Page 56 - Southern Oregon Magazine Fall 2021

neck of the woods | in the biz

The Stricklers are focused on attaining those goals in every 10,000lbs annually in Michigan by the end of 2022.”
aspect of their business. Many of their employees have been with
the company since the beginning, and they now offer employee The Stricklers have invested heavily in systems and teams to drive effi-
benefits. Obie and Sarah have built a solid foundation for success ciencies that led to industry-leading economics. They operate in states
beyond the Rogue Valley and Southern Oregon. They also have with some of the lowest wholesale margins in the United States, yet
a facility in Michigan. Michigan might seem like a distant choice, but have established industry-leading gross margins of 70%+ and EBITDA
the Stricklers chose that space for multiple reasons. They had ties to of 25%+. EBITDA stands for earnings before interest, taxes, deprecia-
the market, knew that Michigan was right on the cusp of transition- tion, and amortization. EBITDA margins provide investors a snapshot
ing from the medical space to the recreational market. They found a of short-term operational efficiency. The EBITDA margin assesses a
business partner who aligned and shared many of the same qualities company’s operating profitability as a percentage of its total revenue.
and values as Grown Rogue. They also see Michigan as an excellent Adjusted EBITDA, on the other hand, indicates “top line” earnings
choice for the potential of export in the future. Between the facilities before deducting interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization.
in Southern Oregon and Michigan, they employ over 120 people with
some seasonal fluctuation. The numbers for the company continue to grow as efficiency improves.
Q3 closed with three million in revenue and $750,000 EBITA. These
“We call Southern Oregon home, and it’s where we have our head- results are starting to be recognized as investors begin to focus less on
quarters; it’s where we started and where we’re from! In fact, Obie promotion and more on businesses and teams that drive tangible results.
and I were both born and raised here, in the Illinois Valley and Ashland, Plus, now that the Stricklers have a proven, flower-forward business
respectively, and it’s where we’re raising our own family. When we model, they can transfer their knowledge to new markets. A consid-
started Grown Rogue, we wanted to work towards shaping and chang- eration for expansion to states beyond Oregon and Michigan lies in the
ing how cannabis is seen here in our region. At the time, it had such opportunities for potential export.
a negative stigma surrounding it and was hidden in the shadows. So,
we set forth to build a company that our community, our friends, our Regarding the vision for Grown Rogue, the Stricklers say, “We have the
families, and ourselves could stand by and be proud of. We believe in opportunity to shape the cannabis industry into how we want it to fit into
transparency, honesty, trust, and quality, and those are the foundation our community. We want it to be a part of the rich historical agricultural
that Grown Rogue is built on,” says Sarah. industry this region is known for. We see cannabis as the next evolution
in the chain of timber, pears, grapes, and hops. As a region, “all ships can
Currently, Grown Rogue products are distrib- rise,” from tourism to restaurants, to shops, hotels, rafting, Shakespeare,
uted in over 250 dispensaries across Oregon Britt, wineries, and so many other attractions this valley has to offer.
and Michigan. They focus on wholesale sales to We’re just getting started, and there is so much more. Southern Oregon
dispensaries and employ sales directors in both is poised to be a major distributor of cannabis once it’s federally legal to
states that lead sales teams who sell a wide vari- transfer products to another state. The impacts on our local, regional,
ety of their products. There are over 600 dis- and state economies could be massive. We’re ready to be a part of that!”
pensaries in Oregon and 400 in Michigan, and
retail partners are added every week. You’ll
find their products in many dispensaries throughout Oregon, including
Portland, and they encourage you to request Grown Rogue by name.
www.GrownRogue.com
“We take a different approach than most around our retail partners.
For us, it’s about providing the best service possible and ensuring that
we can be a consistent and reliable partner, so we add shops very stra-
tegically. We live by the “fewer is better” model for the partners we
work with in both states. Even with that approach, we have tripled our
production here in Oregon in just over six months. We brought on a
new indoor facility in February of this year and completed our other
indoor facility as well. We’ve also brought a lot of new strains into the
fold, allowing our sales team to have a more diverse portfolio to sell
from. In fact, we have over 40 unique cultivars at the moment, and
we are adding more all the time as we increase our genetic library.”
explain the Stricklers. “Currently, we produce more indoor than out-
door. Our Oregon business is on a run rate of approximately 7,500lbs
indoors annually, with outdoor at 5,000lbs annually. We anticipate
increasing this next year to 9,000lbs and 6,000lbs, respectively. In
Michigan, our current run rate is approximately 5,000lbs of indoor
(no outdoor). We expect to exit this year around 6,000lbs annually as
we continue to expand, and our current plan forecasts to be around

54 www.southernoregonmagazine.com | fall 2021