WYLDS explosive growth is a fascinating story in having a vision and relentlessly pursuing it. Some entrepreneurs start businesses to maintain their own livelihood, and others have that competitive spark to grow far beyond their initial startup.
Founding Vision: Established in Oregon in 2016 by three college friends, Wyld initially operated out of a small building with basic equipment but quickly grew through its unique approach to product quality and consumer appeal. The founders focused on creating edibles with real fruit and clean ingredients, which resonated with consumers across the United States. They wanted to appeal to consumers who were health conscious and active in their lifestyle.
Product Strategy: Wyld’s choice to focus on gummies with real fruit ingredients and distinctive flavors helped set them apart from other edibles on the market. But their origins in this market were not from industry experience, instead they were a desire to create something they would like to see on the market.
“When Aaron Morris cofounded Wyld in 2015, his cannabis edibles operation wasn’t that different from a family kitchen the night before a bake sale. Morris and his team set up shop in an old farmhouse in Tumalo, Oregon, down the road from an alpaca ranch. The property was already licensed to grow marijuana but the stove only had one working burner. Morris would boil the syrups in household pots while wearing four layers of gloves to avoid getting burned and combine the other ingredients with a handheld electric mixer, which would inevitably die every few days.
The first batches of THC-infused gummies tasted like “crayons,” says cofounder Chris Joseph. Some even started to grow mold. To improve the recipe, Morris used a technique he found on Reddit, but eventually sought the advice from a gelatin supplier and his gummies started to get better.
“I know nothing about food,” says Morris, a 31-year-old native Oregonian and the CEO of Wyld. “At this point, I know about the commercialization of food, but I’m still a terrible cook.
Eventually, he perfected recipes for Wyld’s first two flavors—marionberry and raspberry. Every morning going forward, Morris and some hired line cooks would crank out another 1,500 gummies.”
Regional Expansion and Scaling: Wyld quickly expanded beyond Oregon to California and beyond, tackling regulatory challenges in multiple states to become a national brand. As Wyld expanded, it introduced state-specific manufacturing facilities to comply with regulatory standards in various states and ensure consistent quality. With products tailored to consumers’ preferences and a keen focus on brand transparency, Wyld established a reputation as a trusted brand across the West Coast and, more recently, in East Coast markets like New York and Maryland.
Wyld’s success wasn’t a happy accident—Morris planned it this way.
At Oregon’s Finest, Portland’s first state-licensed dispensary, Wyld is the bestselling edible by far. Mae Pease, who runs the retailer’s inventory, says she remembers the first time she met Morris in 2017. “Aaron told me that he wanted to be the bestselling gummy company in the U.S.,” Pease recalls. “That was his goal.”
Morris’ plan had three distinct parts. First: Keep the shelves stocked. “If I text Rene at 10 p.m. telling him we ran out of raspberry, he’d be at the store 8 a.m. the next morning,” Pease explains.
Second: Expand shrewdly and swiftly. In 2018 Morris decided to launch Wyld in California, Colorado and Nevada—all at the same time.
“I wanted to blitzkrieg—terrible word, I’m sorry—but that’s what I wanted to do,” he explains.
In Nevada, Morris built Wyld’s facilities in trailers on a Native American reservation for $200,000 and a royalty fee. He sent three employees from HQ in a van, and hired a local sales rep. Within 45 days, Wyld became Nevada’s best-selling edible.
Next, Morris sent seven employees in three vans with $400,000 in cash to open its California operation in a defunct prison co-owned by a cannabis company and Damian Marley. (Wyld now has its own facility in Sacramento.)
In March 2020, Colorado approved Wyld’s cannabis license and the company opened its $750,000 facility with nine employees.
Brand Development: WYLD’s brand image, which resonates with the active lifestyle and wellness sectors, appealing broadly within the cannabis market.
Instead of creating an entirely new brand, Joseph and Morris decided to save money and create a mirror image of their spirits company. (They had to keep the companies separate for legal reasons—Wild Roots’ bank and insurer almost stopped working with the distiller because of its close ties with cannabis.) They sourced fruit from Wild Roots at a good price and, like many cannabis startups, decided to do their own sales and distribution out of Kaza’s car to cut costs. Wyld couldn’t afford to grow its own cannabis, nor did it have the money to make its own THC oil, so they decided the company wouldn’t be vertically integrated.
Success Milestones: The pandemic, their marketing, and testament to high quality ingredients all contributed to WYLD bing the best selling gummy on the market, and their expansion across the US has been explosive.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/willyakowicz/2020/09/29/meet-wyld-the-edible-that-devoured-america/?sh=3e132ee6412c