NUWU Sessions: David Tuttleman of Matrix NV - Looking towards the future of cannabis
Welcome to NuWu Sessions, where we invite guests to enjoy one of our top-shelf table packages in Las Vegas' first and only cannabis consumption lounge: The Vegas Tasting Room.
In today's episode, we've asked the C.E.O. of Matrix, David Tuttleman, to come by and get high. We'll discuss his introduction to the cannabis industry, how he became the C.E.O. of Matrix, and his future plans for one of the top cannabis brands in Nevada. It's only here on NuWu Sessions, so let's get into it!
Introducing David Tuttleman
Where did you grow up?
David Tuttleman is now the C.E.O. of Matrix NV, one of the longest-standing cannabis brands in Nevada. Still, David had humble beginnings before becoming a C.E.O. He was born and raised in mainline Philadelphia. He was the youngest of 5 in a Jewish family. He decidedly became an entrepreneur at the early age of 7, selling snow cones and quickly expanding to selling popcorn in grade school. David said, "I was always selling, but I was mostly selling bird whistles more than anything else."
After high school, David went to Philadelphia College, majoring in Production Management. That led him to move up through the women's apparel industry ranks and work overseas extensively. Before starting the cannabis industry, he gained an extensive record by working in other fields. He studied the manufacturing process, which prepared him for the marijuana business. While traversing through his career, he gained skills in manufacturing, retail, design, importing, operations, accounting, and other aspects of production that he could master.
After working through the ranks in women's apparel, he pivoted towards the restaurant business. He created a concept called "Kahunaville," a tropical oasis of food and fun. The company was a success in Delaware, and M.G.M. Mirage Corporation scouted him to open up a second Kahunaville on Treasure Island. Kahunaville was a trailblazing restaurant that David worked on for 17 years. When the restaurant chapter closed, David then made his most recent pivot towards the medical and, later on, the recreational cannabis industry.
Believing in the cannabis industry
Do you consume? How did you get started with cannabis?
While working in Kahunavilla, David had a mentee, Evan Marder, who led him into the cannabis industry, and they founded the business together. Evan cultivated a tremendous amount of strains and brought them into Matrix NV. At the same time, David handled the marketing and production for the company. But before creating Matrix NV or even considering cannabis as a business venture, David had a different experience with cannabis that altered how he viewed it.
David enjoyed cannabis regularly to help with inflammation and other physical ailments. He shared his love of cannabis with his sister Jan, and she would regularly visit him to get edibles, especially on her visits to Las Vegas to celebrate. Still, his relationship with the industry changed when his sister contracted terminal brain cancer.
Jan was on her deathbed, her state was rapidly declining, and when David visited her in the hospital, the first thing she requested was some edibles. David immediately went to a local dispensary and bought her some brownies. Though no one wanted to serve Jan any edibles in the hospital, David gave them to her, and within the hour, he noticed her perking up from the bed.
Later that day, Jan asked for lobster (a small feat after getting edibles), and she was able to eat a home-cooked meal that David made for her and the rest of the family. Even in that tragic moment, they could come together as a family and have a happy moment because Jan was not in pain. She was able to get relief on her deathbed.
Jan passed away a few days later, but the moment left an impression on David that marked his desire to make a difference with cannabis. That was the moment he decided to enter the medical marijuana market. David states, "I am a believer in adult choice, and I have a lot of choices to make, and I choose to be in this business, in this place, and this state. That's why I'm here, and you have seen that passion since day one of Matrix NV. It will show in our people, our product, and coming out of my mouth."
Disney always said, "You could dream, design, create and build the most wonderful place on Earth, but it's the people that make that dream a reality."
The origins & challenges of Matrix NV
Why don't we let the people at home know what year you formed Matrix? What challenges were you faced with when starting Matrix NV?
David mentions that they've always been early in pioneering industries. In 2014 they were working on the concept that would become Matrix NV; in 2015, they were getting their facility open. "It really was the best of times!" It was just David and Evan in the early days with a Matrix sign in a shared office space. David was constantly traveling between Delaware and Las Vegas while building the business. He understood that all it took was creating a path full of "yes" from stakeholders to make the project happen.
The first challenge was finding a location. Finding a place to grow and a landlord willing to believe in the business's future was challenging since cannabis was still illegal. David said, "It was tough because there were a lot of organizations that wouldn't rent to you; many were looking for bigger clients. There was a lot of competition towards the same buildings."
They were able to find a beautiful building in North Las Vegas. The landlord was a private person, but the warehouse was more than enough for David and Evan to start production. The next challenge came with the application process to produce and sell medical marijuana. Evan was diligent with the application process and worked tirelessly to finish the application. Once the application and the funds were acquired, they started the company's construction, design, engineering, and production.
