appeal to everyone. It’s reflected in our name. 

We’re aiming to present cannabis in a new light, out of the shadows of the past and accessible to all. Our goal, since day one, is to have the Lume name synonymous with Michigan cannabis. 

Fast forward to 2021, and we have built out a personnel team that brings CPG experience from New Balance and design training from Parsons School of Design. We’ve opened 15 retail stores and aim to have 40 by the end of this year. We’re excited to be laser-focused on the Michigan market and expanding our footprint in our home state. 

Who is on the leadership team and what sorts of backgrounds do they bring to the table?  

Lume’s leadership team is composed of multiple veterans from Warrior Sports (a division of New Balance), from our CEO and founder to our President and COO to multiple members of our marketing team. We aim to approach cannabis as a mainstream CPG product from all angles, cultivating an experience that fits alongside anyone’s lifestyle. 

Our founder and CEO Dave Morrow previously founded Warrior Sports, a company he sold to New Balance in 2003. Drawing on his past athletic career as a member of the US World Lacrosse Team and his business acumen, Morrow turned Warrior into a dominant global sports brand, successfully scaling it up from a two-person operation in his college dorm room to a high-tech global manufacturing powerhouse. 

Doug Hellyar, president and COO, previously held multiple leadership positions at Warrior Sports as well as serving as co-owner and President of CPI Products, a company in the automotive sector that he and his partners sold to Dover Corporation in 2001. 

John Gregory, our chief marketing officer, also comes over from Warrior Sports, where he served as the director of marketing. He began his career in the advertising space, building dynamic strategies for brands across a wide range of industries, including Titleist, Carnival Cruise Lines, Campbell’s Soup, Green Mountain Coffee and more. 

Briefly walk me through the scope of your company.  

Lume is completely vertically integrated. We currently have a 60,000 square-foot cultivation facility where we grow all of our own flower for our Lume branded cannabis product line. We currently hold about 10% of the market share in Michigan. 

As of today, we have 15 open retail stores. Last year, we opened one store every five weeks, on average! Our stores can be found throughout the state, from Sault Ste. Marie all the way south to Adrian. 

Expansion is our middle name. We plan to add another 100,000 square feet to our cultivation site and at least 25 more retail stores this year. Our goal is to ensure that anyone can be minutes away from a Lume dispensary. 

How many employees do you have, both locally and across the entirety of the company? 

We currently have 62 employees across our Lansing area locations and count over 500 employees statewide, between cultivation, retail and corporate positions.  

How has business been lately?  

In the two years, we’ve been operational. Sales have been constantly on the rise. In 2020, our first full year of operations, we did $61M in revenue, and are on pace to at least double that in 2021. 

What sets your provisioning center(s) apart from others on the local market?  

Lume was founded on four brand pillars: quality above all, open to everyone, forward-thinking and Michigan made. Since day one, we’ve designed our stores with these tenets in mind. There’s no single stereotypical cannabis consumer, so we made sure that we created a welcoming, approachable environment that simultaneously surpasses the experts’ expectations without intimidating the novices. A clean, modern aesthetic coupled with a personalized, guided shopping experience ensures you’ll walk away satisfied with your visit, not to mention your Lume brand cannabis, which can only be found at our 15 locations. 

What does this company hope to accomplish?   

Our motto is “cannabis in a new light.” We aim to tear down antiquated perceptions and stereotypes and create a new accessible, enjoyable atmosphere around cannabis. We do this via an unparalleled variety of products, world-class talent and a five-star customer experience every time you walk in the door (or order online). 

Where do you see this company 10 years from now?   

Our current expansion plan is completely Michigan-centric. We want to be synonymous with Michigan cannabis, the company that even your grandparents know about and can reference by name. 

Down the road, once we have cemented our roots in our home state, we’ll absolutely look forward to interstate expansion. We’d look to stay close to home, evaluating opportunities in neighboring states where licensing and retail requirements allow us to operate at the Lume standard and provide a consistent customer experience across state lines. 

Any exciting new products on the shelves lately?  

In time for 4/20, we’re loving our Jenny Kush strain: a true, feel-good hybrid leaving you with a soothing and uplifting effect post-sesh testing at a whopping 30-34% THC. For those looking to dip their toes into the water, we also just debuted mini two-packs of our edibles, perfect for those looking to try out a new strain or flavor before committing to a full pack. 

See more:   

Lansterdam: Lightning rolls and moon rocks — an otherworldly weed experience