Interview with David Gonzalez

Interview with David Gonzalez - Founder and Head of Growth at Fizzy THC and Hemp House MN

What inspired the creation of Fizzy THC, and how does your personal story intertwine with its founding?

David: To be completely candid, the creation of Fizzy THC was a large byproduct of timing and luck. I’m sure many entrepreneurial journeys start that way, but I think it’s important to acknowledge how fortunate we were. 

Before diving into cannabis, I worked in the Shopify App ecosystem. In particular, I was working on e-commerce software. I was able to do product management, product marketing, and growth marketing, which showed me the importance of truly understanding your customers, how to tap into growth levers after establishing product market fit, and how to bring something from 0 to 1. 

One of the segments I worked closely with was the cannabis and vape segment. I learned about all the complexities of using ‘mainstream’ tools like Shopify and Square while being in the cannabis industry. I was blown away by all the landmines retailers had to be cognizant of and how starkly different it is to sell a bong versus a T-shirt. 

While this was happening, my home state Minnesota, inadvertently passed legislation that legalized the manufacture and sale of products containing hemp-derived THC - edibles, drinks, capsules, etc. 

Again, luck and timing. 

Two of my close friends were perfectly positioned to capitalize on that groundbreaking development. Particularly, I had a friend who happened to own a vitamin/supplement manufacturing facility with a tablet press that was hemp-certified. I also had another friend who had launched a CBD/Hemp dispensary that was starting to take off and they had an incredible pulse on the industry and knew which products people wanted that hadn’t hit the market yet. 

So one day, while we were out at a brewery trying out a THC seltzer, I went ‘Man, wouldn’t it be cool if we could just make our own THC drinks?’ and that question set the groundwork for Fizzy THC tablets. We thought about it, and sure, tinctures exist, and stick packs like Ripple exist, but what didn’t really exist yet or where would there be less competition? 

And we ultimately settled on dissolvable beverage tablets - in particular something you could add to ANY drink. Something discrete, something small, something you take with you anywhere. 

So after months of working behind the scenes, we finally launched Fizzy THC-dissolvable beverage tablets. We launched our Shopify store on 4/20 and launched with our first retailer, Hemp House. 

Could you share a key challenge in your journey with Fizzy THC and the pivotal moment of overcoming it?

David: One of the hardest things about launching a new product or brand is the learning curve. It’s drinking from a fire hose. You don’t truly know your ideal customer profile yet, you don’t know what demand will look like, you don’t know your most profitable channels, you don’t know the people and players, and in cannabis, there aren’t as many playbooks as other industries. You don’t know what you don’t know. 

For example, when we launched, we ran the Lean Startup playbook. We put together an MVP (minimum viable product), got it into consumers' hands, and asked for feedback. As an entrepreneur, you’re very vulnerable when you put something out into the world and get feedback on it. The tough part was our tablets had to be soft enough to dissolve but hard enough to not break down during transit. When we first launched, we had a handful of customers frustrated that their tablets had turned to powder during shipping. 

As a founder, when your product doesn’t meet expectations, it’s tough. You take it personally. But if you learn anything in software, it’s ‘get it out there, iron out the kinks, make it better, and scale it’. So that’s what we did. We re-shaped the tablets, we tweaked the formulation, and we tested it to the point where we knew it was scalable and it’s been taking off ever since. 

How did you approach creating Fizzy THC's unique products and brand identity to resonate deeply with your audience?

David: We knew we had something interesting with our product since there were no other dissolvable beverage tablet options, really, at least in the Minnesota market. We knew of stick packs, powders, tinctures, drops, etc, but not dissolvable beverage tablets. That’s an important distinction because it’s something we missed early. 

Early on, our brand identity revolved around control/choice - ‘make your own THC beverage out of any drink’. Over time, we realized that value prop wasn’t as unique as we thought. There’s a whole ‘beverage enhancer’ category. So we leaned into something else, which was ‘freedom’ and ‘rebelliousness’ - not only can you make your own THC beverage, but you can do it in places you’re not supposed to (like a sporting arena) or aren’t allowed (like an Airplane). 

Once we had more use cases of customers using our product in the wild, we had a much better idea of our unique selling position, and that helped us improve our brand identity. But full disclosure, our brand will be evolving, most people don’t get branding right in the first 8 months, so it’s time for us to make some improvements. Stay tuned. 

In marketing Fizzy THC, what unconventional strategies have proven most effective in telling your brand's story?

David: Experiential marketing is the winning formula. 

