Being ahead of the curve key to Tweed Marijuana's success -
Good timing for Tweed
by Kelly Kent
Bruce Linton, co-founder, chairman and interim chief executive officer of Smiths Falls’ Tweed Marijuana Inc. gave an informative presentation about being in the right place at the right time and seizing business opportunities at the annual Economic Development Summit on Friday, Nov. 21.
Sometimes, success is all about being in the right place at the right time and being ahead of the game to take advantage of available opportunities.
That was the message of a presentation called “Being Ahead of the Curve”, given by Bruce Linton, co-founder, chairman and interim chief executive officer of Smiths Falls’ Tweed Marijuana Inc., at the annual Economic Development Summit on Friday, Nov. 21.
Held at the North Grenville Municipal Centre, the sixth-annual summit was attended by more than 175 business people. The event was hosted by the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville Economic Development Department in partnership with Gord Brown, Leeds-Grenville MP, and Steve Clark, Leeds-Grenville MPP, with support from the 1000 Islands, Valley Heartland and Grenville Community Futures Development Corporations and the 1000 Islands Region Workforce Development Board.
“We’ve had an excellent turnout this year and I think it’s due to people wanting to hear our local success stories and what’s new in the region,” said Ann Weir, economic development manager with the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville.
“We succeeded because we were able to overcome roadblocks and hurdles that others were not. As with any business, it’s important that you have a plan and a goal.” Bruce Linton, co-founder Tweed Marijuana Inc.
One of those local success stories is the story of Tweed Marijuana Inc., the first publicly listed company to grow, sell and distribute medicinal marijuana in Canada.
Linton, who engaged the crowd with a humorous and surprisingly business-oriented presentation, gave an overview that was all about recognizing and seizing opportunities before anyone else has the chance.
Back when Canada first allowed the use of medicinal marijuana to treat things like chronic pain and nervous system conditions, approximately 36,000 people managed to get a licence that allowed them to legally use the product, Linton said.
“It’s all about supply and demand, though,” Linton said. “I could see an opportunity: when there became reasonable access to medicinal marijuana, those people could become more like 750,000 and growing.”
So, Linton began research on areas where he could have a facility that allowed him to grow large quantities of medicinal marijuana indoors, without a traditional greenhouse. Growing plants indoors allows for perfect conditions and controlled humidity, temperature and light.
Smiths Falls, it turned out, was perfect.
Not only did it have municipal bylaws that allowed for growing and processing inside an agricultural building, but it had a massive abandoned building, the old Hershey factory, that would be more than enough to accommodate Tweed’s immediate needs.
After they had decided on Smiths Falls, Linton and his team had to follow a rigorous set of protocols imposed by Health Canada and also the municipality. However, Linton said, they persevered and became a fully licensed and authorized producer of medicinal marijuana.
“We succeeded because we were able to overcome roadblocks and hurdles that others were not,” he said. “As with any business, it’s important that you have a plan and a goal.”
Tweed Marijuana Inc., Linton said, is a business as legitimate as any other, despite what some people may think. It was a business opportunity that he happened to spot and treats it as he would any other business.
“You may not believe me, but I’m not a patient and I have never used a gram of (marijuana),” Linton said, lightheartedly. “I just liked the business opportunity.”
After going over some of the technical aspects of growing and processing the marijuana plants, which is almost completely automated and very complicated, Linton described what has happened for the company in just one short year.
It was just two years ago that Tweed Marijuana Inc. hired its first employee. In the last year alone, the company had acquired the Hershey building, moved in and set up their complicated growing process. They’ve created valuable jobs in the community and brought in millions of dollars to date.
Overall, Linton said, his message is to think outside of the box, take risks and to always consider opportunities.
“I was in the right place in the right time with this company,” Linton said. “We were a lot of firsts, and I think there are a lot more firsts ahead.”