Managing every part of the business proved to be a challenge. David knew he had to manage everything simultaneously, so he decided to invest in what he considered the most essential part of the business. "To manage everything simultaneously, it takes the people. This is a co-op. It takes high-cooperative groups of people to do the job," David states.
"But truly, the joy of the experience of sitting here. It's early, but it's a real presence to be able to talk, smoke, and be legal!" - David Tuttleman
David then spoke about what it takes to build a company in a brand-new industry. "You know, in a marriage, you can raise a much different family with a very committed spouse. I've raised 4 kids, and I'm raising 2 younger ones now. Without the incredible support of my wife and her abilities and diligence, you have to work together and not fight each other. It's got to be a team, which relates to ownership and management, and different levels of management, from the budtenders to the security. I mean, the pain points are numerous. Anything good and bad can happen at any moment. And it's capturing the good things that happen, repeating them, and trying to duplicate them. It's minimizing the bad ones."
Another challenge David mentions is consistency in this industry while continuing to innovate. Once consistency is built, the next goal is to create new marketing and creative endeavors for the brand to stay relevant. Yet, David sees marketing in a different light. He states, "I don't want to spend a bunch of money on billboards or spend ridiculously like many people do when they come to town. I'd rather spend it on my people and on the product."
How did you land on the name Matrix NV?
David said that the name for the brand was entirely Evan Marder's doing. Evan wanted to create something science-based, and it worked. David worked extensively with Joe, another early hire to the Matrix team, to make the branding for the company. Though David mentions that they are now working on rejuvenating the brand and giving it a contemporary look.
He mentions that when creating a brand, you have to be consistent. "The branding doesn't just end at the front of the house. I see many restaurants where you go in the back, and there is no recognition of what's happening out front."
Words of wisdom and the future of Matrix NV
What do you think it takes to create a successful cannabis company?
Consistency and quality are two critical things to creating a successful cannabis company. David states, "We are definitely quality players, and we do this at a quality level that can be respectable. I am not doing this just to pay the rent. This is not about that. This is all about the future. This has always been a long-term project for me and all those at Matrix."
So, what is the future?
David said, "I want to survive, first and foremost. I want to keep bringing great products to folks like yourselves and your audience. I want to innovate the product and product types and create a more robust and contemporary brand. And I want to be out there kissing babies, shaking hands, representing cannabis, and loving every minute!
Meeting folks like yourselves, talking to people like your audience, and being able to just connect. It's so much fun. It's so much gratitude. And when you can make choices in your life, and I can because I've worked my ass off, and I've been doing this for a while. This is the choice I make. This is a place I want to be, a market, and an industry that I think is amazing. So the future is, we're going to be ourselves, we're going to be quality, we're going to keep delivering, and we're going to innovate."
What would your words of wisdom be for the next generation of cannabis entrepreneurs?
His final advice to entrepreneurs of all kinds is, "Start at the beginning, create a path, find a community. Build friendships that hopefully bring you some joy, but stick to it. Come at it slowly and steadily, but if you want to get into this industry, you have to start in parts of this industry that you may not end up with. And most people with passion that can be productive and smart enough can make their way here.
Don't overconsume. The whole wake and bake; some people can do that, but I cannot do it at all. Start slow and get your tolerance up for work and your tolerance up for the product. Create yourself some energy and community. That is a way for anybody looking into this business, but you must consider where you are. You are not going to come out being a budtender, or a dispensary manager, or run marketing. Those are wonderful ideas but start at the beginning. Start slow and be persistent, and when you find that community, you'll find that joy. If you find that joy, you'll find the strength and tenacity to keep it up, and I've never said it like that before, and here you are. Completely unscripted. That's how I feel about it. It may sound very staged, but it's what I'm doing. I'm not a Hollywood actor playing some role of a weed grower, this is my life, and I choose to live my life this way. It starts slow."
Finally, can you let the people know where they can find you and where they can find Matrix?
David's last message was that "the home of Matrix is NuWu. Come to NuWu, and really, you'll find everything you need. I have a lot of friends downtown, but for today I'll tell you, NuWu and their team, their budtenders, their managers, marketing, everyone supports us, so we support them. Come to NuWu, and you'll find everything you need from Matrix."
And that was our NuWu Sessions with David Tuttleman, the C.E.O., and co-founder of Matrix NV. Make sure to check out their website here to get to know their brand a little better, and for all your Matrix needs, don't forget to check out our NuWu Downtown and NuWu North locations today! To learn more about David Tuttleman and to keep up with his journey in the cannabis industry, follow him on Instagram @DZZTUT.
We'll see you next time!