All things considered, THC beverages and by extension, THC-infused dissolvable tablets are still relatively new. So a big challenge is understanding the psychology of the consumer and understanding where these products fit into their everyday lives. 

In essence, our goal is to replace ‘something’ in that consumer’s life, whether it’s a beer, a joint, a non-alcoholic beverage, a morning coffee, you name it. People want to know how products like THC beverages or dissolvable tablets fit into their routine and when they should be enjoying them. 

So while I wouldn’t classify these strategies as unconventional, per se, I do think that experiential marketing goes a lot further than simply just focusing on the product. 

As an example, two of our biggest sales days were when I posted two videos from my phone on LinkedIn. One was me getting Fizzy tablets through TSA and making a THC beverage on a plane. The other was when I took Fizzy tablets through security at a Vikings game and dropped one at the stadium. 

These weren’t omnichannel marketing campaigns, there was no SMART goal attached to posting, it was just a tangible example of how our product can be used and enjoyed. To me, this category needs more of that. 

How do you ensure genuine community engagement and customer connection as Fizzy THC grows?

David: This boils down to understanding your end user. 

As stated above, the big reason we knew to lean into ‘portability’ as our unique selling position instead of leaning more into ‘choice’, was because customers told us to. Product reviews, reaching out to customers, meeting them in person at events, etc, all gave us insight into the situations and reasons why people would have fizzy tablets. 

We learned from a customer that she gave up drinking and that made her feel isolated and left out - particularly at events. With Fizzy, she was able to infuse a beverage, have fun, and unwind, and they used a Viking game as an example. So without that engagement and without that customer connection, we would’ve been shouting a message that wouldn’t have resonated with our target audience. 

Can you tell us about Hemp House MN? Growth and future plans?

David: I can share a little but not too much ;) 

Hemp House MN is a chain of hemp dispensaries in Minnesota that I (now) co-own with 2 other partners. We have 3 physical brick-and-mortar locations and a booming online store. We carry over 750+ delta-9 THC SKUs, with nearly 200 of those being beverages. We also do things like local delivery + curbside pickup. 

We’ve been able to grow our customer base to over 25,000 people over 2 years and we don’t plan to stop. Specifically, we’ll continue to grow our online store and continue to expand beyond our favorite state. 

We want to give THC beverages a retail partner and channel they can depend on, grow with, and form true partnerships with. We aren’t a run-of-the-mill liquor store or smoke shop that takes your product and hopes someone grabs it off the shelf.

We actively find ways to co-market with brands, get products in front of the right audience, and share data back with brands so they know how they’re doing, how they compare, and where they could improve. 

How do you use data to inform your decisions both for Fizzy THC and at Hemp House?

David: Data fuels everything we do. Without it, we’d just be guessing. 

I have a lot of examples but the one that comes to mind the most is a campaign we did after we noticed something out in the wild. 

One day, we saw an order come through our online store for a local delivery that was for close to $3,000 in product. Out of curiosity, we joined the driver for the delivery so we could see what was going on. Lo and behold, we pull up to a retirement community, and an elderly lady is waiting for us. 

This individual was ordering in bulk so she could share with the rest of her community. 

That small example led us to look through our data to see if people 55 and up were coming into the store or buying regularly. Turns out they were. So, instead of hitting them with emails or ads on social, we printed out some good old-fashioned direct mail. We picked mail routes near retirement communities and ended up dropping off close to 40,000 flyers. 

That wound up working like a charm. 

So when we talk about the importance of data, it’s not just the quantitative, but the qualitative as well. 

Reflecting on your entrepreneurial path, what advice would you give to aspiring founders in the cannabis industry?

David: Start. 

It sounds simple, but people will spend days/months/years agonizing over an idea only to watch it pass them by. Just start. It will be messy, it’ll be unpredictable, and it’ll be a disaster. But disaster before master is how you make something great. 

Start, learn, mess up, get better, network, and just know, that all these people you most likely look up to, don’t have it all figured out. But they show up every day. 

Once you start, believe. Believe you can do things you haven’t before, believe in your ideas, and don’t let others stand in your way. 

Besides Fizzy, what’s the product you’ve been drinking most recently, not necessarily your favorite, just what have you been consuming the most in the last few weeks?

David: That’s like asking a parent who their favorite child is… 

I’m a sucker for Wunder’s Higher Vibes, but lately, I’ve had a mildly concerning addiction to Crooked’s 10 mg Berry Hibiscus drink. It’s just lightly carbonated, almost like juice, but the flavor…there’s just something about it that keeps me coming back for more.